A guide to inducting students association education officers - sparqs

This guide supports students’ association and institutional staff who are responsible for creating or enhancing an annual induction programme for incoming students’ association education officers. The guide is based on the principle of partnership between the students’ association and staff in management, quality and governance roles, who should all contribute to an effective induction programme.
To help these key partners build or enhance an education officer induction programme, the guide contains suggestions such as:
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- Ideas to support handover between incoming and outgoing education officers.
- Example session topics, workshop ideas, and training sessions key topics in learning and teaching.
- An example activity to introduce incoming education officers to the Student Learning Experience model.
- Advice to support the education officer’s induction to institutional committees, boards, and working groups.
- Opportunities for the governing board or body to support the education officer’s induction.
- Reflective questions to help develop an education officer role profile.
- A sample timeline of an education officer induction programme.
Originally published as a resource for colleges in spring 2020, this guide was developed in response to sector demand. Since then, it has been updated year on year and has now been expanded into a tertiary resource for both colleges and universities. It will continue to be updated on an annual basis, in line with specific changes in the context of the role.
For further information, please contact:
- Name: Chase Greenfield
- Role: Development Consultant
- Email: chase.greenfield@sparqs.ac.uk
- Phone: 07701 273779
(Updated April 2025)
Item Number:266
- An induction guide for Academic Representation Co-ordinators - sparqs
- A guide to inducting students association education officers - sparqs
- Supporting the future careers of SA education officers: outduction toolkit - sparqs et al
- Self-Evaluation and Action Plan (SEAP) guidance for SAs and student officers - sparqs
- Scotland's Ambition for Student Partnership - sparqs
- Online and blended learning: best practice for a successful student induction - sparqs
- Suggested questions for Course Reps to use 2024-25 - sparqs
- Online and blended learning: reflective questions for students and staff - sparqs
- The Future of Learning & Teaching: defining and delivering an effective and inclusive digital/blended offering - SFC et al
- Creating and reviewing student engagement roles - sparqs
- Online Student Learning Experience Model - Perth College UHI
- Students as active partners in shaping their learning experience - Leeds Trinity University College
- Theory of partnership: Ladder of Citizen Participation - Sherry R Arnstein
- ABCD of Effective Feedback - sparqs
- Student Partnership Staircase - sparqs
- Understanding the SU's key relationships: The Cadogan Matrice
- Framework for the Development of Strong and Effective College Students
- A Student Engagement Framework for Scotland - sparqs and sector partners
- Engaging Students in Online Distance Learning - sparqs
- Supporting Senior Student Officers in Universities - sparqs
For all resources published by sparqs, see the "sparqs Resources" category in the list on the left, including the following:
- Student Learning Experience model
- Scotland's Ambition for Student Partnership
- A Student Engagement Framework for Scotland
+ resources linked to the SEF - ABCD of Effective Feedback
- Student Partnership Staircase
See all sparqs publications (Strategic Plans, celebration reports, etc.) here.