Students at a Glasgow university say they feel "abandoned" amid ongoing strike action at the institution as they face taking on assessments "without any teaching".
Students have told The Herald they "support the reasons behind the strikes" but are increasingly concerned about how the disruption is affecting their education, academic progress, and overall university experience.
The UCU, the EIS,** Uniteand Unison** have all walked out due to plans to cut 100 jobs despite an underlying operating surplus of £12.6million and cash reserves of £89m.
The university says it has a predicted deficit of £10m and needs to make 'difficult decisions' and, with all four unions walking out for the first time, had to bat off claims that its campus would close.
The university said its campus would remain open last week, though its library would close earlier.
Govan Mbeki building, Glasgow Caledonian University (Image: Jamie Simpson)
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The Herald visited the usually-bustling campus in the city centre to find small groups of students milling around, some of whom had been unaffected by the strikes. But others who were trying to make sense of courses where they felt they had "no direction" and were ultimately left to their own devices, quite literally, as they scoured student materials on the university's internal site to try and learn the course they'd signed up for.
One journalism student said that the teaching on some modules has been significantly reduced amid cancelled classes, limited replacement teaching, a lack of alternative learning materials, and assessments proceeding despite students receiving far less teaching than originally scheduled.
Staff at Glasgow Caledonian University (Image: Colin Mearns)
They said: "One class only went ahead in week one. We're now in week six, and we don't expect another class this trimester.
"There's not even any teaching materials, just exam questions on the student site. It isn't fair at all.
"How's that any different to just open university or something like that? And if we are able to pass this module with this level of teaching, what does that say about the necessity of it?"
The Herald understands the university has been contacting affected students weekly and is implementing measures including additional teaching sessions, deadline extensions, and recovery plans.
The university said students would not be assessed on content not taught because of industrial action.
Nursing and healthcare students said they’re also badly affected by the strikes. They keep turning up to lectures which are cancelled without notice and said they feel they were "having to teach themselves the course".
Students told The Herald their attendance records appeared to show rates as low as 30% despite repeatedly attending scheduled classes.
Attendance records at GCU are updated weekly, and it's understood there may be delays in the systems reflecting the strikes.
The university said around 85% of classes had continued during the industrial action.
Staff at the Students’ Association said they have been "inundated with students looking for support and guidance."
It is understood that GCU set up a "listening hub" to hear students' concerns, which has had fewer than 10 enquiries per week since the start of the action.
The Herald contacted the Students' Association to confirm if they had been inundated, but it did not respond.
Students’ experiences seem to vary depending on the level and course they’re on - social work and mechanical engineering students were blissfully unaware of the hardships others are facing.
A spokesperson for Glasgow Caledonian University: "The purpose of this strike is to disrupt normal operations, therefore so long as the unions continue with their action, there will unfortunately be some impact on learning here.
"Our priority is to minimise disruption to students and non-striking colleagues as much as possible, and we will continue to implement measures to protect learning, maintain academic standards and support students to progress successfully in their studies."
(Image: Gordon Terris)
Dr Nick McKerrell, branch secretary of EIS/ULA at the institution, said: "The industrial action facing Glasgow Caledonian University is unprecedented. All four trade unions on campus have a legal mandate for strike action.
"This is clearly causing severe disruption for students. The cuts of 100 posts that are proposed by senior management would permanently disrupt the quality of the student experience.
"This dispute and disruption could end tomorrow if the compulsory redundancies were taken off the table. As the unions have outlined the massive cash reserves and budget surplus means these cuts are simply not needed.
"The support we have received from our students is incredible. We have asked them to lobby management to end the dispute."
Last week, the GCU Students' Association backed a motion of no confidence in principal Mairi Watson and chief financial officer Paul Queen.
UNISON’s Glasgow Caledonian University branch secretary Davena Rankin said:“Staff are grateful for the students' support. We understand how difficult this is for them.
“Most UNISON members on strike provide support services and have strong relationships with students, going on strike is the last thing they wanted to do.
“But staff are facing redundancy which is devastating for them and their families. We have been left with no choice.
"UNISON has done everything to try and get the employer around the table and we will end strikes if the threat of redundancy is lifted.
“With four unions involved, higher education minister Alyn Smith MSP can no longer ignore our requests to intervene."
Students have also expressed anxiety about preparing for externally assessed professional qualifications, where assessment requirements remain unchanged despite disruption to teaching.
Garry Ross of the EIS said strike action is always a last resort, but argued members at Glasgow Caledonian University had no alternative but to strike to protect jobs and the quality of education.
He said: "GCU already has one of the worst student-to-staff ratios of any university in the UK, which undoubtedly impacts the support available to students. Staff are already struggling under heavy workloads and further job cuts will only increase that pressure, worsening the ratio and further disadvantaging students.
"EIS ULA shares the concerns of students, who should be preparing for assessments while receiving high-quality learning and teaching from our experienced and professional members.
"Responsibility for the disruption students are experiencing lies squarely with GCU management, who have failed to engage constructively with trade unions to avoid the need for strike action.
"The EIS again urges university management to meet with the trade unions and resolve the dispute by guaranteeing there will be no compulsory redundancies and by working in partnership with staff representatives to plan for the future of GCU."
Across the board, students have said they feel increasingly frustrated by the uncertainty surrounding the dispute, its impact on their learning, and what they see as limited communication about how missed teaching will be addressed, despite the university saying it has been providing weekly updates and programme-level action plans.
The students The Herald spoke with said that while the strikes continue, they feel like they and their education are bearing the brunt of the issues.