I decided to run my student interviews as a single group interview rather than as four individual interviews. This was both for practical reasons (time and scheduling), but also because I was interested in how the students would bounce ideas off one another — overall I think it was actually really rewarding to run it as a group interview, and I’d certainly consider this methodology again in future.
Also, due to time constraints, I did specifically seek out students who I already have a strong and positive connection with. I fully recognise that in more rigorous research it would be better to proactively seek out precisely the students I am more concerned about — those who are less engaged with the studio space. That said, the group of students I spoke to, despite being keen, motivated and proactive, also do not regularly use our studio space. So they are a valid group with whom to discuss these issues.
We started out by discussing workspaces more generally. This group of students were in agreement that working from home will probably always be more practical and functional when it comes to solo working.
S1: I usually don’t stay in uni unless I have a group to work with. [At home], I’m working by myself. I have a desk at home, I have a second screen, which helps a lot. And then I like a candle on the side, and music. And then I work by myself. I like natural lighting as well.
S4: I work best the moment I wake up. So the moment I wake up I work, and that’s when I’m most productive alone. My mind is fresh. And like, I can feel my focus kind of decline over the day. I’d say I get three really, very, very focused hours, but I can generally work throughout the day, I’m just less able to focus. So for when I need to be very, very focused and like, I really need to use my brain power. I push it in the morning. I do it alone in my room. I kind of do it without anything. I literally just stare at my computer.
S4: I would say I like working alone because of how packed my schedule is, and it’s like being at home is the most convenient, and I can complete tasks the fastest.
S2: I like my room, but that’s also because it’s like mine. It’s a space I’m used to. It’s a space I can adjust totally towards my needs
S3: So like, when I need to focus, I will fully just lock myself in my room and stay there the whole day.
However, they are all in agreement that collaboration is important and enjoyable, and they do seek it out.
S2: when I’m working on new projects, the cafe is the easiest. Why? I like noise. Yeah. I do like people talking. I like when I’m discussing with others. I like, I think I like reassurance as well. So if I’m doing something, I’ll be like, Oh, do you think this good? And they’ll be like, yes. And I feel better. So I do like working in a slightly noisy space.
S4: It’s like, I go to class and I study with friends, more for the social aspect and also like, for like, what she said, if I need opinions, I need to work with people.
One student also recognised the value of body doubling as a practice, and seeks this out even in their home work space
[Why don’t you work more here?] S2: No one else does! Let’s say the people in this room [students she gets along with well] are there, yeah, I might be more inclined to stay because I appreciate each of their views. When I’m at home, I kind of just call my friends. So I work while on call with two friends or one friend. I’m a very big believer in body doubling, it really works for me
Later on in the interview, one student also observed that our studio is very over-crowded with furniture, and that making it easier to move around might better facilitate that kind of collaboration:
S2: I think if I’m going to work in that room [our studio], it’s probably because I want to talk to people, or I’m going to collaborate. I think if I’m going to lock in and focus on something, I would go home. If I stay here it’s because I’m, like, expecting to socialize or work with other people. So in that sense I think it would help to have more space to move around to do that.
Another student also noted that being overlooked or observed is a big deal for them (in a bad way), and I suspect they are not alone in this sentiment:
S3: So I can pretty much work throughout the day, and I think I can work anywhere […] but I have this weird thing where I really don’t like, when I feel like someone can look at what I’m doing. I think I’m really picky with that [being overlooked/observed]. So if I’m going to a cafe, or if I’m going out to work and I’m like sitting maybe facing the main path, I can’t work. It’s really bad. But yeah, if I’m at a cafe ever sitting in a corner, I can work perfectly fine, but I just really don’t like the feeling of someone like, looking over my shoulder, not even because, like, I’m scared of them seeing what I’m working on. It just makes me less productive. So if I work with a friend, I’m like, we have to sit opposite each other, yeah? Next to each other — sometimes it’s still okay, like, depending on the situation. But like, usually I prefer to be opposite them. I’m not scared of them actually seeing what’s on my screen. I’m just uncomfortable for some reason.
We then moved on to discussing how they experience sound in their work space. While, as noted, there are times where silence and focus is best, there are also times where some of the students I spoke to agreed that they find the chatter of human voices helpful to their work…
S1: When I work from the office, people are taking calls on the sides. It’s lively. You get, like, productive. You’re doing your thing. You talk to a colleague that that’s nice, too.
