London Freshers Given Free Samsung Tablets

One of London’s biggest universities has announced it is handing out free tablets and eBooks to its newest students in a bid to ensure they are fully equipped for their studies.

Around 4,000 freshers at the University of East London (UEL) will be provided with brand new Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0 tablets pre-loaded with textbooks and links to a range of university resources, which is hoped will last throughout their studies at the university.

The £2m cost of the devices will be funded by the University’s Progress Bursary programme as part of a drive to further integrate technology into student learning and make it easier for students to access university resources, as well as saving them money on buying expensive textbooks which often only last for a semester.

Future learning

“The University of East London places a strong emphasis on helping students to get the most out of the time that they spend with us,” said Professor John Joughin, UEL’s vice-chancellor.

“Our support for equality of opportunity is one of UEL’s defining values, and providing our entire first-year intake with Samsung tablets – pre-loaded with core textbooks and links to virtual learning resources -ensures there is a level playing field for all of our students.”

“We are delighted to be putting support directly in the hands of our students and providing them with a state-of-the-art learning platform for the duration of their studies.”

Professor Joughin kicked off the tablet distribution at the university’s Fresher’s Week event, with Sambino Albino, an anthropology student from Italy, one of the first to be presented with a device.

“It’s great. I really didn’t expect to be receiving a tablet. From where I come from, they’re still using textbooks,” she said.

Graham Long from Samsung’s UK enterprise business team hailed UEL’s “innovative project”, saying that the company was delighted to work with the university.

“At Samsung we passionately believe that technology has a significant role to play in opening doors for the leaders of tomorrow, equipping them with the skills necessary to meet the needs of the ever evolving economy,” he said.

“This is a great example of a higher education establishment embracing digital trends and we hope many others will follow.”

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