Students at universities across the country have signed a petition calling for reimbursement of a percentage of their fees for education time lost due to lecturer strikes.

The University College Union estimate that nearly 575,000 teaching hours will be lost in the midst of the strikes, with no plans from the universities to reschedule.

Exeter student, Sophia Unger, has taken part in the online movement: “I have actually signed it myself, if we’re paying £9,250 a year and if it’s not going to the lecturers, where is it going in terms of academic payment?”

The strikes led by the UCU are in response to proposed changes to lecturer’s pension scheme. Instead of receiving a fixed income throughout their retirement, the new scheme will dictate the income upon the basis of stock market movement.

Of the few dozen students from the University of Exeter that were asked, most were not too enthusiastic about answering questions concerning the strikes, nor were they happy to comment on the online petition.

However, anger towards the lecturers may not be the grounds for students deciding to sign the petition. When talking of the proposed change in pensions and the lecturers it affects, Unger continued by saying: “I think it’s awful, I fully support them to be honest, and it is a shame the way it could be changed impacts us in the way that is.”

The effect of the strikes are evident on campus, Abby Masterson, a student of zoology said: “My presentation for my dissertation got cancelled and rescheduled a week later, messing up deadlines.”

With protests set to continue for the foreseeable future, further disruptions to university courses nationwide are a strong possibility.