Author: Shaun Williams, Executive Director Engagement and Advancement
- UEB congratulated the Southampton University Challenge team for getting all the way to the semi-finals the previous evening. They have had a terrific run, and did the University proud. UEB also noted with regret the relegation of Southampton Football Club from the Premier League. Interestingly, there is a clear link between the football league status of university cities and their attractiveness to some students, particularly so with some international students, so we all hope for a swift promotion back into the Premier League next year. It also underlines the importance of our increasing collaboration with Southampton City Council in developing the city’s culture, heritage and tourism assets to make it an ever more attractive destination.
- UEB noted the media coverage last week that the Office for Students (OfS) had written to 23 institutions with high numbers of Chinese students asking to see their contingency planning in case of a sudden interruption to overseas recruitment. The Vice-Chancellor confirmed that Southampton was not one of those 23 institutions. The OfS has noted that we do rely on fee income from students from China, but after assessing the financial data that we provided, the OfS concluded that this particular risk is unlikely to lead to short-term concerns about our financial position, if it were to materialise. However, we do of course closely monitor this and all other risks, particularly at a time of heightened economic and geo-political volatility, and we are also committed to a longer-term strategy of diversifying our international student recruitment.
- UEB also noted that it is widely expected that the Government will this week* announce curbs to limit dependant visas for international students. If so, we will assess any potential future impact, although we believe is likely to be minimal for Southampton. (*Later that day the Government announced that from January 2024 international postgraduate students on non-research courses will no longer be able to bring family members to the UK).
- As we enter the peak exams period, there was an update on the ongoing national industrial action by members of the University and College Union (UCU) relating to pay and working conditions, and the marking and assessment boycott currently in place. Our primary focus continues to be to ensure that our students are not disadvantaged by any action and that there is minimal disruption to their studies and progression.
- UEB received a progress update on how the issues and recommendations from the Update on Timetabling Report in June 2022 have been addressed during the last academic year. A number of recommendations, including potentially re-arranging the annual production timeline, will be considered at Education and Student Experience Committee and a version will be prepared for Senate, before wider communication once finalised.
- The Vice-President (Operations) updated UEB on a number of changes within the Professional Services leadership team, which were due to be announced later in the week. This included confirmation that Mary Hurst has been confirmed permanently to the role of Director of Faculty Operations, after an initial one year period of tenure; news that William Edwards has been confirmed permanently to the role of Associate Director of Faculty Operations (ADoFO) in the Faculty of Environmental and Life Sciences (FELS); the appointment within RIS (Research & Innovation Services) of Doug Akins as Director of Research Contracts and Compliance, and Mylene Ployaert as Director of Research Strategy and Funding; and news that Cathy Day, our Executive Director Risk, Safety & Resilience, will be retiring from the University in July.
- Finally, there was the regular review of the University Risk Register.