Universities in the region have divided ahead of the final-year exams in East Anglian universities on the issue of support for a boycott of setting and marking currently in force across the AUT lecturer's union.

At the University of East Anglia (UEA) and in Cambridge, student unions have publicly stated their support for lecturers from the AUT union who are currently maintaining a boycott of setting or marking coursework and examinations as part of a pay dispute.

In Essex, a statement released by the Students’ union has called for the educational staff to abandon the action as it would cause ‘undue stress’ to students.

At UEA, the NUS has been generally supportive of the strike, according to one postgraduate: “The SU led a small demonstration in support on the strike day (in March). In the days leading up to the strike, ENS activists built support on campus by leafleting students to explain the key issues and by collecting over 100 student signatures on an Open Letter which we handed in to the vice-chancellor calling on him to use his influence to pressure the employers' body (made up of v-cs) to get round the table with the union.

“I've no illusions in the v-c'c willingness to do this but this was a way to channel attention onto the role of the university management and prevent them sitting on the sidelines. Students are obviously concerned at the impact of the action on their education and on their chances of graduating on schedule. ”

In Cambridge, there has been less action, but the students body has come out in support. An AUT member in the city said: “At the moment most exams have been set because the deadline was before the strike started, so students will sit their exams. In most particularly the arts (history, social sciences etc) there is a critical mass which will be able to disrupt proceedings. The antiquated setup of colleges means there are a lot of outside examiners, so we won’t really feel the effects until the final exams aren’t marked, but at the moment coursework isn’t being marked either.

“Students I’ve spoken to have been whole heartedly in favour. We had a meeting where teachers spoke about it and only one Tory said anything against them. Even the students who are opposed to it seem to be in favour of the payments going up. In terms of industrial action it’s about the only thing academics can do – nobody cares about the odd missed lesson – an it seems to be working, negotiations are starting on 8th May.

“The CUSU Executive council is fairly right wing, but they have put out a statement supporting the boycott saying they want the action to end but with a win for the lecturers.”

In Essex, the union executive have refused to support the action on the grounds that “could potentially lead to unmarked work, delayed degrees and the cancellation of graduation”. One student at the university said: “Some of the lecturers are members and there are some essays still outstanding, but others aren’t and they are continuing the marking. It seems the university will have to give affected students the benefit of the doubt. At the end of the year there will be marks missing so either they will have to guess or average out the marks already earned. It seems like very few of the teachers are members of a union though, most are marking.”

In most cases, lecturers who are not marking do seem to be giving feedback to students.

Salaries for the lecturers, researchers and administrators who educate, develop and look after the 2.3 million students in UK higher education have stagnated, dropping 40% in real terms over the last decade.

Between now and 2008, UK universities will receive an extra £3.4billion in funding. This amounts to a 25% increase. Universities promised the government when top-up fees and the other extra funding was announced that 'in general at least a third of that money will be put back into the salaries and conditions of their staff.' Unfortunately although the unions made a claim asking the employers to keep this promise in October 2005, the universities have not yet made an offer to increase pay.