The new NStEP Strategy for 2022 – 2025 has been published, setting out a new and ambitious plan for enhancing student engagement in Irish higher education decision-making, building on the success of the programme since it was first launched back in 2016.
Since January, NStEP with the support of our partner organisations has been undertaking a period of reflection, consultation, and dialogue across the higher education sector with students, staff and stakeholders. During this time we reflected on our successes, the challenges we have collectively faced, and the impact that NStEP has had on student engagement during our previous strategic period from 2019 to 2021.
What emerged from that dialogue was clear – that NStEP has been a catalyst for positive change, and that student engagement is now firmly recognised as a core value of Irish higher education. What was even more apparent was that there is a big opportunity for NStEP to now firmly root the ethos of students as partners across the sector in the coming years.
This new strategy sets out how NStEP, in collaboration with students and staff, will work to to do just that.
Our strategic priorities for 2022 – 2025 are:
A. Strengthening the value of student engagement at the national level
B. Developing the leadership capabilities of students in Irish higher education
C. Supporting staff to create and sustain meaningful partnership with students
The strategy sets out a range of measures through which we will work to achieve these objectives.
Working with our partners in Quality and Qualifications Ireland, Higher Education Authority, and the Union of Students in Ireland, as well as with other sectoral stakeholders, we will seek to increase the level of support and facilitation we provide to students and staff in their aims to foster authentic engagement and partnerships.
The National Advisory Group for Student Engagement will be a key support to NStEP in our efforts to develop a plan of work that realises the ambition in this strategy through actions and initiatives that truly embodies the meaningful student engagement that we seek to create.