Chemistry Programme Handbook

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Handbook Part I - General Information

Student Support and Guidance

1. Academic Advisors
2. Academic Tutors
3. PASS
4. Personal and Academic Development Plan (PADP)
5. Ill Health
6. University Services

Academic Advisors

All members of staff in the School are available to help you, however you are assigned an Academic Advisor.  In years 1-3 the Academic Advisor is the Personal Tutor and in year 4 the project supervisor undertakes this role.  The Academic Advisor should, in most instances, be your first point of contact if you have anything you wish to discuss.  This should include any personal and academic concerns you may have.

Your Academic Advisor has the responsibility of monitoring your progress through your programme of studies, for marking year one skills course assignments and for unofficial disclosure of exam marks.  Normally your Personal Tutor will also act as your academic subject tutor in one area of Chemistry. 

It is important that you see your Academic Advisor regularly.  Advisors are usually called upon to provide references to prospective employers on your behalf.  The better your Advisor knows you, the easier it will be to write an effective reference.

If you wish to consult someone other than your Academic Advisor, you may see the Director of Undergraduate Studies. 

Academic subject tutors and tutorials

Tutors are assigned at the beginning of the first year of your studies.  Each student has three academic tutors. One of these is also your Personal Tutor for each branch of Chemistry (Inorganic, Organic and Physical).

Your Tutors will work with you, usually in a small group, to discuss and develop the material you meet in lectures and laboratory courses.  Attendance at tutorials is compulsory.

Peer Assisted Study Scheme (PASS)

PASS is a student mentoring programme.  Third and fourth year students volunteer to act as academic mentors (PASS leaders) to help and support first year students in their academic studies each week.

Tutorial worksheets are given out weekly to support the lectures being given.  PASS sessions take place every Tuesday and focus on the week’s worksheet. 

Personal and Academic Development Plan (PADP)

A PDP is a means by which you can monitor, build and reflect on your personal development.  It is intended to help you become a more effective, independent and confident self-directed learner.  It should also improve your general skills for study and career management and enable you to articulate your personal goals.  The use of the PDP is a structured process that you carry out with support and guidance from your Academic Advisor.  This involves self-reflection and the use of personal records to plan and monitor progress towards the achievement of personal activities.

There are specific weeks in the tutorial schedule which are designed to facilitate meetings between you and your Academic Advisor. 

            The Royal Society of Chemistry has designed a detailed record keeping scheme and guidelines on points for development deemed suitable for Chemistry students.  This scheme is now available from the RSC website.

Ill Health

It is a requirement of your registration with the University of Manchester that you register with a local general practitioner.  A list of GP practices can be obtained from the NHS website.

You should always consult your GP (or for emergencies the Accident and Emergency Department of a hospital) if your illness is severe, if it persists of if you are in any doubt about your health.  You should also consult your GP if illness keeps you absent from the University for more than 7 days including weekends.  If you do consult a GP and they consider that you are not fit to attend the University, then you should obtain a note from the doctor to that effect or ask them to complete Part III of the University form ‘Certificate of Student Ill Health’, copies of which are available at local GP surgeries.  You should hand this certificate to the Education Office at the earliest opportunity.  Retrospective medical notes may not be accepted.

If your condition is not sufficiently serious to cause you to seek medical help, then the University will not require you to supply a doctor’s medical certificate.  However you must contact your Personal Tutor or the Education Office and complete a ‘Certificate of Student Ill Health’ form to explain your absences as soon as you are able to attend the University.

The following bullet points explain what you should do if your illness affects your attendance at compulsory classes or if you consider that your performance in your studies/examinations has been impaired:

• if you are unwell and feel unable to attend a compulsory class, assessment or examination, then you must seek advice by contacting the School immediately, in person, through a friend or family member, by telephone or by email.  This is to ensure that you understand the implications of being absent and the consequences for your academic progress, which might be quite serious.
• you may be unwell but are able to proceed with an assessment or examination and yet you feel that your performance will have been impaired.  If you wish this to be taken into account as an extenuating circumstance, you must inform your Personal Tutor about this on the day of the assessment or examination and hand in to the Education Office a completed ‘Certificate of Student Ill Health’ form which must be countersigned by a tutor or medical practitioner.
• you may be under occasional and ongoing medical attention which affects your studies.  If so, you should obtain a letter from your physician which should be given to your Personal Tutor before the end of January, May/June or August/September examination period, as appropriate, if you wish your condition to be taken into account as an extenuating circumstance.

Notes:

1. Certificate of Student Ill Health forms are available in all schools and Halls of Residence.
2. Your Personal Tutor will give you guidance on the effect of any absence from your studies.  If you have repeated episodes of ill health which affect your studies, the School may refer you to the Student Health Centre.