How might we achieve higher response rates on our Online Unit Evaluations?

The University of Bath has been running Online Unit Evaluation (OUE) across all Departments since 2006/07 as a means of collecting end of unit evaluations. The aim of this discussion is to reflect on the response rates for OUE. In particular, what strategies might departments, Directors of Studies and individual staff adopt to improve their OUE response rate? The methodology focuses on undertaking a number of structured interviews across 6 departments. The broad findings highlight the need for a more joined up Departmental approach. However, further work is proposed to unpick the perception that response rates are low because the vast majority of students are silent and satisfied.