Frequently Asked Questions

Making a Difference 

This theme is about taking action and making a contribution to a person or community outside the University. The work you carry out should benefit people and the wider community locally, nationally, or internationally. 

This theme includes community volunteering and more targeted activities, such as widening participation and outreach. This work can be both paid and unpaid. You'll be given the opportunity to reflect on the difference you have made.

Becoming a Global Citizen  

This theme is about increasing your understanding of global issues.  

The activities you choose could take place within the UK or overseas and could be related to a range of global issues, such as social justice and sustainability, citizenship and democracy. You’ll be asked to explain how the activity helped you become a global citizen. 

Developing my Skills 

This theme is about developing a broad range of transferable skills to help you in your studies and future career, such as communication, advocacy, teamwork, leadership and collaboration.  

A wide range of paid and unpaid student roles and activities within the University and Students' Union count towards this theme, as does any paid work you’re undertaking. You’ll be asked to demonstrate the skills you’ve gained. 

Shaping my Future 

This theme is about your life after graduation, such as career planning, developing relevant skills and gaining experience. 

Any work experience activity with a clear and tangible link to your personal future career goals will count towards this theme, including any relevant activity from the other three themes. You'll have the opportunity to tell us how your Stellify journey has supported your career development.

Each activity is assigned a points value based on factors such as the level of commitment, time involved and degree of challenge. You can mix and match activities to suit your interests, goals and schedule.

Undergraduate students need to achieve a total of 600 points, including at least 100 points in each of the four themes. The remaining 200 points can be earned in the theme or themes of your choice.

Points are assigned in advance to each activity and awarded when you successfully complete it. A full list of activities, their points values and information on how to get involved is available in Canvas.

Examples of points values include: 

• Small activities (e.g., attending a workshop) = 20–50 points 

• Regular commitments (e.g., mentoring, committee roles) = 100–200 points 

• Leadership roles or significant commitments (e.g., internships, student partner) = 300 points 

You can earn points through a wide range of activities, including paid work, volunteering, student leadership roles, internships and personal development opportunities. For an overview of all activities and their points across the four themes, view the activity matrix.

You have the entire length of your degree to complete The Stellify Award. We encourage starting as soon as possible, planning your Stellify journey and taking your time to get the most from the wide range of activities available.

Students need to have completed all activities, submitted the supporting evidence and undertaken the Stellify Award reflection in Canvas by 31 May of their final year.

You will need to record your completed activities in Canvas. For each activity, you'll complete a short declaration and upload some evidence, such as a certificate or a screenshot of a confirmation email.

The Stellify Award and Operations Group has responsibility for assessing all activities against award criteria to decide which activities count and the points weighting. This ensures that there is consistency and parity across different activities and that the system is fair for all participating students. 

We are aware that new activities and roles are created all the time and therefore the list of activities that count towards the award is constantly evolving.

If you're undertaking something you believe meets the criteria of one of the themes but isn't on the list, please get in touch by emailing stellify@manchester.ac.uk.  

If you are a non-final year student (i.e. not graduating in 2027) you have the option to switch to the new Stellify Award.  You can enrol onto the new Stellify Award in Canvas, watch the introductory film and get started.

Activities you have already completed as part of the previous Stellify Award can be counted towards the new award. However, the new Stellify Award uses a points-based system, so you should check the points value assigned to each activity in Canvas.

Your decision will depend on how many Stellify activities you have already completed and how close you are to meeting the requirements of the previous version of the Stellify Award.  

• If you have already completed most of the requirements for the previous version of Stellify, you may benefit from remaining on that version. The new Stellify Award includes a fourth theme and reflection activities, so switching may mean you need to complete additional requirements before achieving the award.

• If you have only completed a small number of activities, or have not yet started working towards the Award, you may benefit from switching to the new Stellify Award. The new version offers a wider range of opportunities and greater flexibility allowing you to earn points through activities  you may already be undertaking such as paid work, internships and personal development opportunities.

If you decide to switch to the new Stellify Award any eligible activities you have already completed can still count towards the Award. However, you are responsible for checking their points value within the new points-based system and uploading evidence for these activities to Canvas. Activity records from the previous version of Stellify will not be transferred automatically.

