Academic Advisers

All academic staff in the School of Economics are Academic Advisers. When you arrive at Kent you are assigned an Academic Adviser (details are available on the Student Data System), who will act as a trusted adviser and maintain an overview of your performance and development throughout your degree. You will meet with your Academic Adviser at least once each year and twice in the first year (at induction and in the Spring term).

Scheduled meetings

 

 

 

In addition you can contact your Academic Adviser at any point during the year to discuss issues related to studying economics, such as:

• module choices and problems
• results
• attendance and academic progress
• concessions (when something goes wrong and affects your studies)
• taking a break from your course (intermission) or withdrawing
• plagiarism
• study skills
• careers issues and choices
• student support needs

References

In the first instance you should contact your Academic Adviser. Staff are usually happy to provide references, but please give as much notice as possible – a couple of weeks would be ideal. Asking for a reference in the afternoon when the deadline is at midnight is not a good idea! It will be helpful if you can provide as much information as possible about your application and include your CV with the request.

Contacting your Academic Adviser

All staff have consultation hours when they are available to meet students. Please check the staff list or see the list outside the Economics General Office, Keynes Mg.14. If you can’t make the consultation hours specified, contact your Academic Adviser by email to arrange an appointment.

Seminar leaders/module convenors

Module convenors and seminar leaders are available to provide help or advice on a particular module. If you have a more general query you should go to your Academic Adviser.

Contacting module convenors and seminar leaders

For module convenors you should use the available consultation hours - please check the staff list or see the list outside the Economics General Office, Keynes Mg.14. If you want to contact seminar group leaders it might be wise to email them first.

Directors of Studies

The School of Economics has a Director of Studies for each year of study (Stage). The Directors of Studies co-ordinate student induction at the relevant stages, and can also be consulted on matters relating to:

• results and progression to the next year
• changing modules
• changing course

You need permission (signature on the relevant form) from the Director of Studies at the relevant stage in order to change modules or to change course.

The Directors of Studies are:

• Dr William Collier (Stage 1)
• Prof Alan Carruth (Stage 2) - Autumn term
• Dr Edward Cartwright (Stage 2) - Spring term
• Prof Chris Heady (Stage 3)

Senior Tutor

The Senior Tutor, Dr Maria Garcia-Alonso, provides backup and a referral point for Academic Advisers, and is also responsible for:

• progress monitoring
• plagiarism and other issues of academic discipline
• authorise and discuss intermissions and withdrawals

Progress monitoring

The School of Economics has a system of regular monitoring of student progress. The Senior Tutor oversees the system and advises students to either meet their Academic Adviser, or to meet with her, when there is reason for concern. She can provide help and advice if you are having severe problems and may need to take time out from your studies.

Attendance at seminars and lectures

Attendance at lectures and seminars is compulsory. Your attendance is monitored and the Senior Tutor oversees the monitoring system. The system is intended to highlight students who might be having difficulties, but students who miss seminars on a regular basis go through a warning system, which gets progressively more severe. Some modules award marks for seminar participation.

Mentors

The School runs a system of student peer mentors, that is, experienced third year students who provide first year students with valuable advice from a student perspective. Mentors contact their allocated mentees during freshers week to arrange a meeting. If you do not know who your mentor is, please contact the Economics General Office.

Feedback

The Student Staff Liaison Committee consists of elected student representatives from each year of study and two staff members, usually the Director of Learning and Teaching (Prof Iain Fraser), who chairs the SSLC, and the Senior Tutor (Dr Maria Garcia-Alonso). It is intended as a forum for discussing any issues relating to learning and teaching in the School of Economics. Issues raised are dealt with by the SSLC chair or raised at the School’s Learning and Teaching Committee or School Meeting.

The names and email addresses of the student members of the SSLC are on the Economics noticeboard in Keynes and on the School website. You should contact one of the student or staff representatives if there is something you think should be discussed by the committee.

The SSLC normally meets once a term, with the first meeting in week 6/7 of the autumn term. Students on the SSLC also represent fellow students on the Learning and Teaching Committee and the formal Economics School Meeting and various Faculty committees.