SSLCs and the Students' Union
The SSLC system is at the centre of the Students’ Union’s work. Feedback from the SSLC system enables the Union to identify problems within Faculties that might otherwise go unnoticed.
Where SSLCs Fit into the Students' Union Structure
The Students' Union’s Education Officer, Postgraduate officer and the Academic Representation Co-ordinator co-ordinate all student academic representation and are supported by Faculty Representatives. The information that SSLCs feed into the Union’s representative structure is crucial to enable discussion of key issues at Students’ Union and senior University meetings.
For 2017-18, the Education Officer is Liam Jackson and Postgraduate Officer is Emily Dunford.
The Education and Postgraduate Officers are full-time student representatives with primary responsibility for all of the Students’ Union’s work on matters relating to education, both internally and externally – on a national level. The full-time Officers provide advice and support to Faculty representatives and SSLC Chairs and Secretaries in the operation of individual SSLCs.
The Education and Postgraduate Officers represent students on the highest academic committees in the University (the Boards of Undergraduate and Graduate Studies, Academic Quality and Standards Committee and Senate).
Faculty Representatives
Each Faculty has an undergraduate and postgraduate representative. Faculty Reps need to receive the minutes after each SSLC meeting to enable them to identify unresolved departmental SSLC concerns, Faculty-wide issues and examples of good practice. Faculty Reps will try to visit as many SSLC meetings as possible during the year. If the SSLC would value their advice on an issue, they should be invited to attend the relevant meeting. It is the Faculty Rep’s job to attend and represent students at Faculty Board meetings. If an SSLC matter is not resolved at departmental level, it can be referred to the relevant Faculty Board. The Faculty Rep can also ensure that issues specific to the Library, Careers Service, Academic Office or IT Services are raised at the University Resources SSLC or Students’ Union Liaison Group.
The role of the Faculty representative is an important one. Faculty reps need to maintain oversight of SSLCs within their Faculty at either undergraduate or postgraduate level as their role dictates, in order to be able to identify common issues raised within different SSLCs in order that they might be raised at the relevant University Faculty committees, or with the Students’ Union Education or Postgraduate Officers. Faculty reps also provide advice to SSLC Chairs and Secretaries on the operation of SSLCs.
To support them in their work, Faculty reps should feel able to call upon the support of the SSLC Coordinators where this may be required to help determine the most appropriate course of action to take in response to particular issues or concerns raised by students.