At UCS we believe that learning is a partnership involving both the teaching staff and the students.
Course Delivery
As subject experts, UCS course teams are skilled at presenting course subject matter in a manner that prompts and supports students in their learning. The foundation of most courses is the use of traditional classroom activities such as workshops, seminars, tutorials and laboratory sessions. Through the use of the Virtual Learning Environment| many course teams encourage their students to expand their learning through the use of on-line learning activities and engagement with virtual discussion groups. On some courses, students are encouraged to form peer support networks, and where courses operate with smaller numbers of students, communities of learning have been created where staff and students review and critique each others work on a regular basis to mutually support each others development.
Student Learning
However much course tutors provide for students, it is still important for students to recognise their role in learning. At degree level it is the responsibility of each student to ensure that they plan and manage their own learning. Everyone is different; each student will find their own best methods for learning subject material and we believe that discovering this is a key element of each UCS students' experience. Through subject and personal individual tutorials for each student, and supported by provision from the Learning Development Team|, we will do our best to help our students to develop their own approaches to learning and so to make best use of the opportunities available to them while studying at UCS.
Tutorial support
All courses include time for subject based tutorials. Students are encouraged to use these times with their tutors effectively, discussing subject issues and exploring how they can improve their knowledge, skills and abilities. In addition, students are allocated personal tutors with whom they are able to discuss progress on the course, gain advice on study methods, and be guided through their student experience.
Employment Links
Many UCS courses have developed close links with employers and professional organisations that ensure our courses meet the current demands of the work place. These links are further developed through the work-based learning and work placements that form an integral element of many more vocational courses. Experience students gain from the work place is linked into course delivery, allowing students to critique academic theory from industrial or practice view points.
Enhancing Learning
UCS aims to harness the latest technology and techniques to help students learn in a way that suits them. We are continually exploring new approaches to learning and assessing how we can use them to enhance student experience. This has resulted in the introduction of innovations throughout the UCS curriculum including the recent launch of our first Honours degree| course to be delivered totally on-line.