Ready for anything: What to expect at Solent in September

The Government has not yet provided any guidance about what university life might look like in September 2021. Our hope is that, if lockdown measures continue to be lifted successfully over the summer, the next academic year will look much more like our usual offer. We will provide further updates to applicants as soon as we can, so please keep checking our website for more details.

In the meantime, we continue to do all we can to protect our students' health and wellbeing and to ensure they all have the best experience possible. Here, we share examples of how we have adapted the 2020/21 academic year to ensure students can continue with their studies.

We're ready for anything with grey and red brand circles

We have put plans in place to ensure all students have access to the learning facilities and specialist equipment they need, alongside a range of dynamic virtual teaching tools which our academics will use to deliver engaging and challenging online learning and teaching. We're achieving this by:

Ensuring all students have access to the specialist facilities, technology and software needed for their courses.
Providing safe group learning and rich resources to support the highest quality teaching.
Creating learning communities and opportunities to meet students from other courses through a blend of multi-media and campus-based activity.
Launching our Transformation Academy to guarantee all students experience outstanding learning, teaching and student support, both online and on campus.
Setting up a technology bursary fund for students who need support accessing IT equipment.
Expanding our online support services to ensure help and guidance is only ever one click away.

Changes to keep us all safe

We have also adapted our campus to provide a safe and welcoming environment where students can continue to enjoy the university experience they deserve.

Using scheduling systems, block teaching and extended teaching days and weeks to limit the number of students on campus at any one time
Adapting our workshops, laboratories and studios to ensure they can be used safely and providing PPE where necessary.
Introducing social distancing measures across campus, including managed walking routes with one-way navigation where possible.
Providing bicycles for loan and spacious bike parks to help avoid public transport.
Providing easy access sanitiser stations at main building entrances.
Staff and students to wear face coverings for general movement around campus.
Providing compulsory face coverings where essential and in areas where social distancing cannot be maintained.
Ensuring easy access to self-service takeaway food and drink stations to minimise queues.
Running an enhanced cleaning programme throughout all our university buildings.

Next steps

We will be continuing work on these plans as we monitor changing circumstances and respond to the latest Government guidance. We know students will be keen to know more about what these changes will mean for them, their courses and their plans for September, and we will share this information as soon as we can.

In the meantime, over the coming weeks we will be adding to our frequently asked questions with more detail, so please keep checking back here. We hope this information allows our students to start looking forward to the exciting next steps in their academic journey and to feel confident that whatever the next year brings we are ready to support them.

New student? Returning student? We're putting you first

Watch this short video about what new and returning students can expect from learning online and on campus at Solent, as well as the other areas of support available for your studies and your wellbeing.

Your wellbeing

At Solent, our top priority is supporting the wellbeing of our students. Throughout your studies with us, a range of mental health support is available to you depending on your needs including:

Talking therapies, such as single session therapy, counselling and CBT.
Workshops and courses.
Hypnotherapy.
And, if appropriate, an appointment with a mental health adviser.

For further information, email: therapy.mh@solent.ac.uk

Solent students, Carolina and Afonso, share their experience of studying during lockdown and how they and their tutors have successfully adapted to bringing learning online, as well as what measures have been put in place for students who need to come to campus for practical assessments or to use the library.

Solent student, Carolina

Studying media production in lockdown
Carolina is a third-year BA (Hons) Media Production student currently working on her final major project. Here, she talks about how she has found the challenges of studying during lockdown and how her tutors and the University have supported her and her fellow students to be able to continue to learn and to be creative.

Read Carolina's story

Solent student, Afonso

My experience studying business management
Afonso is a second-year BA (Hons) Business Management student. As an international student, he talks about his experience of studying for a degree at a UK university, and writing essays in English - and he shares how having online lectures and adapting to a new way of learning ultimately helped him become better at studying.

Read Afonso's story

We've put together some frequently asked questions for new and current students that give answers to teaching arrangements, travelling to the UK for international students, and what's happening on campus. We also provide general information about Covid-19, including how and where to get tested, and what to do if you have symptoms.