National Student Engagement Network

Event Report – 28th November 2024

Thank you to the teams at the National College of Ireland and NCI Students’ Union for their support in organising and hosting this exciting opportunity to bring students and staff from across the Irish higher education sector together. The theme of the event was focused ‘Engage, Empower, Elevate: Transforming the Student Experience‘.

Attendees heard from staff and students across the sector, including our keynote Rebecca Roper (Student Success Project; HEA), speaking on the importance of student-led change and student leadership initiatives, the need for diverse perspectives in shaping inclusive educational environments, how student engagement has changed post-pandemic and the need to adapt engagement strategies to meet the needs of students in a rapidly changing world, and student mental health and wellbeing.

If you weren’t able to join us in-person, please find the speaker presentations below, as well as our Event Report which includes contributor and attendee perspectives on the event.

Welcome Address & NStEP Updates

Niamh Kennedy – Programme Manager, NStEP

Rachael Sarsfield Ryan – Development Coordinator, NStEP

This session opened the National Student Engagement Network and included a welcome address from the NStEP Programme Manager and a discussion on navigating student engagement and partnership post-COVID. It was followed by updates from the NStEP Development Coordinator on the Student Training Programme and the Class Rep Census Project. 

Transforming Student Experience:
The SUCCEED Approach at MTU

Linda O’Sullivan – Munster Technological University: Cork

This session focused on SUCCEED – Standardising the Use, Communication and Capability of studEntsurvEy.ie Data which is now a MTU university wide programme that makes StudentSurvey.ie data more accessible at academic unit and programme level and provides an evidence-based mechanism within the university to close the feedback loop.

Student Engagement Associates

Fiona Mullins – Munster Technological University: Kerry

This session focused on MTU: Kerry’s Student Partnership and Engagement Approach including their recently established Student Engagement Associates, policy context, training and mentoring and other projects involving the Student Engagement Associates. 

Student Success Project – Keynote 

Rebecca Roper – Student Success Project, HEA

Our keynote session focused on the Higher Education Authority’s current Student Success Project. It discussed what student success is and how we mesasure it, obstacles to student success, how students and lecturers view student success, resources, with interactive activities throughout. 

Healthy Campus: Student Wellbeing & Belonging Project

Caroline Mahon – Higher Education Authority

This session focused the Healthy Campus project work being carried out by the Higher Education Authority, including an update on the previous joint project between NStEP and the HEA on Student Engagement, Wellbeing and Belonging. Other topics discussed were case studies and the recently published ‘Healthy Campus Self-Evaluation Tool’.  

Union of Students in Ireland: Student Mental Health

Sarah Hughes – Mental Health Programme Manager, USI

This session focused current student mental health and wellbeing campaigns (such as Open Up) being carried out by both the staff and student officers of the Union of Students in Ireland (USI), and the key changes in approaching student mental health campaigns and outreach pre and post-COVID.

Student Volunteer Ireland 

Dr. Lorraine Tansey – StudentVolunteer.ie Programme Manager

Faith Omotayo – StudentVolunteer.ie Student Advisory Board Member, Student at Technological University Dublin

This session introduced Student Volunteer Ireland (StudentVolunteer.ie) and their ongoing student voice in decision-making practices including their recently appointed Student Advisory Board, their goal of campuses across Ireland seeing student volunteers as partners in student success and creating a culture of student volunteering through reflection and recognition.