…with one student noting that sometimes when working solo they put on a podcast specifically to have that.
S4: Sometimes I need background noise, so I would turn on a podcast. [Do you prefer voices to music as a student?] Yeah, videos, music sometimes, but not really, mostly podcasts — I don’t know, it’s like a stimulation kind of thing.
However, when it comes to music, there were some strong feelings!
S2: Sometimes, if I’m doing a task that requires a lot of reading, then I’ll play Korean music because I can’t understand that, but I still have a noise, and I can read with a lot more focus. Whereas, when I’m designing, I prefer something really loud in English. So it’s like I can adjust to the situation, which makes me more productive
S3: I think I’m like, 100% the same, when I’m at home with music. When I was in high school and it was more like writing essays and reading, I played Chinese songs just because I feel like I paid less attention to the lyrics. But then now that most of the work we do is design, I’m playing, like, just really loud music on speaker, but if I’m outside, then I’ll wear headphones and I’ll make sure noise canceling is on, and I’ll just play whatever music as well.
[Asking the students whether they like it when someone else plays their music in the studio space] S1: I don’t like it. S3: No, same. S4: There’s an extent I would push to, but if it’s too different in my own tastes, I find it hard to… I don’t know. I mean, like, there’s a lot of genres. If someone starts playing hard rock, I’m out. But if you think about it, the Lo Fi beats to study to music is very similar to what cafes play. Cafes double up as a working space. So probably there’s a relation there. In terms of calmer music to help you focus, rather than rap which distracts you. Like, if someone played rap, I will leave.
As we discussed the senses, the conversation moved on to food. On the one hand, the students were in agreement that being able to eat in a work space is good…
S4: I think food helps [with socialising/community]. Because some people are like, well, I need to eat lunch, especially after class. Then they feel more inclined to stay on.
S3: if you walk in a cafe, you know, there’s people having, like, cakes, coffee, cakes and coffee, so like, if you’re gonna eat, you can eat anything that isn’t busy and too messy, and cleaning up after yourself.
However, pretty much all of the students have had bad experiences with people eating in the space!
S2: Like, sometimes, our classmates, they’ll have their drinks and all these stains, and they’ll leave their food. I just don’t like that. I’m like fine, eat, but then at least clean up after yourself.
S4: I think it’s just disrespect. We can say that it’s because they don’t relate the space as much, but they go to that class two times a week at least. Also, it’s like, treating your teacher as your maid. They can see [tutor] picking up after them.
It’s interesting that they have the sense that some students don’t relate to or respect the space, and I hope that by fostering more of a sense of community and ownership within the space this might change. The students also have clear ideas about what foods are and are not acceptable (that they at least agree on, though clearly not all students!)
S2: I don’t like when people are eating around me. I guess it depends on what they’re having. I had, some guy eating noodles and I walked up and left.
S3: I think I agree with that [about not liking too much food in studio space], where even in my room, if I’ve had a meal, and if I can smell it, I’ll be like ‘open the windows!’ So if it’s too excessive, you can’t be having a whole ass meal at our studio space here.
S1: During the [language support] classes on Wednesday. There was this girl, I don’t know who she was, but she had a huge plate, and I couldn’t hear [tutor] because she was chewing so loud. Oh, I was like, No. No. I’m sorry. I’m really sorry. And then I left because I couldn’t bear it. So there’s a sort of yes to food, but there’s a line.
S2: Crisps should be banned! The noise!!
So actually, my previous thought that students want to be able to eat whatever they want in the studio space may not be accurate, and in fact some guidelines (and those guidelines being enforced) is probably a good thing.
Ultimately, as one student very succintly reflected, design is a collaborative process, and for this group at least, they are happy to put up with some physical discomfort in order to enjoy that — the main issues is getting the culture and community of the space thriving so that people actually spend time there.
S1: I just think that, yes, when you’re working on personal things, [being in your own room] works. But I think design is a very collaborative process, and I love that aspect of it, and I really wouldn’t mind being in that room. I wouldn’t mind sitting there and talking to people for a while, maybe for two hours. Maybe it’s not going to kill me to sit there and have a chat or sit there and work with other people [even if I am a bit physically uncomfortable for some reason]
S1: Yeah, I do believe in building the culture. Because, like, I think the people you’re talking to, they would adapt to work with each other in that room, it’s just that everyone in that classroom would not do the same.
