At King's we're committed to partnering with our students to achieve our objectives of delivering outstanding education and research. In this article, we'll outline the various ways you can share your views and opinions on your programme, facilities and student experience.
Student Union (KCLSU)
The King's College London Students Union (KCLSU) is the representative body for all King’s College London students. It’s run by students for students and is a registered charity, independent of King’s College London. You are automatically a member of the Union, and the Union’s leaders are elected annually by and from all current students. The elected leaders are called Sabbatical Officers and they represent students on various College committees and campaign on the issues that matter to students. Alongside the Sabbatical Officers are more than 1,000 voluntary representatives, elected or appointed to cover every part of university life. Visit the KCLSU website for further information.
Important to know: KCLSU is independent from the university and offers an independent and impartial Advice Service.
Student Societies
Within your programme, you have a Student Society that you can join. Please contact the programme administration team for further information.
Academic representation (Student Representatives)
Your Students' Union works to ensure you have the best possible time while studying here. One way they do this is by collaborating with departments and faculties to ensure every student is represented and has a voice in the way the university operates.
You will have an Academic Representative (also known as a student rep) who will be your eyes, ears and voice for your programme of study. They work closely with staff in your department to understand what you value most and take action to address areas for improvement. They also collaborate with representatives in the Faculty and the Students' Union to enhance the student experience across King’s. For further information, including how to become a student rep, please visit the KCLSU website.
The role of a student representative at the departmental level includes:
- proactively gathering and voicing feedback from the student body at the programme or departmental level
- attending departmental Staff/Student Liaison Committees (SSLC) to provide feedback to staff on the student experience
- raising concerns with staff on behalf of the student cohort when they arise
- informing fellow students of the action taken by the department in response to their feedback
- monitoring student feedback raised via local methods (e.g. KEATS, Facebook, email) and escalating these to staff when necessary
- sitting on departmental committees and contributing to the development of departmental policies.
Staff Student Liaison Committees (SSLC) / Student Forums
Every department has a Staff-Student Liaison Committee or Student Forum that meets at least three times a year. The SSLC (or Student Forum) is an opportunity for discussion between staff and student academic representatives. It’s a great chance to work closely with staff to improve the student learning experience and a big part of how we can enhance education at King’s.
Other Departmental/Faculty Committees
In addition to attending SSLCs (or student forums), your Academic Representative (student rep) will also be invited to attend the following committees:
- Departmental Education Committee
- Faculty Education Committee
- Postgraduate Taught Committee
Complaints Procedure
We aim to ensure you are satisfied with your experience while completing your programme of study. However, we recognize that problems may arise, and you may wish to express concern or dissatisfaction with aspects of the University or the quality of services provided.
- Informal resolution: Many complaints can be resolved at an informal or local level without needing to submit a formal complaint. You can speak to your Personal Tutor, Programme Leader, Vice Dean Education, or Academic Representative if you have any concerns about your programme. You can also speak to the Students' Union Advice Service. We strongly encourage this kind of resolution and expect you to have attempted some form of informal resolution before making a formal complaint.
- Formal complaint: If an issue cannot be resolved at a local level, you may feel that you need to submit a formal complaint using our Complaints Procedure. We aim to ensure that all complaints are treated fairly, impartially, effectively, and in a timely manner, without fear of victimisation. For more information, visit the How can I make a complaint to the university? article.
Module Evaluations
We run student evaluation questionnaires on individual modules at the end of each semester. This gives you the opportunity to provide feedback on all aspects of the quality of the teaching that you have experienced, including the design and delivery of the module itself, helping programme teams to continuously improve learning, teaching, and assessment. The responses are anonymous and feedback is read by the Module Leader. More information, including the questions you will be asked, can be found on the Module Evaluation Sharepoint page.
Student surveys
One of the principal ways in which we gather and respond to student feedback is via online student experience surveys such as the National Student Survey (NSS) and the Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey (PTES). Whether it’s about teaching or facilities, surveys are a chance for you to have your say about what works and what needs improving, to help us make sure that we are as good as we can be for current and future students. Each survey usually takes just a few minutes to complete and all responses are anonymous. Every piece of feedback is read, and the results of each survey are shared with staff across the College, including the Vice-Chancellor & President.
Surveys such as NSS and PTES ask students to comment on their experiences. The results allow the University to compare results against sector benchmarks and previous years' survey results, helping to inform decisions regarding the enhancement of programme provision and the student experience.
Responses to feedback
Your feedback is valuable to us. The feedback you provide allows us to identify areas of strength and weakness and prompts us to bring about changes and enhancements that improve the learning experience for future students. Your feedback is discussed at all levels of the department and faculty, from convenors of individual modules/programmes to Heads of Department. Action taken following the feedback is disseminated to you via newsletters and the faculty/department pages.