At the recent extraordinary meeting of our Education Zone on Thursday 08 February, we voted to support the industrial action by the University and Colleges Union (UCU), standing in solidarity with academic staff not only from Southampton but across the UK also who are taking what is a last-resort action to protect their pensions.
The presentation which was shown at the Education Zone meeting can be found here, and goes through the context of the strike in more detail.

We will be sending representatives to meet with the local UCU branch to discuss ways in which we can … Read the rest

UPDATE 22/02/18: A second blog detailing the ‘teach-outs’ organised with UCU can be found here

On Thursday 08 February 2018, our Education Zone met for an extraordinary meeting of the Zone to discuss the recent announcement of industrial action by the University and Colleges Union (UCU).

The Education Zone is one of our groups of elected student representatives who makes decision on specific academic issues on behalf of the student body. This is where previous instances of industrial actions have been discussed. The meeting was also attended by a number of students, and we’d like to extend our thanks to … Read the rest

Nominations for our Summer Elections are now open – you have until Wednesday 4^th May to nominate yourself for one of hundreds of positions that will equip you with new skills and impact on the experience of your fellow students.

If you’ve never considered becoming part of the Students’ Union team, here is just a snapshot of what our Course Reps have achieved for students.

Law

• Secured extended opening times for the Law building during exam periods.

Chemistry

• Secured print credit from the Faculty for all students on this course.

 Electronics & Computer Science

• Worked with University staff to

Last night saw SUSU host our annual Excellence in Teaching Awards (ETAs) and the return of Course Rep Awards (CRAs)

Students were invited to submit nominations through the SUSU website for academic staff within five categories: Outstanding Lecturer, Teaching and Learning Lifetime Achievement, Innovative Teaching, Best Feedback Provision and Contribution to Academic Support.

Students were also invited to submit nominations for Course Reps within six categories including Most committed to raising the profile of Education Zone, Commitment to the Zone (x3),Best Team of Academic Representatives, Best Individual commitment to the cause (x4) and Academic Rep of the Year.

The awards … Read the rest

As you may know, some members of staff at the university have been involved in an assessment boycott since the 7^th November, over changes to lecturer’s pensions. In the last few hours, UCU (the University and College union) has agreed to suspend the current industrial action until the 15^th January.

We know that this is a complex dispute, and we want to make sure that you aren’t kept in the dark about what’s going on. Here are some of the most common questions, answered.

Why is the boycott suspended?

UCU has suspended the boycott because this … Read the rest