Why should you boycott the National Student Survey?

The National Student Survey (NSS) has been an issue of tension within student groups for a year now, following the release of the Green Paper that proposed drastic changes to Higher Education, a bill that would monetise education further, making university even less accessible to the most marginalised by society.

‘But how could a simple survey do all this?’, I hear you ask. Put simply, the NSS will be an instrument to rank universities into “gold”, “silver” and “bronze” categories under the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF), where universities in the top tiers can raise their fees – and no one likes a fee rise!

This is why many student groups, from the most radical to the most moderate, have chosen to boycott the NSS. Boycotting the NSS may seem an obscure tactic, but it is a simple and effective one. If less than 50% of any university’s finalists complete the survey, the collated results will be illegitimate and cannot be used to rank the university in the TEF’s rating system.

Put simply, the NSS will be an instrument to rank universities into “gold”, “silver” and “bronze” categories

This means that endeavours to raise fees- and do not be mistaken, this is very much about raising fees- would be frustrated and the government would be forced to change course somehow.

The TEF is an overall deplorable piece of legislation, manipulating the more vulnerable members of universities, but more on that later. In short, the negative attitude to the NSS stems from a disapproval of destroying our education system, but added to this, a hatred for fee rises and spam emails can’t hurt either. In fact, to opt out of these spam emails, all you need to do is visit the SU website!

Do not be mistaken, this is very much about raising fees

On a more moralistic note, the NSS also has been shown to produce worse results for academics of marginalised races and genders, since it exploits any internalised (often subconscious and unnoticed) prejudices among student bodies that are indeed encouraged by society at large.

Thus, academics of colour and who are not cisgender men often find themselves struggling within the department even if their teaching quality was as good as that of others. I’m sure no one reading this would want an academic’s prospects damaged by a questionable survey!

The NSS also has been shown to produce worse results for academics of marginalised races and genders

The other group targeted by the TEF, and by extent the NSS, is international students. Students from abroad are already charged far more than the already extortionate £9000 a year in tuition fees and universities rely on them for lots of their funding.

The government knows this and seeks to exploit it by threatening that universities who rank lower may not be allowed to accept international students or have the number they can accept capped.

The other group targeted by the TEF, and by extent the NSS, is international students

Such an action would see Business Schools and Engineering departments lose considerable profit. However because they are generally “productive” to neo-liberal universities such as Warwick, they would likely survive, whereas the smaller departments they substantiate, noticeably Arts and Humanities departments such as Languages, would lose funding.

As such, international students are used as pawns against universities and more creative departments. Surely there is an irony in international students being weaponised against Language departments particularly. This is an unacceptable and, frankly, rather scary concept.

Arts and Humanities departments such as Languages, would lose funding.

However, boycotting the NSS brings us one step away from such a dystopia. At the end of the day though, surely this does not affect a home student in a STEM subject- aside from the annoying emails at least? I’m afraid not. The NSS can never truly rate your experience at university.

Personally, the time I’ve spent here so far has been far too nuanced and complex for a series of tick boxes to comprehend. Nor would I want to endanger the prospects of that one lecturer who spoke too fast and was too quiet for me to understand a few times.

The NSS can never truly rate your experience at university

Student satisfaction as the NSS rates it would not account for stress and overall mental wellbeing either. Thus the survey views students as blank slates who go through university and have experiences inscribed on them rather than as people with unique thoughts, feelings and interactions.

I certainly would not want to be made into a mundane statistic. The anger towards the NSS is justified on such an insulting process alone, but when how it harms others too it is truly detestable. Finally, if you have feedback and wish to make your course better still and are at a loss at how to do so without a formal feedback survey like the NSS, look to your SSLC.

The anger towards the NSS is justified on such an insulting process alone, but when how it harms others too it is truly detestable

There are ways to improve your student experience in the here and now that will support the rights of your academics and international friends. Isn’t that the superior option in the long run anyway?