Coronavirus Extension for ALL students currently studying at Staffordshire University

On 11th March the World Health Organization (WHO) declared that Covid-19 had developed into a global pandemic. Since then the situation for many in the UK and around the world has changed for the worse.
Staffordshire University Campus will be closed as of Tuesday 24th March, yet all students are expected to continue as normal.
There are many reasons that continuing as normal may not be possible for students during this pandemic. Some of these reasons are as follows:

Loss of income

Many students depend heavily on earnings from part time work which has now been lost with the closure of pubs and restaurants including LRV and Ember lounge.

Caring for at risk relatives

Many students have relatives that are at higher risk of serious illness or death from Covid-19. This means having to become temporary carers, having to self-isolate for the protection of a family member or in worst case scenarios coping with the death of a family member.

Closure of University buildings and resources

Many students, particularly in the engineering and arts departments may rely heavily on the resources available at Staffordshire university, for example, the Smart Zone. These students have developed their projects believing that these resources would always be available and are now having to drastically change their approaches to fit the current situation.

Technical Problems

Due to all courses being taken online any students that do not have access to their own laptop/computer/mobile phone is at a serious disadvantage.
The number of people now having to access work and study remotely has caused many sites to experience traffic issues leading to slow internet speed or sites crashing completely.

The Coronavirus itself

We all run the risk of catching this Virus, and though many students will only show minor symptoms and bounce back very quickly we must remember that individuals with existing medical conditions are at greater risk. If we take a look at just those diagnosed with Asthma for example, roughly 1/11 people in the UK have Asthma. This equates to just under 1,400 students at Staffordshire university having an existing condition that may put their life at risk.

Self-Isolation and social distancing

Any student having to complete group work now has to attempt this while being either self-isolated or maintaining social distance. While remote working measures have been put into place, getting used to using these remote measures is going to slow everyone’s ability to complete group work.

Stress
Yup, believe it or not watching a global pandemic unravel can be very stressful. No one should be expected to continue working to the best of their ability at this time. Being expected to continue University work as normal puts students at great risk of not obtaining the grades they otherwise would have got.

The right thing to do
If any individual was having to cope with the above-mentioned issues an extension would more than likely be granted. The fact that this situation is upon all of us should not stop the same consideration being given to all students.

Being kicked when we are down
Students across the country are having to cope with having their end of year shows cancelled and their graduations postponed. Those graduating in 2020 are going to have greater difficulty finding work after graduation due to the state of the UK economy and for many the end of year show would have been a path to employment. Though it is understandable that these cancelations and postponements have to be made please remember that this is a real hit to student moral, which makes continuing work as normal increasingly difficult.

IN LIGHT OF THE COVID-19 GLOBAL PANDEMIC WE REQUEST A REASONABLE EXTENSION TO BE GIVEN TO ALL STUDENTS CURRENTLY STUDYING AT STAFFORDSHIRE UNIVERSITY.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT