Postgraduate student survey now open

Taught postgraduate students can now tell us what they really think as the biggest UK-wide survey of their experiences goes live – and we’re asking colleagues to help us boost the response rate this year.

Run by Advance HE, the Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey (PTES) is the only UK higher education sector-wide survey to gain valuable anonymous insights from taught postgraduate students about their learning and teaching experience.

Over the last couple of years, PTES response rates have remained low in the sector. Reading sits in the bottom quarter for response rates across all participating institutions.

For the University to use this data more confidently, we need an increase in response rate. This survey is particularly useful for promoting programmes at open days, to benchmark our standing in the sector and to help us improve our programme offering.

Dr Paul Jenkins, Associate Professor in Psychology and Postgraduate Taught Psychology Programme Director, said: “PTES represents a really useful opportunity to gather data on the views of all postgraduate students, individuals who are often not afforded the same opportunities for feedback as those completing the, perhaps more widely known, National Student Survey.

“Obtaining good-quality data from PTES is important in ensuring that the views of postgraduate students are asked for, and listened to.”

The 2024 survey has opened a little earlier than usual, meaning that there is even more opportunity for eligible students to tell us what they really think about their Reading experience.

The survey runs until Thursday 13 June 2024. 

What can you do?

Teaching staff and other colleagues working with eligible postgraduate students can help promote the survey directly. A briefing pack for staff full of useful tips and assets is available to help.

Students can complete the survey by visiting reading.ac.uk/surveys