Goldsmiths MFA Students Seek Financial Redress After 21-Week Strike

A group of students on the master of fine art programme at Goldsmiths, University of London, is requesting financial compensation from the university. The demand follows a 21-week industrial dispute that has halted regular teaching for many students on the course.

The strike involves 10 of the 12 tutors who typically staff the MFA programme. Florence Sweeney, a part-time student, stated that many in her cohort have received virtually no formal instruction this term. She described the situation as a financial drain and reported that classmates have shown signs of distress, anxiety, and depression. Sweeney noted that some students traveled from other continents to begin their studies but arrived without proper induction or briefings.

At a student gathering held on Friday, an international student described the initial weeks of the term as a period of shock. The student recalled that induction sessions frequently devolved into discussions about the ongoing strike action. They expressed initial excitement about starting at Goldsmiths, a reputation built by alumni including Steve McQueen, Sarah Lucas, and Damien Hirst, but found the reality of the disrupted term difficult to manage.

The dispute involves members of the University and College Union (UCU) who have been on indefinite strike since early June. The conflict began in April with a marking boycott over proposed job cuts. Management responded by deducting 100% of pay from participating staff, a move the union characterized as a lockout. Joe Newman, co-president of the Goldsmiths UCU branch, said the action is a response to the scale and speed of management's proposed cuts. He reported that students were largely supportive of the staff action and often appeared shocked when informed of the reasons for the strike.

Goldsmiths faces financial pressure from falling applications in core humanities subjects and reduced domestic tuition fees. A staff member described the institution's response as continuous rounds of redundancies and restructuring. The university argues that only about 8.5% of its staff are on strike, leaving most of the student body unaffected by the disruption.

University management has offered compromises, including a pause on compulsory redundancies. However, the institution maintains its position on the 100% pay deductions for the marking boycott. A university spokesperson cited the large sums spent to ease the impact on students as a reason for keeping the deductions in place. The spokesperson stated that continued disruption risks long-term harm to the university's reputation and that the institution is providing regular updates and meetings with schools to support affected students.

MFA students cite the high cost of their education as a primary reason for their demand for redress. Full-time UK students pay nearly £15,000 per year, while international students pay £33,000 per year for the two-year course. John Carver, a part-time second-year student, suspended his studies after attending a departmental meeting at the start of term that he described as dismal. He acknowledged the quality of the regular tutors but noted that replacement staff did not know the students.

James Evans, an international student from the United States, said visa and funding restrictions required him to remain on the course despite the disruption. He reported that he never received marks for his work last year and still lacks feedback on those projects. Evans described the current term as having no structure and barely any communication, leaving students to manage their own learning.

The university has not yet responded to the specific request for compensation from the MFA students. The strike is now in its 21st week, with no immediate end in sight as both sides maintain their positions on the core issues of pay and job cuts.