University of the West of England — Attraction in Great Britain

I studied at UWE 2021- 2023 and it seems predominately only international students have something good to say so they must be doing something right with those who pay more! The first year studying Criminology was expected due to Covid and everything was online which is understandable, but the second and third year was inexplainable with up to 4 hours of face to face learning a week (everything else being online) Getting hold of staff was also a massive issue. The second year we were promised to have more face to face as guidelines were being lifted, and the government gave the go to for university’s to really make up for the lack of efficient teaching Covid caused- meaning increase face to face learning. This effected myself in particular and a majority of my peers confidence, motivation and ambition as we really thought we were going to get the best of help they could give.

Second year they sent out a menti poll to gather a general consensus from students based on online and in person lectures to navigate which method of learning students preferred. We have to pay nearly 10 THOUSANDS POUNDS based on students thoughts after nearly two years of the pandemic which prevented socialisation and caused a lazy mindset! This is university! It was unprofessional and so stupid. We just felt like Guinea pigs and unimportant! Also to note all other social sciences and courses got more in person learning.

Despite the numerous complaining in emails from myself and peers to the head of Criminology (including my parents and their parents) Covid was still an excuse after a year when other universities would be trying their best to organise more face to face. Bearing in mind in UWE hundreds would be sharing the library at the same time and canteen etc. This was no problem with the staff who chose to complain about Covid being an issue when we could not share a lecture room. We were then given excuses such as too many student were not turning up to face to face seminars which was why we were given online seminars. Students did not turn up to this either and those who did there was a predominate lack of participation of those who hid behind their screens not speaking. There would only be two or three people speaking in a large group when separated in teams. People would either lose internet or just leave as no one was learning anything. They should have just let the face to face learning continue as students were beginning to be lazy and not turn up as they were probably so used to online seminars.

A lot of students on my course felt failed so they didn’t have the motivation to come in- me included i admit. Despite this negative there still was lecturers who tried their best particularly in the module Prisons. Another recurring theme in lecturers though was biass and felt as though there was a lot of judgment on beliefs and ideas in feedback on our work. There was cases where the lecturer at some points forgot to upload the lectures online so when we came in for our seminars we had no clue.

To top it off a majority of the staff were striking which was handled terribly, especially during dissertation season (which they moved forward so they could have less work to mark at the same time in March) sending students into absolute panic mode as many still didn’t know what to do. Especially when all supervisors were on strike so a lot didn’t get the help they should’ve and to guide them. I was lucky enough to have a great supervisor who just started to teach that year where despite my struggles with motivation Craig really helped me do my best during the most difficult period and fortunately I received a grade i was happy and was completely unexpected with in my diss. Unfortunately, I can’t say the same for most people I know who did not receive the guidance they needed.

A lot of complaints were ignored although the replies received often came across as patronising and treated you like you’re stupid. They don’t have the time to deal with your issues because they have too many students to look after who have other...

!!!!!Before choosing this university, make sure you do your research, ESPECIALLY if you require ADDITIONAL SUPPORT!!!

My time at this university was extremely disappointing and, frankly, a waste of £20,000 and two years of my life. I started my degree with clear concerns about my academic needs, particularly essay writing, and was assured that proper academic, housing, and pastoral support would be provided. Unfortunately, these promises were not kept.

From the outset, I requested additional academic help and was assigned a support tutor. By Christmas of my first year, I was told I had already used my allocated 8 hours of support and would need to join a waiting list of over 300 students for any further assistance. For someone who was transparent about their needs, this was incredibly discouraging.

Housing was another major issue. While most students were placed in flats with people on the same course or with similar interests, I was put in a block where no one studied my subject. To make matters worse, I received a final warning for a fire alarm incident caused by a faulty oven—something I had reported when I moved in.

Financially, things were no better. Despite being close to qualifying for additional funding, I only received the minimum amount, forcing me to work 25 hours a week just to afford basic living costs. The university also repeatedly misadvised me about funds and schemes I was supposedly eligible for, leading to multiple rejections and unnecessary embarrassment.

The lack of support and the stress of working long hours took a toll on my mental health. I failed my first year, and although my parents met with the Vice Chancellor and were given apologies and promises of change, none of this materialized. Even after being asked to share my story directly with senior staff, my follow-up emails were ignored.

When I repeated the year, support was virtually non-existent apart from the occasional meeting with the course leader, who was the only real positive throughout this entire experience. By February, I felt I was heading for another failure and made the very difficult decision to leave. Now, I’m £20,000 in debt with nothing to show for it other than “we’re sorry we couldn’t help.”

Before choosing this university, make sure you do your research. I later discovered that it has one of the highest depression rates among UK universities, which sadly doesn’t surprise me. My experience was a complete letdown, and I would strongly advise anyone considering this university to think very carefully...

Let's start with GOOD THINGS ( an undergraduate course in CSCT ) Lecturers are good at explaining, especially theory. Fresh lecturers give good importance as to clearing your doubts. Course content and materials are good. There are ample spaces in library for one to study. Examinations are Ok. Good amount of talks by large firms.

BAD THING:- The major problem i have been through. One of the cores of CSCT is coding or programming which i feel they are not good at delivering or in fact bad(carelessness). The lecturers who are experienced and been with uni for many years are not enthusiastic about teaching coding to students during practicals, there is no proper mentoring, neither they are concerned about student's development. So If a mentor is telling me to study on my own with ignorance on his part and telling me that there is help online on google etc. without having me understand the basics. How will i study on my own? and also what is the point of wasting my tuition fees on careless and useless staff then? I have been through this nightmare and In my case same thing happened after which I lost interest and did not even bother to even ask for help or doubts to that particular tutor/mentor as they were not approachable and i lost motivation in even learning coding, this has affected my learning experience greatly, now i am stuck deciding whether i should continue with coding career or not. So if your are not taught well in first year, how will you deal with second and final year on your own? Atleast teach students coding properly so that they are able to do assignments and courseworks on their own. Right from the first year, I was feeling that i had to beg for help from others most of the time. From my experience, the personal tutors also didn't make any efforts to ensure students were happy with learning and that they were supported by their mentors. Now i will have to take a paid separate online course to learn coding properly with a proper mentor as i believe i have wasted my tuition fees here. Students should choose their university wisely rather than wasting their valuable tuition fees at such universities which don't care about your learning but only about your money. As an advice, instead of hiring "STAFF WHO ARE JUST CODE EXPERTS, HIRE THOSE WHO ARE GREAT TEACHERS WHO ARE ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT TEACHING AND SHARING...