Our remote study policy supporting student’s digital education

Read a message from Claire Morgan sent to students on 7 September regarding the remote study policy and supporting your digital education.

Dear Student,

Earlier in the summer, many of you completed a survey to share your experiences and expectations of studying in a digital environment. This has been helpful to us and has played a key role in shaping our plans for the new academic year. The main theme from the survey results was your concern about what to expect as you return to study, based on what happened during the first stages of lockdown from March until the end of the last academic session. We want to reassure you that your educational experience in 2020/21 will be very different to that period because of the planning and preparation we now have in place.

Supporting your digital education

To prepare for the new academic year, the University created the Digital Education Programme. Nearly 200 staff from across the University came together to create guidance, resources, and training for both students and staff, so that we can deliver a high-quality online learning experience for all our students next year.

We have worked in partnership with the Students’ Union and our Student Champions throughout the development of the Digital Education Programme, ensuring that what we have designed will actually work for our students. 
Some of our key developments include:

• A new Digital Education Framework for teaching staff sets core standards that need to be met by each module
• We have developed an extensive programme of training support for all teaching staff to help them make the most of the digital learning environment
• As noted in my email of 24 August, we have launched a guide for students called Digital learning at Cardiff University. It has been created to help you prepare for the year ahead and to feel confident with the online elements of your programme. You can read more about this on the intranet.

Remote study policy update

As previously communicated, we are introducing a new remote study policy to support those of you who may find it difficult to return to campus straight away. 
We are now able to confirm the process for applying for remote study:

1. The list of programmes that are not eligible (due to e.g. mode of teaching, course content, or related accreditation) can be found here. Please refer to this before applying.
2. The Student Task is now available on the My Student Record page on SIMS (see Request Remote Study task) for you to apply to study the first semester only online
3. Once submitted, your application will be considered by your School and you will receive notification of their decision by email.

For many of you, the start of a new academic year is nearly here. We continue to expect the majority of you to return to campus, providing a blended learning experience when you get here. We are maintaining a close watch on government and health guidance, and should local or national guidance change once term starts, or a new local lockdown be introduced, I want to reassure you we will use the experience and lessons learned of the original lockdown to keep you safe, and minimise any further disruption to your studies.

Best wishes,

Claire Morgan
Pro Vice-Chancellor, Education and Students