Education
Here you can find all of the information about you studies and also what rights you have!
Academic Monitoring
What is educational advocacy?
Educational advocacy is the activity through which the section monitors, evaluates, and participates in decisions regarding the quality and content of the program’s education. The positions within the section that primarily work with educational advocacy are:
Head of Education: Drives overarching issues regarding course content, pedagogy, and examinations.
Head of Student Welfare: Works with the study environment, mental/physical health, and equal opportunities.
Head of Master’s and International Affairs: Monitors issues relating to our Master’s programs, exchange students, and internationalization.
How does educational advocacy work?
In practice, educational advocacy is about gathering students’ opinions and forwarding them to the university’s decision-making bodies. This happens in several steps: Study councils and course/safety representatives capture feedback from classes regarding everything from course content to the study environment. The issues are then brought forward to be raised in the section’s program boards and department boards, where our student representatives sit, have voting rights, and directly influence future decisions.
Why is it important?
This work is crucial for several reasons, above all because it concerns your legally protected right. According to the Higher Education Act, students have the right to exercise influence over their education, which means the university is obligated to involve us and take our views into account. Since lecturers and course coordinators do not always see things from a student perspective, educational advocacy becomes an absolute necessity for highlighting issues like an unreasonable workload, unclear grading criteria, or inadequate course literature. By voicing your opinions—whether through course evaluations or directly to your student representatives—you are actively contributing to raising the quality of both your own and future students’ education.
Student Councils
Student councils are occasions where anyone on the programme can come and talk with the Head of Academic Affairs and the Head of Student Welfare about any questions related to your studies. We hold two per term and we provide baked goods, coffee, and a safe space to talk about courses, study environment, teachers, etc.
Course and Safety Representatives
Course and safety representatives are two representatives from each year group (one per class) whose task is to gather responses from their class ahead of each course and safety representative meeting, and to discuss these with the education officer and social affairs officer at the meetings. These meetings are held at lunchtime 3–4 times per term, where free and very good lunch is provided. Course and safety representatives are an important part of academic monitoring.
Student Health Services
Starting university is incredibly fun, but it can also feel quite overwhelming at times. The Student Health Services are here to support you with everything related to student life, both inside and outside the classroom. They can assist you with student-life-related issues such as stress, insomnia, low self-confidence, performance anxiety, fear of public speaking, alcohol, or other challenges that can complicate student life.
They offer lectures, student groups, and individual counseling sessions to promote student well-being and help everyone achieve a balanced time at university. Everything they offer is free of charge, and the staff is bound by professional confidentiality, so do not hesitate to reach out if you have any questions or concerns.
If you have further questions, feel free to contact us on the board, and you can otherwise find more information about their opening hours and contact details on the university website:
Have you felt mistreated, or been treated poorly?
If so, please feel free to fill out our safety form:
We on the X board believe it is a given that you should feel safe on campus and at events organized by the X section. The Safety Form exists so that you as an X student have an easy way to bring up various issues and inform the Head of Student Welfare about incidents so that appropriate action can be taken.
In this form, you can share whether you have experienced or witnessed something you think the Head of Student Welfare or someone else on the board should know about. This could involve feeling mistreated or experiencing something uncomfortable, but thoughts and incidents regarding educational advocacy can also be raised.
The Head of Student Welfare follows the organization’s confidentiality agreement and is bound by professional secrecy. You can, of course, choose to remain anonymous in the form, but please note that no feedback can be provided in that case.
Remember that the Student Health Services are always available if you want professional help:
https://www.uu.se/student/stod-och-service/studenthalsan
The Head of Student Welfare can also be reached via email: x-soc@utn.se.