The 2022 National Student Survey finds that 81.8% of Warwick students are satisfied with the quality of their course

This year’s National Student Survey (NSS) has found that a majority of Warwick University students are overall satisfied with their course. Whilst this year’s 81.8% marks a slight decrease from last year’s result of 83.2%, this overall satisfaction score remains significantly above the benchmark. 

The results also found that whilst students across the country rated their ability to access resources for their courses more positively, overall teaching quality remains lower when compared to pre-pandemic levels. According to the Office for Students (OfS), views in positive ratings dipped slightly more for students studying medicine, dentistry, and physical sciences.   

The University of Warwick performed consistently above the benchmark across most areas, with learning opportunities being the only part that was “not significantly different to [the] benchmark”, although remaining slightly above. The question surrounding the view of the University’s Students’ Union (SU) was the only one to find The University of Warwick “significantly below the benchmark”, with only 41.6% of students agreeing that Warwick SU effectively represents students’ academic interests. 

The NSS is a survey organised by the Office for Students taken by graduating students and aims to highlight students’ views surrounding the quality of their education, and is often used by students to help choose which universities to apply to. Approximately 325,000 students from nearly 400 institutions took part in this year’s survey, representing just under 69% of eligible students.  

The survey involved asking students 28 core questions covering a variety of topics including teaching, learning opportunities, assessment and feedback, academic support, organisation and management, learning resources, learning community, and student voice. The NSS then compares these results to benchmarks, calculated using factors such as “student and course characteristics” alongside taking into account a “weighted average of overall sector scores”. This aims to “make comparisons more reliable”.  

“Each university and college will now want to reflect on its results to ensure that the quality of courses remains high”

–Susan Lapworth, Chief Executive of the OfS

Following the results, Susan Lapworth, the interim Chief Executive of the Office for Students, released the following statement: “This year’s graduates bore the brunt of the pandemic, with much of their time at university affected by lockdowns and other restrictions on student life. The NSS has played an important role in capturing students’ views during this extraordinarily difficult time for students and university staff. This year’s results show that there is still more to do if students’ views of the quality of their course are to improve to pre-pandemic levels. This should be an immediate priority for many universities and colleges. 

“Universities and colleges have – by and large – worked hard to return to in-person teaching and ensure students have access to the facilities they need for successful study. It is, therefore, welcome to see a marked increase in the proportion of students agreeing that the resources universities and colleges offer are up to scratch. But on this – and every measure – there are substantial differences in students’ views depending on which subject they study.

“Each university and college will now want to reflect on its results to ensure that the quality of courses remains high. The OfS is stepping up its interventions to ensure that students from all backgrounds have a high quality education and we will draw on NSS outcomes to inform our work.”

Following the publication of the survey, Warwick released a statement available here. Professor Gwen Van der Velden, Deputy Pro-Vice Chancellor (Education) at Warwick said: “The rich feedback provided to us by our students gives us a lot to think about as we continue to work on preparations for the next academic year. 

“During another year of continued change, our latest result in the National Student Survey demonstrates the dedication of our staff in putting the needs of students at the heart of all we do. It is also testament to the tenacity of our final year students.”

You can find out more about the NSS on the Office for Students’ website available here. This includes statistics and comparisons for all other education providers that took part.