Kay shares more detail about their practice us and how they felt about being shortlisted for a Bristol Teaching Award.
- Which Award were you shortlisted for?
Outstanding Support Award – Individual
- How did you feel when you found out you had been shortlisted for an Award?
I always thought that these awards were just for teaching, so I was surprised! I am honoured and quite humbled by being shortlisted for this award. I have worked at the University for about 20 years and in all honesty, this past year has probably been the most challenging, but I think a lot of people would feel the same way. I have a fantastic team and great academic colleagues and somehow we just manage to keep going.
- Can you tell us a little bit about your practice and why you were nominated?
I think that the Professional Services Staff roles sometimes go a bit unnoticed, so it is wonderful to be appreciated by academic colleagues as well as team members. To offer the best student experience, everyone needs to work together – and to understand frustrations when these occur as well as celebrate achievements. I am regularly spinning a lot of different shaped plates it seems (trying not to drop any of course!) but ultimately my role is to deliver processes that are clear, fair and consistent so that both staff and students feel supported and know where to turn for advice.
- What inspires you to go the extra mile with your teaching?
Well, not teaching…but in terms of my work as a Deputy Student Admin Manager, I’d say that ‘I like things done properly!’
- What would you like to share with others about your teaching practice?
Again, not teaching as such, but thinking about the needs of students, many of whom have never studied in the UK before, it’s important to remember that everything might be completely different to what they have done previously, so take the time to listen and explain clearly, especially if things don’t go to plan. Turn a negative into a positive whenever you can influence this.