Written by Amy O’Halloran
Opening feedback and seeing a mark you were not expecting to see can be quite discouraging, especially when an event or circumstance occurred which could have impacted your studies.
Charles Sturt has two understanding student advocates who are there to help when you need it most. I sat down with Ash and Rachel who gave me a rundown on what being a student advocate is all about.
Who are they and what do they do?
Ash and Rachel are the two student advocates who work with both online and on-campus students. They assist with things such as academic misconduct, review of grades and appealing decisions.
They are there to hear about issues a student is facing with their study and to show them how to advocate for themselves with the issues they’re having.
They also help students navigate and understand the university’s policies and procedures that apply to their current situation.
Their role primarily relates to helping students to understand their rights.
PS: they also really enjoy chatting with students and helping out!
Is there anything they can’t do?
Student advocates are not trained counsellors, so they can’t help students navigate through high levels of emotional stress. While helping you with the study complications, they can help you reach out to the free student counselling service.
Another point they made was they can’t overrule university policies and procedures. They can, for example, help you understand the appeal process and determine your rights as a student, but they are bound by the same policies and procedures as students and the other staff– so there is no sneaky business.
They also can’t teach you how to reference. They’ll pass you onto the academic skills team for that one 😉
Facts and myths
They can give you an extra mark – MYTH
They understand how stressful it is to fail an assessment, but they can’t just give you that extra mark to get you over the line. They will however show you how to follow the formal processes to get a grade review.
It will take a couple of days to get a response even though they wish they could respond to you within ten seconds – FACT
There are almost forty thousand students at Charles Sturt and only two student advocates. If you really need them, submit a form sooner rather than later. If they are overwhelmed by requests in peak periods, it may take them up to three days to respond.
You can have a face-to-face conversation with student advocates – MYTH
When filling out the form, you can choose to be contacted via email or phone call. These modes of communication are the most efficient way to ensure everyone can be contacted.
Most students can access help from student advocates – FACT
They are there for everyone with the exception of policing students who have their own student liaison officer.
Now you know the ins-and-outs of what a student advocate does and what their job entails. If you need to contact them, you can find the form in your student portal. Click here to contact a student advocate
Charlie blog is a SSAF funded initiative
