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National Student Survey 2020 Library Results

30 Jul 2020

Analysis of the most recent NSS results from the Library’s perspective

NSS logo

The National Student Survey (NSS) 2020 results are out. 88.1% of University of Manchester respondents agreed that “The library resources (e.g. books, online services and learning spaces) have supported my learning well” (question 19), compared with 88.6% in 2019 and 88.3% in 2018.

Here’s where you can find further details:

  • For some headline news from the Library’s perspective, including results by school and comparisons with other Russell Group institutions, you can read the summary document on StaffNet.
  • The University’s NSS pages on StaffNet contain the internal results and the open comments by faculty and school
  • The University’s NSS dashboard in Power BI is the central source of analysis – see the NSS pages for guidance about how to request access (under NSS 2020 results analysis)
  • The Office for Students website provides access to subject-area benchmarking dashboards and the UK-wide results for participating institutions

Students’ open comments

Responses to the free-text question at the end of the survey, "Looking back on the experience, are there any particularly positive or negative aspects you would like to highlight?", have also been analysed for any mention of the Library or Library-related activity or services.

Positive comments highlighted the quality and availability of resources in the Library, alongside the support and services offered by Library staff.

Negative comments focussed on the lack of study spaces in Library buildings and upkeep of Library buildings and facilities, although the overall number of these is down from previous years.

A report of free-text comments analysis for NSS 2020 can be downloaded in PDF format:

Examples of positive comments

  • “Library resources are good and well organised and majority of third year courses are very engaging.” – School of Social Sciences respondent
  • “Love the support from the libraries around revision and free activities they offer all year around.” - School of Medical Sciences
  • “Great teaching staff and learning environment. Excellent library facilities and academic support.” - Department of Chemistry

Examples of negative comments

  • “More workspaces are required - the Alan Gilbert Building and the main library simply do not have a capacity to cope with the number of students using them in peak periods.” - School of Social Sciences
  • “The library is semi dated and always freezing” - School of Social Sciences
  • “There are no quiet study computer clusters in the entirety of north campus, even inside the library people treat the clusters as common rooms, and there's no peace for individuals trying to focus, and no enforcement of rules in Joule computer cluster.” – Department of MACE

Further analysis of these free-text comments is being conducted and will be shared with Library staff shortly. If you have any questions please contact Katie McGrother or Michael Douglas.