And it turns out, that there has not been especially good communication to our students about the use of our spaces…
S1: Now for this year, we don’t know which days we can actually use the studio, because we don’t know when the other years of classes are in there. Because, yeah, last year it was blocked out on our calendar, like, I think marked as optional, but we don’t even have that this year.
S2: I think last year we actually stayed more. I think we stayed the studio quite a bit more because we had it on our calendar. Even though it was more just optional. We knew that we could be in there during that period of time.
S3: Actually, we don’t even know when we can go in. Like, I can’t remember which days it is where we get kicked out and which days we have that we can stay.
They also particularly value opportunities to socialise with the other year groups on the course…
S3: But also, I think one thing I liked was that we saw the second years, even though I didn’t talk to them, but it’s like, oh, other people are in our course, and it’s not just our year
S1: Over the summer, I had second years [on instagram]. I was like, Oh, should I practice this? Should I practice that? And yeah, having their Instagrams, being able to text them, you know, that’s because I’ve been in the room with them. I’ve got like, three of them, all the time we talk, and I don’t see them, like, physically. It would be nice to interact with them in person.
S2: Basically, our schedules just don’t overlap. I think third years right now are in Mondays and Thursdays. So we have no overlap with basically the first years or the third years. So that’s why we never see anyone. But I think especially last year we had a party, that was really nice.
And were keen for opportunities to socialise with our neighbouring course, with whom we share a space:
S2: I just made a point that that’s also our classroom… That classroom is shared with [other course name], why can’t we have that as a collaborative space? [I tell them, In theory, that’s what it is. They could just go in there.] The issue is you have to put things in place that force that to happen. It’s hard to be the first where you just say, Oh, I just go in that room and sit alone and work. So if we were like, oh, Friday is our [other course name] and UX social hour working, you can hang out in the space.
Having a tutor present in the space was also viewed as valuable:
S2: I think having a tutor there makes a difference, like, [interviewee 3: other course lead] is always there [for that course’s students]. So yes, if you have a problem, like, Oh, can you have a look for me? So you you have someone that you can talk to and actually get, like, this informal feedback that’s actually very helpful. I mean, I have [interviewee 1: technician] but yeah, [interviewee 1] comes in a bit later.
They also expressed their enthusiasm for our (now sadly ended due to costs) Thursday workshop programme:
Like the Thursday workshops. Yeah, those were so good, but we did talk about them in the course committee that they might bring back. I hope they do.
I asked the students how they would feel about an idea which was discussed during some of my other research, of having designated themes or ways of working at particular times — as an example, Thursday afternoon is quiet time. Friday afternoon is snacks and hang time. Not so much activities, as more like — at this time the studio works in this way.
S4: I personally I like that because I’m a very structured timetable, every day, I book week, like, weeks in advance, kind of person, so like having in my mind that, okay, Thursday is quiet time. Friday is fun time. I can schedule if I ever want to go in, yeah. But the downside of that is, if people, for example [S1], she has to work in office from Thursday, so she can’t ever come in because she already has a pre book thing and she won’t get the experience.
The students agreed that any changes like this should ideally be timetabled in on CELCAT or Moodle…
S3: I think it’s good to put it on a calendar, CELCAT. I don’t know if it needs to be a class for it to be added on the calendar. But it would be good. Because I guess a lot of students they don’t really pay attention. Like, if it’s in the calendar, they might think they have to show up.
S2: I think even if on Moodle. You can make like I don’t know, like a separate calendar called like I don’t know, like after class social calendar, just something where, like people at first, they might not know if it’s mandatory, if it’s optional. So they might show up to the first not knowing if they find out, if they get there and they realize actually it’s optional, and they never go again, or they might come back if it’s good. We can trick people like that. You could also say optional. I think if there’s, like, a calendar, yeah, people are more inclined to go.
Overall, I really appreciated how thoughtful and insightful the students were, and found their ideas and opinions very valuable towards my research.
Key insight statements
The studio will never be as optimal for solo working as (most) students home spaces, and should be viewed primarily as a collaborative space
Students are excited to socialise and share their space with other year groups, and are even keen to foster an additional shared studio space with a neighbouring course
Students value more scheduled activities in the space, or even just themed times (e.g. quiet afternoon, snacks and social afternoon) so that they can specifically plan to attend knowing what it will be like, and that there will be others present
Key ‘How might we’s’
How might we build a studio culture that focusses on collaboration
How might we create more opportunities for the different year groups to mix
How might we, taking into account staffing and budgetary limitations, make the space feel like it has more ‘going on’