Five things to know ahead of the new academic year
25 Aug 2026
What's changing this academic year, and what it means for you. From a new AI assessment policy to a firmer registration deadline, here's an overview before term begins, and where to find help along the way.
In a few weeks, our campus will fill up again. New students will arrive with parents in cars full of boxes, others on their own with a single suitcase, and a new academic year begins.
A lot goes into making that happen, across every part of our University. To help you feel set for it, we've pulled together five things worth knowing before teaching begins. You'll find fuller detail on all of them, along with resources and key contacts, in our Start of Year Hub, which we'll keep updated through September and October.
1. The AI in Teaching and Learning Policy comes into effect
The University's new AI in Teaching and Learning Policy takes effect this year, setting a common, University-wide framework for how AI is used in assessment. Whatever your role, it's useful to know it exists, since it's part of how the University is approaching AI more broadly and something students across every subject will be asking about.
If you design, deliver or mark assessments, the policy sets out things you need to do before term. The policy gives you a framework for setting and communicating how much AI use is allowed in a given assessment, and asks colleagues to review existing assessments against it and make expectations clear to students, so that students always understand what's permitted, what isn't and what's expected of them. Practical support is already available to help, including a NeedsHub of resources and a tool for working through how the policy applies to a specific assessment.
Our fuller piece for teaching colleagues covers what to do and where to get help.
2. A change to student registration
All students must complete their registration by 30 September, and any student not registered by 31 October will be withdrawn. This year, the deadline applies across the whole student population, new and returning, and students who don't complete registration by then will be withdrawn from the University.
Because this affects every student, colleagues in student-facing roles are likely to get questions about registration, Right to Study checks, system access and key dates over the coming weeks. If a student mentions they're having trouble, the best advice is to encourage them to seek support as early as possible from their student hub or by speaking with our Registration Bot rather than leaving it until close to the deadline, when there's less time to resolve issues.
- Full information on the registration process can be found on our register as a student pages.
3. Stellify has been refreshed
A redesigned Stellify Award launches this year for new undergraduate students.
Stellify is the University's personal development award, encouraging students to get more from their time here by building skills, engaging with wider issues, contributing to their communities and preparing for life after graduation. From September, new undergraduates join a refreshed, points-based award built around four themes: Making a Difference, Becoming a Global Citizen, Developing my Skills and Shaping my Future. The new structure gives students more flexibility to shape activities around their own interests while keeping Stellify's focus on personal development and social responsibility.
This is a transition year, so more than one version of the award is running at once. Students graduating in June 2027 stay on the existing structure. Returning students who aren't in their final year can choose whether to move across. New undergraduates starting this year begin the redesigned award automatically.
This is worth knowing as you may get questions from students about which version applies to them. You don't need to know every detail, but understanding the headline changes will help you point people in the right direction.
- More information on The Stellify Award for undergraduates.
4. A new approach to student surveys
We are developing a new Student Survey Strategy and Policy to improve how we gather and act on student feedback.
It's a response to two things colleagues and students have raised: students receive a lot of survey requests, and it isn't always clear that their feedback leads to anything. The new approach aims to coordinate survey activity so that surveys are better timed, more purposeful, and focused where feedback can actually drive change.
In practice that means approval criteria for surveys, an annual survey calendar, a route for considering additional requests during the year, and a firmer commitment to closing the loop by showing students what changed as a result. If you run student surveys as part of your role, this will shape how that activity is planned and approved. More will follow as the arrangements are finalised through 2026/27.
5. Know where to stay informed: bookmark the Start of Year Hub, and join the Welcome Open Meeting
The Start of Year Hub is the one place to go to keep informed as the new academic year gets underway.
It pulls together operational updates, change projects, student activity and key contacts, so that you don't have to go looking in ten different places for what you need. We'll update it regularly through September and October, so it's worth bookmarking and checking back rather than trying to keep track of everything as it comes.
We're also holding our annual Welcome Open Meeting on Tuesday 8 September. It'll give an overview of Welcome activity and what students can expect when they arrive, including updates on Stellify and registration. Details on the agenda and how to join will follow in the coming weeks.
A huge amount of work goes into the start of every academic year, across teaching, support, operations and all the parts of the University that students never see. It's what turns a quiet campus in August into a full one in September, ready for students to arrive and get started.
Thank you to everyone who plays a part in it. We hope these updates, and the Start of Year Hub, help you feel ready for the year ahead.