On 18 November 2020, Director Minouche Shafik welcomed students from across the School to our first virtual Town Hall. Joining her were members of the Senior Management Committee (SMC), Dilly Fung, Pro-Director (Education), Simon Hix, Pro-Director (Research) and Andrew Young, Chief Operating Officer.
The session opened with an update from Minouche.
Minouche update
LSE will shift to online learning from Monday 7 December in line with government guidance, allowing you time to self-isolate before returning home for the Christmas break if you wish to do so. Until then campus and facilities will remain open. On the 25 November LSE will switch to mass rapid testing to support you in returning home. We will continue to provide support to any students who wish to remain on campus over the festive period.
We plan to continue some in-person teaching in Winter Term so you can benefit from both the educational experience and social interaction and will review our current plan if the situation changes. More information about testing ahead of the Winter Break and Winter Term plan are available in our FAQs.
Question and answer session
There we several themes covered in the Q&A section of the event, with teaching and learning, modes of assessment and travelling ahead of the winter break all areas of interest.
Winter closure and COVID-19 testing
As students begin to plan for the winter break LSE is working to provide a mass-testing programme from Saturday 28 November – Monday 2 December with over 14,000 tests ordered. All testing will be delivered on campus and the test centre will be open for 12 hours a day to accommodate the extra tests. Students travelling within the UK will need to take two tests, with a minimum of three days in between tests. Testing will begin from the end of November.
We’re exploring possibilities to provide PCR testing for international students who would like to fly home for the international break.
Note: since the Q&A took place, LSE has confirmed that students travelling internationally will be able to book a PCR test.
Online learning and Winter Term teaching
We’re planning to continue a hybrid version of in-person and online teaching during Winter Term from 18 January 2021. Due to the combined efforts of both staff and students, we’ve managed to prevent an outbreak on campus so far and COVID numbers are low, but we will continue to monitor the situation closely. Please make sure to fill out the survey indicating your intentions for Winter Term so we can plan accordingly.
To accommodate online learning and support those who cannot come to campus, we’ve invested in higher quality microphones and are working with a company to provide closed captioning for online lectures and events. We’re also moving more content from the Library online so students can access this online as well.
If you’re feeling unsure about coming onto campus or are classified as clinically vulnerable please contact your department and academic tutor and we will do everything possible to support you in your learning.
We’re working to provide more opportunities for social interaction online for students. Check out upcoming events here.
Summer exams
The situation continues to change rapidly, and the Senior Management Committee continues to discuss possibilities for Spring Term exams. No decisions have been made yet and in-person exams have not been ruled out. Students will be informed as soon as a decision is reached.
Student fees
The UK Government has advised that fee reductions in universities are not required where a good quality education is still being provided and we feel LSE is providing a high-quality offering to students. We’re also working hard to provide as much in-person teaching as possible as we know how much students value the in-person experience.
You can also get involved with Student Futures, which can support you as you explore your interests at LSE and beyond.
Students can join the Student Education Panel to have a voice to shape the most pressing educational issues at LSE. Submit your application to join by Sunday 29 November.
Course choice and Extended Education
LSE is undertaking a project to improve the student experience of course choice and make it more equitable and transparent. We’re also exploring the possibility of making multimedia content available to students before selecting a course.
As LSE continues to invest in Extended Education which covers short and online courses and executive programmes we’re looking into how we can make these more readily available for students.
Marshall Building
Construction of the Marshall Building is continuing but has had some delays due to COVID-19. Access to the building has been redesigned to maintain social distancing which has also slowed the speed of work. We’re aiming to have student teaching in the building from Autumn Term next year.
Want to find out more or have any questions?
Get in touch by emailing feedback@lse.ac.uk.