How you’ll study at Undergraduate Level

Teaching and assessment methods vary depending on your subject(s).

Typical teaching methods could include:

Case studies – this is where you’ll get to look at how real-life events have had an impact on what you are studying. Law students could look at real legal cases, while marketing students could study strategies used by a famous company to get us to buy their products.

Group work – two heads are better than one! An opportunity to work with your fellow students on a piece of work or project. You’ll work together, sharing ideas and knowledge, which may involve you giving a presentation on your findings.

Lectures – your chance to benefit from the expertise of those who know. A lot of information can pass from the lecturer to you in a couple of hours and the notes you take will be invaluable for your course work and exams.

Practical fieldwork – an opportunity to escape from the lecture theatre, or laboratory and maybe even get your hands dirty. This is where you’ll pick up the practical skills that go alongside the theory.

Seminars/tutorials – where you can get together in smaller groups to look in more depth at the issues raised in lectures. You can add your own thoughts and opinions which can often lead to a debate. Tutorials are normally on a smaller scale than seminars which often include oral presentations. You’ll get experience of presenting a topic – a highly valued skill by today’s employers.

Work placements – the chance to gain some crucial, hands-on experience of the working world, which could involve a few weeks to a full year in industry.

Assessment methods typically involve:

Examinations – test your ability to work and cope under pressure. They’re normally held at the end of Semester 2. A revision period will give you chance to study in-depth for your exams.

Presentations – the delivery of a topic, either individually or in groups, usually to your fellow students in small tutorial sessions. For example, computing students may be asked to present the design of a new information system.

Project work – involves working on a problem in depth either individually or in groups to arrive at a solution, or answer to a set problem.

Reports/essays – written ways of relating your understanding of a particular subject. This could involve critically evaluating a topic and coming up with your own answer with evidence to back up your conclusions. English students, for example, may be asked to write an essay on a particular aspect of a novel.

Projects, Dissertations and Independent Study – an extension of the essay involving an in-depth critical study of a subject and compilation of an extensive report. Forms a major part of your final year assessment.