Universities compensate students for lost teaching time during Covid

A university has been told to pay a student £5,000 in compensation for lost teaching time during the first Covid-19 lockdown, a higher education complaints watchdog has said.

The office of the independent Adjudicator (OIA) has released a number of complaints students have made about the impact coronavirus has had on their studies.

They include concerns over accommodation, disruption to learning because of the pandemic, and that providers were unable to deliver important practical experience as part of a course.

Among the complain ants was an international medical student who had been studying at an unnamed university with fees costing £38,000.

The student was awarded £5,000 after the university stopped all clinical placements as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, meaning they lost out on invaluable practical experience.

The OIA said it was awarded due to the "severe disappointment and inconvenience" the student experienced because the final year of studies had been "less valuable" than expected.

A healthcare student has also been awarded £1,500 for the "inconvenience and significant disappointment" they faced due to the cancellation of a labbased research project as part of their master's course.

The student had been moved to remote learning by the university following the coronavirus outbreak. They argued this meant missing out on the practical techniques employers require, disadvantaging them when applying for jobs.

Theoia concluded that while the provider had taken a "number of steps" to ensure students were not disadvantaged academically, it could not deliver the promised lab work.

Another was granted £200 after missing out on 14 hours of learning time due to industrial action that took place over November and december 2019, along with disruption caused by coronavirus.

One case saw an international student' s accommodation penalty lifted after they were found to be breaching social distancing rules when a friend visited their room.

The student, who has a mental health condition, was excluded from the accommodation, despite giving reasons for the friend's visit.