myExperience

The myExperience Survey aims to boost student feedback which creates a culture of continuous improvement by identifying, responding to, and acting on student feedback.

Most courses are surveyed each time they are offered at UNSW. The Survey Schedule details the key dates for survey periods across each academic year. Students are encouraged to participate in the survey via Moodle, myUNSW, or through the direct myExperience link.

Along with courses being surveyed, schools and academic units decide which teaching staff are also surveyed. myExperience identifies teachers in the survey by distinguishing them by name and includes a teaching photograph against each name to assist students in identifying their teachers.

The survey contains a set of standard questions on the student’s overall experience with the course, teaching, and individual teachers. The survey may also include any optional questions selected from the Survey Question Data Bank by teachers and/or course convenors.

Please note: myExperience reports are produced for each survey and are available at the end of each teaching period after student results have been finalised and released.

Completion of myExperience by students is voluntary. Students can complete the survey using their computer, tablet or smart phone and have 24/7 access to the survey during the survey period, often closing before examination periods begin.

This timing means that students have experienced majority of course activities to provide a credible survey response, however it avoids the influence or perceived influence of any exams on survey results (or vice-versa). Past practice has also shown that it is very difficult to engage students with additional activities over the exam period and after.

On the first day of the evaluation period, students will receive an email to their UNSW email account with a personalised web-link to their surveys. This page will contain surveys for each course in which they are enrolled. If students do not complete all surveys, they will receive an email reminder and follow up email while the evaluation period is open.

Please note: Students can also follow the web-link to their surveys from a link in each Moodle course that is available for the duration of the evaluation period.

The myExperience Survey interface is simple and intuitive for students to use. They will be presented with one page of course questions and one page of teacher questions for each of their courses.

For teaching staff who are new to UNSW, who may not be familiar with myExperience, or for those who need further information, some tips and tricks have been collated below, including helpful resources.

When to ask your students to complete?

The myExperience survey is best delivered to students during class when the survey is open. In general, the survey only takes a few minutes to complete, so we encourage teachers to set aside some time mid-way through a lesson with the most attendance to complete the survey.

By setting aside this time during class, response rates will be higher, and students will have more time to provide thoughtful responses.

You can use PowerPoint slides to show in your lesson on this page. Please note: These slides are updated yearly to reflect the latest assets and information for students. Slides will be sent to teaching staff each term for convenience.

How to communicate the importance of myExperience to your students

Listening to our students can truly lead to positive change, and the higher the myExperience survey response rates, the more robust our insights become.

We recommend:

• Telling your students that you value their honest and constructive feedback, and that you use myExperience data to make changes to your courses and programs.
• Explaining that their support in completing the myExperience surveys help not only yourself and the further teaching community, but also makes a difference to the next group of students taking these courses, just as thoughts from students currently taking courses they plan to take make a difference for them.
• If possible, share examples of how you have changed your courses as a result of student feedback. You can do this by using myFeedback matters inside the course Moodle.

You may also wish to ensure students know that their myExperience responses are confidential (but not anonymous) and their identity is not included in reports. By submitting their feedback, they are agreeing that it can be used for legitimate university teaching and research purposes.

Giving constructive feedback

When asking students to participate in the myExperience survey, we ask that they follow the Student Code of Conduct. Their comments need to be constructive and focus solely on their learning experience in relation to the course material. Giving constructive feedback is not an easy task, it is a skill that needs to be learnt and practiced.

Students should also know that while the survey is confidential, it is not anonymous. Comments that breach the Student Code of Conduct, that are hurtful, racist, sexist or ill natured, may lead to disciplinary action.

For more information, including further resources, visit this page.

Contact

Each school/academic unit has a myExperience survey administrator who can assist you with general enquiries. If you have a specific query about the survey or survey reports, please contact the Student Surveys Team at [email protected].

Governance

The myExperience Survey Procedure specifies the processes and responsibilities for the establishment and conduct of myExperience and the reporting of survey outcomes.