Introducing the ROCTAS:  honouring lecturers who contribute to the academic success of students 

Since 2010, the annual First-Year Achievement Awards (FYAA) have celebrated the top-performing first-year students in each faculty, alongside the lecturers who played a meaningful role in their academic success.

To align more closely with the institution's growing focus on student success initiatives, the event is being reimagined.  For 2025, the awards will focus exclusively on recognising lecturers who have made a significant impact on the academic journey of first-year students.  

The event is now known as ROCTAS, an acronym for Recognition of Contributions Towards Academic Success. 

At the beginning of the 2025 academic year, all second-year students who had successfully completed their first-year modules in 2024 were invited to nominate one lecturer who had notably influenced their academic success. Nominations required a brief written motivation. 

To ensure equitable representation across faculties, the number of lecturers recognised per faculty was determined proportionally based on 2024 first-year enrolment figures. 

The inaugural ROCTAS awards ceremony was held on 7 May 2025 at STIAS.
Read more about the event here (link to follow)​

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