The vice-chancellor of Oxford Brookes University has dismissed a vote of no confidence against him as a "stupid stunt" on a serious issue.

The Students' no confidence vote

Prof Graham Upton said he was surprised and disappointed by the Student Union's protest vote against a timetable change from three short terms to two longer semesters.

He said the majority of staff and students welcomed the changes, introduced in September, and said the confidence vote lacked credibility because students were lured to the meeting with the promise of free pizza and tickets to union events.

He also expressed "serious concerns" over a union Internet survey which found that 52 per cent of the 1,367 students polled were unhappy with the semesters and 77 per cent felt more stressed.

As reported in the Oxford Mail, the university says it changed the timetable to allow new subject combinations, improve learning and free up time for research. It said it would give the new system at least three years before deciding whether to continue.

Prof Upton said: "The vote is unfortunate, but my concern is not for myself, it's for all the staff who have worked so hard over the past three years leading up to the change.

"The survey was of questionable validity -- there was nothing to stop people answering it multiple times -- I'm aware of one student answering it four times. Offering free pizza to the first 100 students who turned up was a stupid stunt on a serious issue.

"The proportion of students at the meeting was very small -- about 180. We need to establish what the real level of concern is. But even if it's a small number, we still want to address their concerns. "The university went to great lengths to ensure an effective transition from terms to semesters. Staff and the student's union participated fully in the decisions taken over that time.

"I think the majority of students and staff are satisfied with the change."

Oxford Brookes has 16,584 full and part-time students.

Prof Susan McRae, chairman of the semesters project board, added: "Change is always uncomfortable and we recognise that this process is difficult for some, but we are taking their concerns on board."

Louise Slator, president of the Students' Union, stood by the no-confidence vote and the Internet survey findings.

She said: "Semesterisation has forced union general meetings to be moved to an evening slot -- we felt it necessary to provide hot food to enable more students to attend.

"By suggesting this no-confidence is a stunt, the vice-chancellor is undermining our role as a union.

"It is a serious concern that the vice-chancellor continues to maintain that the majority of students are happy with the way that semesters have been implemented."