So what’s next for the en suite education generation?
Higher education residential accommodation has radically altered in a generation. Students' expectations don’t just stop at improving the quality of personal space. They want more from shared university facilities and study areas, say our panel of experts.
The past decade has seen a sea-change in student accommodation with market demand driving unprecedented investment in residential facilities. Accommodation providers dealing with units that were purpose built in the 1960s or in older buildings with long corridors and shared shower blocks, have opted for high spec new build accommodation with double beds, free wifi, communal areas and yes, en suite bathrooms.
At open days after asking about the course, very often the next question will be about where the student will be living and that conversation now develops through the ‘offer holder’ stage according to Simon Barlow, Residential Marketing and Communications Manager, Queen Mary University of London.
“I think that sense of home is becoming more and more part of what the students expect from the accommodation. The parent or guardian will be asking if it is a good university, what am I going to pay, will they get a job at the end, while the students want to know ‘where am I going to live’.”
Simon Barlow
A recent student accommodation study, showed half of students were worried about student housing shortages.
For Queen Mary, the conversation with students about their accommodation, in terms of what their options are, how it will look and feel, builds through the application process and continues once an offer is made.
“There’s a lot more effort made today with ‘offer holders’. Whereas before an offer was made to a student and then it all went quiet until the exam results were in, now we keep talking to offer holders because we don’t want the conversation to go cold and we want them to come to Queen Mary.”
Simon Barlow
These conversations range from about what it is like in the first weeks at university, to what to bring to help them settle in.
”We want to reassure the students and tell them they need to feel comfortable in the space"
“There is much more of an understanding now that if students are not having a fulfilling time in halls it’s potentially going to impact on their studies. When our academic colleagues are preparing to promote the accommodation during the application process, they come and have a look around first to fully understand what it is that we are offering. It’s not just about whether there is a room with a bed, a desk and a chair, it’s going beyond that to all the support behind it”
Simon Barlow
Wellbeing is central to the more holistic approach to student life that universities are adopting, agrees higher education mental health expert, Géraldine Dufour who believes that the quality of the environment for students from living accommodation to shared study space, is part of this picture.
“It's important that students have access to a good standard of accommodation. Standards in our homes have improved over the past 30 years when many fewer properties had en suite bathrooms for example, and it is right that students can expect this sort of experience to mirror the changes in the home environment.”
Géraldine Dufour
Géraldine says not surprisingly the counselling services see how the living environment can impact on student welfare and stress levels.
“Welfare and wellbeing go hand in hand because there's no point having students with low levels of welfare ending up needing to come to counselling, due to stress when their needs could have been addressed before it got to that stage. So, it’s about the accommodation being fit for purpose, finance arriving on time, getting the information for the course at the right time.”
Géraldine Dufour
Cardiff University’s Former Director of Student Life, Ben Lewis says for him optimal student health, wellbeing and happiness comes down to a fairly clear set of priorities.
“I think having clear boundaries about study and social life and having a secure and comfortable place to live and study that you know you can afford and being able to enjoy the place that you're living in would be important places to start.
Having safe places to connect and socialise with other people that perhaps increasingly aren't alcohol focused for many students would all be important. There is something also about building a sense of community which I think, has been increasingly lost. This is why we've placed so much focus on peer support at Cardiff around creating that sense of community.”
Ben Lewis
Students making change
Increasingly students are involved in driving change in their accommodation, wider campus facilities and support around them that will carry forward into the next generation.
Opened in 2021 Cardiff University’s Centre for Student Life is an iconic new building at the heart of the campus. The new building aims to provide a world-leading holistic student experience providing for every facet of student life. It was developed in partnership with the university’s Student Union and was created in response to requests from students for enhanced services and improved spaces for learning and studying.
The new building is a central hub for student support services as well as offering modern, flexible social learning spaces and a technology-rich 550-seat lecture theatre.
The state-of-the-art building has been transformative with student services structured around Futures – careers, employability and global opportunities; Wellbeing – mental health and counselling; Student Life – money, international student support, disability support and student admin. There is also a Residence Life team of peer mentors.
New thinking on communal space and learning
So, what does the future hold? Not being able to knock down and start again is the reality for most institutions but increasingly students are driving new thinking on communal space and learning opportunities.
Ben Lewis explains being able to offer increased flexibility is key:
“Looking to the future, I think the first thing is universities have to build for the maximum demand, which is a difficult metric. The Centre for Student Life can cope with the maximum demand at the high point of the year rather than building for the quietest time of the year. So, you do need a built environment that delivers that and then I think also a support model that covers the whole spectrum.”
Ben Lewis
Simon Barlow’s view is that students will continue to shape the future direction of facilities:
“I think the challenge for us as providers of accommodation is where we've got legacy accommodation that not all of us can knock down and rebuild. It is no use trying to get students to understand that we designed our accommodation 30 years ago, they're not interested in that. They're more interested in what you're going to do to make sure it does meet what they need. Are there bean bags, TVs and screens, can they work together in groups and just click a button and see their research appear? So, I think we have got to adapt, and I think the way forward is involving them in that journey.”
Simon Barlow
Aside from the physical space, Géraldine Dufour says tech has a value in helping build a virtual community and a sense of belonging for students, whether that’s via channels set up by the university, or created by the students themselves before they even arrive at university:
“I think it is good that people are connecting with other students before they arrive on campus via social media. Tech can get a really bad rap. But really, it is often about how you use it, and this can be a real positive to get people settled.”
Géraldine Dufour
Along with worries over shortages the National Student Accommodation Survey highlights how students see problems with their housing impacting on their studies and health. With a fall in first year students opting for university halls in favour of renting via private landlords or staying at home with relatives, it is clear that for all providers, all aspects of accommodation remain an ongoing focus. As our experts suggest, student voices will be key in planning for the future, not only in terms of the quality of provision but sustainability and innovation in support networks and the wider environment.
To learn more about how you can use Kinetic's Student Life to enhance student wellbeing like University of Liverpool, click here.