School of ENGINEERING ACADEMIC ADVISOR

HANDBOOK

2014-2015

Academic Advisor Handbook 2014- 2015

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CONTENTS

1. The Purpose of the Academic Advisor Framework

2. The Role of the Academic Advisor

3. The Role of the School in Student Support

4. University Level Support for Academic Advisors

5. Referral and Advice

6. Organisation of the Academic Advisor Framework in the School of Engineering

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1. The Purpose of the Academic Advisor Framework

The University of Liverpool regards the role of the Academic Advisor as a

fundamental component of the relationship between academic teaching staff

and students. It is a key contributor to a positive student experience.

For students, time spent at University brings opportunity not only for

disciplinary academic growth but also for effective and guided personal

development. Academic Advisors should aim to foster partnerships with

students to promote their development as independent and scholarly learners.

The Academic Advisor framework, by promoting both formal and informal

contact between academic staff and students, fosters a sense of an academic

community. The framework is intended to contribute to the academic success

of students by focussing on their individual development and ensuring their

academic work is monitored and supported by their advisors. The advisor-

student relationship should also ensure that academic progress is not

obstructed by issues which may well be resolved by timely advice from the

advisor or other support/professional services staff.

The Academic Advisor should also develop a relationship with a student that is

supportive in encouraging students to develop their skills for self-management

and employment. This will best be realised through the experience of a well-

designed and delivered programme of learning, teaching and assessment, as

well as through opportunities provided outside the formal curriculum. The new

My Liverpool interactive resource is a website where students can find out

about a wide range of co- and extra- curricular activities that they can take part

in to make the most of their time at Liverpool. These opportunities include

sports, music, volunteering, CE courses (some of which are free to students)

opportunities to study abroad, specific activities organised by a student’s

school/department and many many more……. Students can search the new

website via www.liv.ac.uk/my-liverpool

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For many new students life at university will bring great excitement along with

new problems, stresses and anxieties, particularly in the early weeks. Many of

these problems can be addressed if the student has the opportunity to talk

and, most importantly, to be listened to. However, the Academic Advisor is

only part of a network of support provided by the wider University.

This handbook sets out the minimum engagement expected in your role as

Academic Advisor.

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2. The Role of the Academic Advisor

All students at the University of Liverpool will be assigned a named academic

member of staff as their Academic Advisor. Their role is to develop a

relationship with the students assigned to them: to provide information, advice

and guidance on academic matters; to direct students to further sources of

information on academic matters and to the wide range of information, advice

and guidance on non-academic matters available to students at Liverpool.

Schools (and in some instances departments) will be responsible for the

administration of this process [see section 6].

The Academic Advisor will:

i. Meet with the student at the beginning of their studies and at the

start of each new academic year. For new undergraduate and

postgraduate taught students, the initial meeting should normally

take place during Welcome Week. This could be a group meeting

where the Academic Advisor meets with all newly assigned

students.

ii. Ensure that the students are made aware of the additional support

offered within the School and across the institution.

iii. Ensure that the students are aware that they can contact/meet

with the Academic Advisor at other times during the year. i.e. AAs

should provide details of their office hours.

iv. Arrange a second meeting to take place within the first 4-8 weeks

of the 1st semester. Ideally this should be a one to one meeting. At

this meeting the Academic Advisor may help the student to review

their experience so far, highlight the stated learning outcomes of

the programme of study and discuss opportunities and a strategy

for personal development [Section 6 will provided details on

specific School advice for Academic Advisors. Students

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undertaking PBL classes may have this meeting with the PBL tutor.

Dates for these meetings are mapped against group rotations].

v. Arrange a further meeting (feedback tutorial) in the 2nd semester

during which overall progress can be discussed.

vi. Keep a record of student attendance at these meetings. This is

important in cases where a student complaint is made. Academic

Advisors should be aware of the University Framework for Student

Attendance. The sections relevant to the role of the Academic

Advisor are reproduced below:

Section 3.5. …. The monitoring of student engagement by reviewing

attendance at recordable activities will form part of the School’s overall

monitoring of students’ academic progress and their support for their

wellbeing. A range of systems will be in place to do this, including the

Academic Advisor system;

Section 3.10. … If a student (subsequently) returns to their studies, a meeting

will be held with their academic advisor to discuss their attendance and

investigate any underlying issues or contributing factors affecting poor

attendance.

