Student Voice at OCA - We Need You
- OCA Student Association
- Nov 21
- 4 min read
Student Voice Strategy
Student voice describes the way in which feedback and dialogue between students and staff at OCA can be captured, shared, and acted upon. This feedback is used to enhance the learning and teaching experience. The Student Voice Strategy developed in 2024 outlines the overall framework for capturing student voice in a variety of ways, and outlines the mechanisms through which student feedback is analysed and acted upon. Watch the video below to understand what we mean by student voice and our commitment to it and view and download the strategy beneath.
Get involved in Governance
The OCA and the OCA Student Association recognises the help of its unpaid volunteers who provide many valuable services to students. This includes providing feedback on prospective curricula, policy and other consultative requests, leading study groups - geographical or discipline specific, writing blog posts, creating and participating in creative collaborations or being a student representative within OCA Governance.
Students contribute valuable and diverse perspectives and are not a unified group. As such there is a range of student voices within the OCA. All OCA students are members of the OCA Student Association and we are keen to get as many people involved as possible.
In the academic year 24/25 OCA carried out a Governance review, to clarify the role and increase understanding and confidence in the deliberative structure, and the decision making and ongoing development of OCA. Part of this was about broadening representation across all levels of the deliberative structure. This is where you come in!
View the presentation below or download the pdf version beneath to find out more about Governance at OCA and where you can get involved.
Institutional Calendar 25/26
Please take a look and complete the form here to express your interest in being a Student Representative within OCA Governance. We are also looking for Student Volunteers for two Tech projects in the New Year.
Hear from Isidora Cetkovic who has been a volunteer with the OCA Student Association (OCASA) over the years. Thank you Izz for being amazing!
I've been volunteering for OCASA almost as long as I've been a part of OCA as a student, and the reason why I've stuck around for so long is because my experience has been very positive from the very start. Although my course takes the majority of my available time, I don't find my involvement with OCASA to be daunting or stressful, which is very much thanks to those members of staff who handle things related to the Student Association. I am always reminded that I can take breaks whenever I need, and when I do get involved, I find that my ideas, comments, and point of view are always considered.
It would be lovely to have a bigger team of student volunteers, not just because that way we would collectively be able to give more time to this endeavour, but, more importantly, because it is necessary to have a more diverse team of people to ensure the right decisions are being made. The student association exists for us, and I would love to see more students engaging with this space in a way that's more directly impacting the way things are done and in a way that creates an easier path for students to express their opinions and be heard.
While volunteering isn't right for everybody, I would recommend it for those students who feel like they have the capacity to be more involved as a part of the student body, those who have new ideas for OCA they want to see brought to life or changes they want to see happen, and those who enjoy organizing events or like the idea of managing social media and further building a creative student community at OCA.
And thank you to Katy, Trine and Jenn who have attended meetings so far this academic year and to everyone who has helped organise events, share stories, offer feedback and completed surveys etc. Your input is so appreciated.
Other ways to contribute
Occasionally during the Academic Year students will be consulted on changes to existing course materials or the potential for new curricula, we ask that if you can, you take the time to read any information provided and give feedback. Students are asked to complete surveys throughout their studies, please do use this opportunity to share your thoughts. We also hold an annual Student Voice Festival to celebrate the student voice within OCA and enable opportunities for you to have your say. Finally, we are a creative bunch and love to hear your student stories and see your work, please consider sharing yours with us and contribute to our creative collaborative callouts such as our EDI Calendar and edge zine.
Student Voice Festival
The Student Voice Festival in held annually in July. Across two weeks you have the opportunity to meet your peers and share your thoughts and experiences on being a student at OCA. You will hear from Operational and Academic staff and be able to take part in a variety of activities and events led by OCA staff, students, alumni and external facilitators.
Student Voice Festival 2026: Save the date 6th - 17th July 2026.
We hope you can get involved. #WeAreOCA
Any questions or concerns please email blog@oca.ac.uk
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