The conference was an opportunity for partner delegates to hear from UWL staff on updates in policy and innovation in the education sector. The event also opened up discussions on key trends in the industry impacting partnerships.

In his welcome to attendees, UWL Vice-Chancellor and President Professor Peter John CBE highlighted the University’s recent achievements, new developments and invited questions. He recognised the student satisfaction rates of our partner institutions, saying,

Our recent NSS results ranked us 1^st in London and 6^th in England [...] The job you do influences what that result is.”

Following the welcome was the first keynote presentation by Michael Webb, Director of Technology and Analytics at Jisc, titled 'Navigating the Future of Artificial Intelligence (AI)'.

Michael’s talk analysed how AI is being used by students and staff in the education sector and highlighted the challenges and opportunities that AI – particularly generative AI – presents. He offered guidance on creating a strategic approach to AI for our partners, emphasising the importance of a cohesive and structured policy for AI to encourage productive and transparent use of the tool:

Staff need permission to use AI – make sure you have super clear guidance on what AI staff can use,”

he advised.

Jessica Frye and Gary Hung from our Centre for the Enhancement of Learning and Teaching (CELT) built on Michael’s talk, discussing how AI can be used to support teaching at UWL. Jessica commented: 

We want [students] to use AI, but we want them to use it in an ethical way [...] We want to be open about it.”

Aside from technological advancements and their impacts on teaching, learning and courses at UWL, sessions focused on student experience, recruitment and continuation of current students.

Sara Raybould, Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Education and Student Experience, underlined the significance of using student feedback to foster an inclusive and supportive academic environment, saying that it is necessary to maintain strong relations with student unions and the student body to create an open line of communication and react promptly to issues raised by students.

Building on this, delegates from the UWL Ras al Khaimah (RAK) branch campus discussed some of the key success factors in working collaboratively with the home campus:

It’s very, very important that you keep the communication channels open [...] and that is one of the things that has really worked.”

The event included sessions on topics including induction, library support services, student wellbeing, social media, continuing professional development, peer mentoring, data metrics, recruitment and retention, marketing, policies and regulations, the TEF framework, annual reviews and research.

Mary McCrindle, Director of Global Partnerships, was delighted with this year’s conference, stating,

We consider our partners as part of one global UWL family. The success of our partnerships is underpinned by mutual respect, continuous dialogue and a solutions-oriented approach. This conference is just one example of how colleagues engage very closely and collaboratively.”

• Find out more about UWL's academic partnerships