Understanding perceptions of the student experience: Dot voting to identify perceived risks to equality of opportunity, a practice-based case study

Authors

  • Zoe Allman De Montfort University

Abstract

“Don’t use focus groups”, advice received from students’ union leaders at an east-Midlands university when considering how best to engage students in the development of the university’s Access and Participation Plan (APP).  The challenge was set, avoid using the same tried and tested method, try something different, be innovative (Galbraith, 2021), if you really want to hear the student voice in an impactful way.

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References

Dalton, J. (2019). Dot Voting. Great Big Agile, pp. 165–166. doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4842-4206-3_27

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Galbraith, G. (2021). What do students think and how do universities find out?. In M. Natzler (Ed.), What is the student voice? Thirteen essays on how to listen to students and how to act on what they say (pp. 17-23). Higher Education Policy Institute.

Gibbons, S. (2019, July 7). Dot Voting: A Simple Decision-Making and Prioritizing Technique in UX. Nielsen Norman Group. Retrieved September 12, 2024, from https://www.nngroup.com/articles/dot-voting/

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Office for Students, 2023a. Regulatory notice 1: Access and participation plan guidance. https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/media/8927/regulatory_notice-1_access_participation_plan_guidance_december_2023.pdf

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Published

2025-04-03

How to Cite

Allman, Z. (2025). Understanding perceptions of the student experience: Dot voting to identify perceived risks to equality of opportunity, a practice-based case study. Student Engagement in Higher Education Journal, 6(1), 22–28. Retrieved from https://sehej.raise-network.com/raise/article/view/1365

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Section

Case studies/Practice Pieces