ABOUT YOUR COURSE

The main difference between studying at higher education and studying at school or college is that you will be expected to take more responsibility for your own learning. One of the aims of higher education is to develop your skills as a lifelong learner so that you can face new challenges later in life and know how to deal with these successfully (see the ‘Learning and Teaching’ section).

IT’S UP TO YOU

Taking responsibility for your own learning means that you will have to organise your own time in order to ensure that you can engage with your studies. Engagement will include, for example: attendance at timetabled sessions (eg. lectures, seminars, etc.); completion of work required for a timetabled session (eg. viewing and reading material available on Canvas, the University’s virtual learning environment); additional reading of books and journals to enhance your knowledge of a subject; accessing additional resources, such as study skills workshops; and completion of assessment tasks.

You will be withdrawn from the University if you fail to engage with the academic requirements of your course of study, within 50 days of the course start date, following repeated and reasonable attempts by the University to contact you.

COURSE GUIDE

When you enrol on a course you will be able to access the Course Guide.

The Course Guide is an important document which contains essential information that you should refer to throughout your period of study. Download it from e:Vision or visit: wlv.ac.uk/courseguides

WHAT YOUR COURSE WILL LOOK LIKE

Your course will consist of a set of modules, which are blocks of teaching and learning based around a particular theme or topic relating to the subject that you are studying.

Each module is given a number of academic credits. The number of credits relates to the amount of study time that you will need to do in order to complete the module. As a general rule, 1 credit = 10 hours of study – so, for a 20 credit module you would expect to study for 200 hours. This time includes:

• all contact time with members of staff • preparation for study • independent learning • preparing and completing assessment activities.

You will collect academic credits every time you pass a module. These credits accumulate towards the total number of credits required for the qualification that you are studying.

The University’s Academic Regulations detail how many credits you will need to achieve for the qualification that you are studying, and how many of these credits you should be achieving in each academic year.

YOUR RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

By accepting the offer of a place on your chosen course, you have entered into a formal contract with the University of Wolverhampton for the provision of education and other services.

As a student, you have accepted and agreed to abide by the terms and conditions, Bye-Laws, Academic Regulations, Rules and Codes of Conduct of the University of Wolverhampton.

Details are provided at: wlv.ac.uk/policies See also: wlv.ac.uk/rights

1 CREDIT=

10 HOURS OF STUDY

COURSE LEARNING OUTCOMES

The course you are studying will relate to one or more credit levels. In the UK, there are eight credit levels. Levels 4-8 refer to higher education qualifications:

Postgraduate

Undergraduate

Foundation Level 8

Equivalent to… A Doctorate

7

A Master’s Degree

6

5

4

3

The final year of study of a Bachelor’s Degree

The final year of study of a Foundation Degree The second year of a Bachelor’s Degree

The first year of study of a higher education qualification

An entry qualification for higher education

These levels relate to the national Framework for Higher Education Qualifications (FHEQ). The qualification you will achieve is equivalent to all other awards at that level across the country.

Course learning outcomes are written to show what you will have achieved having successfully completed your course. For example, the course learning outcomes for a Bachelor’s Degree will be written at Level 6, demonstrating what you will have achieved by completing a degree, and will have learning outcomes outlining what you have achieved by completing Levels 4 and 5.

ACADEMIC EXPECTATIONS

We ensure that your qualifications are equivalent to those of other universities by using the national framework for qualifications. Your academic staff will help you understand what is required for individual assessed pieces of work through the use of assignment briefs, but you should be aware that the expectations of your work will change throughout your degree.

By the end of Level 4, you will be expected to demonstrate a knowledge and understanding of the underlying concepts and principles associated with your subject, and an ability to evaluate, interpret and communicate these concepts.

By the end of Level 5, you will have demonstrated an ability to apply underlying concepts and principles outside the context in which they were first studied, including in employment. You will also have knowledge of the different approaches to solving problems, and be able to evaluate these approaches. Importantly, you will have an understanding of the limits of your knowledge and how this influences your analyses and interpretations.

At the end of your BA or BSc (Level 6), you will have demonstrated that you have a systematic understanding of key aspects of your subject, some of which will be informed by research in the subject. You can apply the methods and techniques you have learned to initiate and carry out projects. You will also be able to apply your own critical evaluation to arguments, assumptions, abstract concepts and data in order to make judgements and to frame appropriate questions to identify a solution or solutions.

If you are undertaking a Master’s degree (Level 7), your systematic knowledge of the subject material will be at the cutting edge of the subject and you will demonstrate a critical awareness of current research and advanced scholarship. You will also demonstrate a practical understanding of how techniques of research are used to create and interpret knowledge.