Section 3.11. … where a student is showing poor engagement by intermittent

attendance, the normal processes for exploring the reasons for this with the

student and providing support should take place, normally with the academic

advisor.

A guide to how Academic Advisors within the School should structure the

meetings in the best interests of the students is detailed in section 6.

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Notes:

All students will be assigned an Academic Advisor. This includes UG,

PGT, PGR and exchange students.

Schools will be responsible for allocating Academic Advisors and for

administration of the framework.

Where possible Academic Advisors should be initially allocated

students who are studying within programmes they are associated

with.

Schools will be responsible for ensuring that Academic Advisors are

provided with the necessary information, training and support to carry

out the role (See section 6). Additional support will be provided by

CLL. www.liv.ac.uk/eddev

Students joining the University at different times in the year (i.e. as

Year 2 entrants, PG medics etc.) should be provided the same support

as Year 1 students.

Mitigating circumstances: Academic Advisors should be prepared to

give advice to students on the University Policy on Mitigating

Circumstances, although students can also obtain guidance from the

Guild if they wish.

Academic Advisors should arrange appropriate student support if they

are likely to be absent from the University for any reason. Schools

should ensure that appropriate cover is provided where an Academic

Advisor will be absent for a substantial period of time e.g. study leave.

It may be appropriate in some areas that the undergraduate

dissertation/project supervisor takes the role of Academic Advisor in

the final year of study.

The primary PGR supervisor will be indicated in the student Liverpool

Life/TULIP record as the first point of contact for student support and it

is likely that the supervisor will also have the role as Academic Advisor..

However, the Guide on Academic Progress of PGR Students states that

all PGR students have a Progress Assessment Panel independent of the

supervisory team and that other independent figures are available, for

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example Directors of PGRs and mentors. Any of these might also carry

out some of the functions of an Academic Advisor

Formal timetabling of Academic Advising sessions is suggested as good

practice.

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3. The Role of the School in Student Support

Each School will have a student support team available to provide advice to both

students and staff and refer students to specialist support services available

across the University. The support team can also give guidance on non-

academic/personal aspects of student life: information on who to contact will be

found in the student handbook. In addition, students can independently contact

central Student Support Services at any time during their studies; more

information is available at http://www.liv.ac.uk/studentsupport/

Named persons within the school support team should be identified to act as

an additional point of contact for students. Schools are responsible for

ensuring this provision is made available and communicated to academic staff

and students. Schools are also responsible for ensuring that appropriate

training is provided to these individuals. The school student support team can

comprise both academic and professional services staff. The organisation in the

School is detailed in section 6.

The school student support team will:

i. Provide a point of contact within the School to provide both advice

on School level procedures and signposting to central and

specialised support services for both students and academic

advisors.

ii. Be proactive in responding to and liaising with central support

services to meet the support needs of identified cohorts of

students (e.g. mature, international, disabled, care leavers) and of

vulnerable students e.g. students experiencing personal difficulties.

iii. Be a point of contact for the Disability Support Team (or other

central support services) prior to admission to co-ordinate

necessary support.

iv. Work with senior Academic Advisors and staff in central

Professional Services to determine strategies and operations to

support students with specific and complex difficulties.

