[SSC] SSC Digest, Vol 3, Issue 1

[Rosie Sherwood]

  I also agree with not offering traditional degrees. Having just completed
my undergrad degree, I'm all to aware that university has become purely
about getting a certificate at the end of it rather than it being an
opportunity for genuine learnin and the exploration of different ideas. It
has to be about a genuine interaction with the subjects rather than just
going through the motions to have something to put on your CV. It may seem
like a risky choice for students, but I think it has to be in order for it
to be a real alternative.

As for loans, I don't think they will be necessary as we will have plenty of
time to work during the week. It will mean a long working week - working
potentially full time with classes and SSC-based work on top of it. When I
compare this to the ridiculous financial strains of doing a conventional
masters, it seems a doddle - this year I am working 3 jobs, 55 hours a week
(recently down from 60), and I still won't have enough money to cover a
masters next year without loans and working more hours than I can really
afford to whilst studying.It will mean rather a different undergrad
experience, but I don't think this is a bad thing. To be honest, I don't
think we'll be attracting a lot of undergrad students coming straight out of
school (The usual HE path will suck most of them in as the
easier/mainstream option as they haven't really had a chance to become
disgruntled with HE yet!) so a lot of people would be working anyway. I
think this reliance on finding work is another reason why we need to have a
clear timescale so that people can start looking at their options.

I don't know Lincoln at all really, so the employment situation there is a
mystery to me. It would be a crucial factor for those wanting to study
there, so something that may need assessing.

Rosie









>
>




> On 01/03/11 00:16, michael hughes wrote:
> > I agree about not offering actual degrees. I think this helps stress the
> > communicative emphasis of SSC's approach, as opposed to conventional
> > degrees' atomising focus on exam conditions.
> >
> > I also agree with Joss that this distinction would prevent the SSC from
> > being seen as direct competition with paying universities, at least not
> > in any unhealthy sort of way.
> >
> > The question of loans is an interesting one - in the immediate context
> > of the first intake I imagine it will depend largely on who the SSC
> > attracts at first (accommodation costs for students moving to Lincoln
> > would, obviously, be the main reason for taking out loans). I wouldn't
> > be surprised if, to begin with, the SSC is more visible/appealing to
> > people scattered across the country (i.e. who make it onto our
> > personally compiled members list) than it is to Lincoln's current FE
> > students. However, again I agree with Joss that, in the long term, the
> > SSC should aim to serve as a localised model for other communities to
> adopt.
>
> So far, we've talked about the SSC having classes in the evenings and
> weekends. Maybe a summer school, too. I think the idea was that like the
> academic staff members, we'd all be necessarily undertaking work
> elsewhere during the day.
>
> When I was a full-time undergraduate, I had 8hrs of classes during my
> first two years and 6hrs of classes in my last year. My routine was
> pretty much 9-5 in the library, 5 days a week otherwise (I had worked
> the year before and enjoyed having my weekends and evenings free!) I had
> a small maintenance grant and took out student loans to top it up. I
> worked every Saturday and during the holidays at HMV. This was in the
> early 90s, in London.
>
> I don't know what it's like to support yourself during study as a
> student in Lincoln. It's a relatively cheap place to live with lots of
> accommodation aimed at students. I'm not sure how much work is available
> that students might do. We could find out what the general situation is
> like easily enough.
>
> It's an interesting question about how much we worry about students'
> ability to support themselves during study. We're trying to ensure that
> they pay no tuition fees and do not incur debt directly related to
> attending the SSC, but beyond that, I guess I thought it would be up to
> them to work something out.
>
> What do others think?
>
> Joss
>
>
>
>
>
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