We love hearing student feedback about what’s working well or suggestions for improvements to keep making your experience at BU better. Your insights are helping to shape courses and services for current and future students. Here are a few examples of how your feedback has made a difference.
Timetabling
We’ve listened to the realities students face across all faculties, especially the need to work alongside your studies. As a result, we’ve introduced changes to timetables, which have resulted in fewer teaching hours after 5pm by 4% when compared to 2024/25 and there has been a 15% reduction since the 2023/2024 academic year. Going forward, we will continue to look at how we can reduce teaching after 5pm further, as well as focusing on cutting days with only one hour of teaching.
Creating a timetable that works for nearly 17,000 students and 1,500 staff is a complex task. A number of factors influence the complexity, including the design of the curriculum, the number of optional units and learning and teaching that require specialist facilities. Our next task will be to look at how to reduce teaching after 5pm and reduce days with only one hour of teaching.
Marking and assessments
We know it’s important for students to have real clarity around assessments so you can do your best work. Based on your feedback, we’ve introduced new assessment and support resources in all units on Brightspace. This brings together all the assessment guidance areas with corresponding links, for example, APA referencing, use of Generative AI, extensions and IT support. You can find all this information under the Assessment module on Brightspace.
We have introduced a new assessment/coursework brief template to ensure consistency in what information is provided to students about different assessment tasks, including a clear expectation that marking criteria is included in the brief. The new template has helped to streamline coursework briefs, supporting clear signposting of key information about assessments in a standardised way across all units. Briefs are now more concise and provide more clarity about what is expected of you.
Laptop loan scheme
In response to student feedback and recommendations from SUBU, we have relaunched a Laptop Loan service for students.
The previous scheme, which allowed students to loan a laptop for several hours, was discontinued as a result of low uptake from students and the age of the technology. However, its removal left some students without access to essential technology.
The new service, which launched in September 2025, allows you to loan laptops for a two-week loan period.
Rent guarantor scheme
Following initial feedback that some international students were having difficulties finding a guarantor to support their accommodation contracts, BU has negotiated a discount for all BU students (UK and international) with Housing Hand, a private guarantor company. A guarantor is a person who agrees to secure or ‘guarantee’ your accommodation contract. What this means is, if you don’t pay your rent, the guarantor will be required to pay it. Many private landlords require a guarantor who lives in the UK.
Other changes we’ve made have been more specific to individual courses. You can find out we’ve responded to feedback related to your programme on Brightspace. Look for 'Student Voice Logs' section in the faculty area on Brightspace, where you’ll find a document from your programme or school’s Student Staff Forum, which summarises student feedback and agreed actions.
