Manchester in Partnership
Abstract
In 2016, the University of Manchester (UoM) and the University of Manchester Students’ Union (UMSU) embarked on a more strategic, collaborative working approach to engage students in a broader range of enrichment opportunities. Having worked closely together for a number of years on prescribed activities, such as student induction and co-leading support for Resident Associations, student committees, a more meaningful partnership was perceived to increase transformational impact through engaging students in modes of activity championed recently under the banner of students as partners, researchers and change agents.
With the Teaching and Learning Support Office (TLSO), a REACT project was designed to narrow the gap between staff and students through a more collaborative relationship. To that end, our project ‘Manchester in Partnership’ worked on two themes, the first looking at engaging students as researchers to identify engagement patterns with the MyManchester online student portal and the second focusing on creating a series of staff and student discussion seminars about the learning experience. This project has ignited further work engaging students as researchers, student review teams as well as further work around institutional dialogue, the student charter and student representation models. This case study will outline the journey from an isolated REACT project to a broader range of activities highlighting underpinning rationale, implementation, intended impact and benefits already realised.
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