Information for Sussex Students
Why we are campaigning
The University of Sussex has an enviable record of delivering some of the most exciting and innovative programmes in the UK. Since our earliest days, we have been a leading centre for interdisciplinary work, and our graduates have gone on to have fantastic and wide-ranging careers in the sciences, the arts, media and politics. The current round of cuts proposed by the University management will put in jeopardy that fantastic record of achievement. The plans will:
- Limit the research that informs your programmes
- Increase the student:staff ratio so that you get less staff time, larger classes and a more anonymous experience
- Reduce the personal level of student support you receive
- Reduce the opportunities for selecting option courses that enrich your study
- Reduce IT and Library support
- Reverse the recent improvements in real contact time with your tutors
Who is at Risk
All staff are at risk under the current redundancy plans. Everyone from those in catering and the support staff to senior academics and professors. University staff currently work some of the longest hours in any industry in the UK. In a TUC report published last year almost half of staff teaching in universities (45.7%) said they did unpaid overtime and, on average, put in an extra 52 days' work over the course of the year, way above the national average of 41 days. And Sussex is now planning to make that situation even worse. All staff at Sussex want you to get the best education they can provide.
Academics - Three Jobs in One
Academics do at least three jobs in one. They teach, they research and they carry out administration. They work at weekends, in the evenings, over so-called holidays. Many academics barely get a chance to take annual leave (they are writing up research, attending conferences, marking exams over the Easter and Summer breaks). Stress levels are inevitably high, and the University is now seeking to pit teaching against research in an unsustainable model in which the quality of your education will inevitably suffer as fewer staff try to increase research outputs (they face the sack if they don't) while taking on even more teaching to cover those colleagues made redundant.
Support Staff
The cuts threaten the jobs of student advisers and IT support, technical support staff who provide specialized teaching and research support, may result in the closure of creche facilities, and will reduce campus security and the safety and smooth operation of buildings. Porters are facing signficant loss of pay under proposed changes to their terms and conditions of employment. Everyone working at Sussex contributes to your education and staff at every grade are at risk.
What We Are Doing
All three campus uninos are working with USSU to protect the jobs of all staff as Sussex. We are scrutinizing all claims made by management, and challenging key elements of their plans. We believe that there are many alternatives to the current proposals that will help sustain the excellent reputation of Sussex without resorting to compulsory redundancies and course closures. We don't believe that management has properly explored the options, nor have they properly assessed the risks of what they propose. We will be campaigning hard and visibly. We will do this whilst minimizing any disruption to your studies, and ensuring you continue to get the best that Sussex has on offer. We are proud of our students and of your achievements.
What You Can Do
UCU will be working closely with USSU to keep all students fully informed of the impact of the proposed cuts on your education. You can support us in the Save Sussex Education campaign by asking School committees about the impact on your contact time with staff, on your course options, on IT support, and on the level of feedback and support you will get when staff are forced out.
- You can write to your Head of School and ask how the changes will affect you (let us know what they tell you).
- If your programme is being cut you can write to the VC and ask him why (let us know what he tells you).
- You can join the USSU campaign which is working alongside staff unions to Save Sussex.
- You can join the Sussex Stop the Cuts Facebook Group
- You can sign the Save Sussex Educationpetition
- You can follow us on Twitter. Please re-tweet!
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