Monitoring of student interests

Monitoring of student interests is a process in which the student union actively monitors and evaluates the quality, content and organisation of education.

A central part of monitoring of student interests is to ensure that the voices and opinions of students are heard and taken seriously by the university administration. This means continuous advocacy work in which the student union strives to improve the study environment and educational conditions for students in the field of technology and science, often referred to as Teknat.

Opinion program

In order to conduct monitoring o student interests, the union relies on its opinion program. This contains the student union's stances on various higher education policy issues, such as tuition fees, student housing, English-language education, and access to library resources. A well-developed and up-to-date opinion program is critical to the union's capacity to influence and drive through change.

The opinion program is determined annually in September by the union council after careful preparation by the union's student liaison officers. Through this, and with the help of student representatives in various university bodies, the union works to improve the education and study experience of students. Read more about the corps opinion program here.

Student representatives

As elected representatives, student representatives work to advocate for the interests of students, from improving the quality of education to improving the study environment. Through training and guidelines, they are equipped to effectively communicate and influence at local, faculty-central and university-central levels. Their role is essential to ensure that students' perspectives and needs are taken into account in all areas of the University's activities. Read more about the union's student representatives here.

Case work

Case work provide students with an opportunity to address specific challenges and issues they face in their academic career with help from the expertise of the student liaison officer. This individual support is a key factor in maintaining a high level of student satisfaction and educational quality.

If you, as a student, find that something has not gone right with regards to your education or the study environment, there are several different ways to handle the issue. It often works to contact, for example, the course manager yourself if there is a problem with a course. Sometimes, however, it can be difficult to know who should be contacted or where to find information. In these cases, you can contact either the section's or the union's student representatives, depending on what feels best for you. They can both help by referring to the right person and assist with information.

Monitoring of student interests at different levels

Monitoring of student interests at Uppsala University is organised in three levels in order to effectively address and influence issues relevant to students at the different levels within the university.

Local level refers to the councils, boards and work groups that operate at departmental level, or specifically for certain programmes. This may include departmental boards and program councils. Decisions relating to individual courses and institutions are often made at this level, and student representatives play an important role in highlighting study monitoring issues. This level is considered to have great potential for influence and is thus important for concrete changes in the content and implementation of education.

Faculty Central Level includes the councils, boards and working groups that deal with overarching issues for the entire faculty or for multiple degree programs within the faculty. Here, it often involves broader educational issues, student services, educational development, and local issues for the faculty campus. Student representatives at this level have an important function in influencing policies and decisions that have long-term impact on the faculty.

University Central Level covers the work of monitoring of student interests that applies to the entire university. This includes issues relating to equal conditions for all students, internationalisation, overall management issues and disciplinary matters. This level involves cooperation between different student unions to strengthen the position of students university-wide.

The union's Student Liaison Officers

Union Student Liaison Officers are employed by the student union to fully devote themselves to monitoring of student interests. These individuals work together to ensure that the needs and opinions of students are taken into account in the University's decisions relating to education and study environment. UTN has four full-time paid Student Liaison Officers, each with a primary responsibility in a different area.

The President of the union also participates in the monitoring of student interests work, mainly at the university centre level. The Student Liaison Officers are responsible for organising and conducting trainings for student representatives at least once per semester to prepare them for their tasks.

Student Liaison Officer - Head of Academic Affairs

Student Liaison Officers - Head of Academic Affairs are focused on ensuring that the education is of high quality from an educational perspective. They handle issues related to teaching, such as examination and exam rectification time frames, and conduct case work to support students in specific education-related problems.

• Head of Academic Affairs – Engineering: Includes technical education programs such as Master of Science and Engineering Master's programs.
• Head of Academic Affairs – Science: Includes bachelor's and master's programs in natural science fields as well as independent courses.
• Head of Academic Affairs – External Affairs: Responsible for questions concerning doctoral students as well as cooperation issues with, for example, other unions in the country.

The Student Liaison Officers - Head of Academic Affairs also lead the Education Standing Committee, which meet three times a semester to discuss and decide on education-related topics.

Student Liaison Officer - Head of Student Welfare Affairs

Student Liaison Officer - Head of Student Welfare Affairs takes care of the well-being of students outside the strictly academic realm. They work on issues related to study spaces, equal treatment and psychosocial aspects of student life. In addition, this Student Liaison Officer is responsible for maintaining and revising the union's policy documents and supports students in individual matters affecting their study experience.

• Head of Student Welfare Affairs: Focuses on the well-being of students and fair treatment during the period of study.

Contact information

If you have questions, suggestions or want to get involved in monitoring of student interests work, you are welcome to contact the student liaison officers. They can also be reached at bevakare@utn.se.