Your Voice
Course Reps
Your voice on your course. Course reps represent their course mates on academic issues, and they are trained and supported by SMSU.
What are Course Reps?
Course reps are selected at the start of each academic year to represent their course mates from their year and their course on academic issues.
Course reps gather the views of their peers and then pass on this feedback to their academics, SMSU and their Subject Chairs.
- Every yearSelected at the start of each academic year
- Your courseThey represent their course mates from their year and their course
- Backed by SMSUAll course reps are trained and supported by SMSU
What do Course Reps do?
The main responsibilities of a course rep are to:
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Listen
Talk to other students in their cohort to find out how they’re finding their studies
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Meet
Meet with academic staff and attend appropriate meetings to pass on feedback
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Close the loop
Close the feedback loop by communicating any changes back to their cohort
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Escalate
Stay in touch with SMSU and their Subject Chair and escalate issues as necessary
What can you share with your rep?
Feedback can include anything from the availability of learning resources, to course content or structure, to assessment issues.
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Learning resources
Whether the resources you need to study and learn are available to you.
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Course content or structure
What your course covers and how it is put together.
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Assessment issues
How you are assessed, and anything about it that isn’t working.
Not sure it counts? If it’s about your academic studies, it’s worth telling your course rep.
How your feedback gets heard
Your course rep takes what you and your course mates tell them to the people who can act on it, then comes back to tell you what happened.
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Step 1: You
Tell your course rep how you’re finding your studies.
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Step 2: Your course rep
Gathers the views of your year and your course.
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Step 3: Academics, SMSU and your Subject Chair
Hear the feedback, and issues are escalated as necessary.
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Step 4: SMSU Education President
Subject Chairs make sure feedback flows through to your Education President.
Then they close the loop. Any changes are communicated back to you and the rest of your cohort.
Who else is here for you
- Subject ChairsOur academic representation leaders. They support course reps, and there is one for each faculty or school.Find your Subject Chair
- Education PresidentResponsible for improving your academic experience at St Mary’s.Meet your Education President
- Feedback on your courseAdd your voice and share feedback on your course. You will need to sign in.Share your feedback
- Petitions & ideasSuggest a change for wider student life, or start a petition.Have your say
Need help with something personal?
Course reps share the views of a whole course. If you need help with something that’s just about you, such as an academic misconduct allegation or an appeal, our Advice team provides free, independent and confidential advice on academic matters.
Celebrating our reps
Course reps are recognised at the SMSU Awards, which include Undergraduate and Postgraduate Course Rep of the Year. See the SMSU Awards
Want to find out more?
Curious about the role, or want to know more about how course reps work? We’re happy to help.
