By Luke Williamson

De Montfort University students studying practical courses fear their degrees will be rendered worthless after lockdown has stopped them from completing their work.

The current national lockdown was announced on Monday, January 4, and students were advised to stay where they spent the Christmas period.

Daisy Hicks, DMU Textiles Design student, said: “I feel like practical students are being cast aside and this means our degrees are going to be worthless compared to degrees of people from previous years.

“It also worries me how I am supposed to go into the third year with the knowledge and skill I have at the moment and still be expected to produce work to a high level.

“Don’t get me wrong, the lecturers are doing really well with what they are doing, but there is only so much they can do.”

The university has made provisions to help aid the students as much as possible, modifying assessments as many do not have the materials necessary at home to complete their projects.

Despite the provisions that have been made, students have to submit their work on a low-resolution PowerPoint with poor quality images, as well as submitting woven paper as final work.

Daisy said: “It affects our chances to get a job after this because our portfolios are going to be embarrassing and we’ll be taken less seriously than other years because we have lost a year of practical time on the looms. 

“They have made the Adobe programmes like Photoshop and Illustrator accessible from home, but the university could improve the learning experience by trying to get the students the resources they need.”

The Government has outlined plans for primary and secondary school students to return to the classrooms on Monday, March 8, but it is yet to be announced when university students will be able to return to campus.