Ultimately, the choice is yours and will depend on the activities you have already completed, the opportunities you are currently undertaking or plan to undertake, and how you would like to work towards the Award for the remainder of your studies.

Information about how to achieve the original and the new version of the Stellify Award can be found here.

To achieve the award students complete the following:

• Complete both UCIL Short Courses. 
• Complete 10 hours of volunteering which benefits the wider community. 
• Complete one approved Champions for Change role.

Take a look at what's involved on the relevant pages.

The award also requires you to submit a final reflection piece at the end of your journey in order to consider the activities you have completed, helping you to think about the skills you have gained and your perception of your place in the world. 

You will need to ensure that all your activities have been recorded by the activity owner.  You can see how to do this in the section on 'Tracking your progress'. 

This information is not related to the new Stellify Award delivered on Canvas but to the previous Award.

While undertaking your Stellify journey, it is important to actively monitor your progress. At present, there is no single system that allows students on the previous Stellify Award to view their progress in one place.

Therefore, all students working towards this Stellify Award are advised to follow the guidance below to ensure they remain on track.

Understand the Issues that Matter

• Please see the UCIL Short Courses  guidance under 'How do I show I’ve done it?'. To track your progress for this component of the Stellify Award, you should refer to your Canvas account. Once you have completed a UCIL Short Course, it will be marked as complete in Canvas. If you have any further queries please contact ucil@manchester.ac.uk 

Make a Difference

• Please see the Make a Difference guidance under 'How do I show I’ve done it?' You need to log your hours on Volunteer Hub or the Sports Volunteering platform and ensure they are approved. If you have any further queries please contact volunteers@manchester.ac.uk 

Step Up and Lead / Champions for Change

• Please see the Step Up and Lead / Champions for Change guidance under 'How do I show I’ve done it?'.  You should check with your role owner that your completion of the role will be recorded at the end of the academic year. If you have any further queries, please contact your role owner directly.

Each completed component is added to a student’s Higher Education Achievement Record (HEAR). Completed components are added to the HEAR annually in June. For Master’s students, there is an additional update following the 30 September deadline.

Therefore, if you contact us to enquire about your progress towards the Stellify Award, we can only confirm activities that have been recorded on your HEAR at the most recent HEAR update prior to your enquiry.

Please see here for details of what happens once the Stellify Award is achieved.

If you are unable to access the UCIL Short Courses on Canvas, please email ucil@manchester.ac.uk.

Yes. Any hours you have logged on Volunteer Hub that you are using towards the Manchester Leadership Programme can also count towards the 'Make a Difference' section of the award. 

All undergraduate students are eligible for The Stellify Award for Undergraduates. This includes Direct Entry students, but does not include Study Abroad or Exchange students. 

All postgraduate taught students are eligible for The Stellify Award for Masters Students.

No. The Manchester Leadership Programme is a separate award. This involves completing a Leadership in Action course unit which is part of the University College for Interdisciplinary Learning (UCIL) and either 15, 25 or 40 hours of volunteering to gain a bronze, silver or gold award.

Any volunteering hours you have logged on Volunteer Hub that you are using towards the Manchester Leadership Programme can also count towards the 'Make a Difference' section of the award. 

If you feel you have specific extenuating circumstances that have prevented you from completing the Stellify Award, please contact the Stellify team, who will provide you with an Extenuating Circumstances application form, via stellify@manchester.ac.uk.

Once your form is received your case will be considered by the Stellify Award Operations Group on a case-by-case basis. Please note, queries may not be resolved in time to include the Stellify Award in the graduation ceremony. 

ALL extenuating circumstances applications must be submitted prior to the 31 May deadline for undergraduate students and 30 September for master's students.  We will be unable to consider any applications after this time. 

You can still achieve the Stellify Award even if you don't successfully pass your degree. Your award certificate would be posted to your home address.

If you achieve the award prior to your graduating year you will be notified by email. Award certificates will be awarded to students at graduation. 

Absolutely! The Stellify Award for master’s students is designed for all postgraduate taught (PGT) students - whether you are new to Manchester, previously studied here without completing the award, or have already achieved the award during your undergraduate degree.

If you have completed The Stellify Award before, you are still welcome to take part. However, you will need to complete new activities for the master’s version.