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4. University Level Support for Academic Advisors

The Academic Advisor web page will provide links to all of the

support required to effectively carry out the role. At the website

you will be able to download copies of this handbook and discover

information on all of the support services that will be available to

students.

http://www.liv.ac.uk/eddev/supporting-students/academic-advising/

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The webpage will also provide a link to an on-line Induction Guide

for Academic Advisors: this is a brief (5 minute) video introduction

to the role of the Academic Advisor.

iLearn:

iLearn is the University’s online learning and skills development

portal containing a skills diagnostic with feedback and interactive

resources and quizzes. It can be accessed by all University of

Liverpool students and has an extensive range of resources (both

generic and subject specific) to support the development of skills

appropriate to university level study. iLearn has proved popular

and useful with students and with staff. www.liv.ac.uk/ilearn

Student Representation Procedures: An enhanced student

representation system has been developed and implemented to

try to improve the effectiveness of student engagement and

representation at all levels, from specific student issues and

concerns to real involvement in the quality systems and processes

throughout the institution. At the core of the new framework is an

enhanced role for Student Course Representatives (who sit on Staff

Student Liaison Committees) in order to facilitate greater and

more in-depth student involvement in Learning and Teaching and

quality issues, as well as the more operational issues. To achieve

this, more (structured) opportunities for course representatives to

engage with the student body have been developed, together with

additional support and training for the representatives.

Further information can be obtained from Trish Lunt

Trish.Lunt@liv.ac.uk or Kylie Williams Kylie18@liv.ac.uk

Case Studies (Student Talking Heads): Educational Development

will (in collaboration with the Guild) prepare a series of student

views on the role of the AA. These will be made available via the

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AA web page and will present the views of students from all three

faculties.

CPD opportunities: The University offers generic training in the

Role of the Academic Advisor. This training workshop, which is

part of the Certificate in Professional Studies programme, will be

offered 2 or 3 times per year. You can find out when the workshop

will run and book onto the next session at the Academic Advisor

web pages.

Bespoke training within Schools: It is intended that School will

provide bespoke induction and training in the Academic Advisor

role. Information on such training will be provided by School

student support offices.

Senior Academic Advisors (Senior Tutors) may be allocated in your

school to provide advice for new academic advisors and to support

more formal student issues e.g. progress committee issues.

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5. Referral and Advice

As a University Academic Advisor you will have a range of conversations

with students and you may be able to offer advice on many issues

however, it is likely that you will encounter situations that fall outside your

expertise. You are not expected to play the role of a counsellor or specialist

professional. It will always be in the interest of the student that, where

appropriate, they are referred or self-refer on to the best advice and

support available within the University. [Academic Advisors in the clinical

Sciences should consult with the relevant Director of Student Support in

such cases. See section 6 for contact details].

Confidentiality

Confidentiality is a complex area. Often a student will appreciate that if an

Academic Advisor is to help, confidential information may need to be given

to others, such as Examining Boards. Academic Advisors should not pass on

information obtained from a student to any third party unless a student’s

permission has been given, except where (1) the Academic Advisor believes

that someone is at serious risk or (2) the Academic Advisor is concerned

that an offence has taken place.

Where it is thought that a student may be involved in criminal conduct or

that others may be at risk, it is the duty of the Academic Advisor to report

the matter to the appropriate authority and/or their Head of Department.

University Support

There is a well-established network of specialist services throughout the

University to provide students, Academic Advisors and School Support

Teams with advice and support in a number of specific areas:

Central Student Support Services assist students with a range of welfare

issues affecting their personal lives including traumatic incidents and safety.

Student Support Services coordinate responses to wider student issues

across the University such as natural disasters and cases of meningitis, and

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support Schools and Departments in responding to critical incidents

involving students.

The University produces a Student Support Guide which is available on-

line from the start of Welcome Week. Copies can be collected from the

School Support Team, picked up from the Student Services Centre at 150

Mount Pleasant or downloaded from the web-link above; this Guide

provides full details of support available at Institutional level. Information

on Central and Institutional Support available is also provided in the

Student Handbook.

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6. Organisation of the Academic Advisor Framework in the School of

Engineering

All academic staff in the School of Engineering are Academic Advisors (tutors).

Each year they are assigned a new group of 4-6 Year 1 tutees, and they remain

that group’s tutor for the entire duration their studies.

Every member of staff therefore has three or four tutor groups active at any

time. The extent and nature of interaction with each group varies significantly

according to the year of study.

Our tutorial activity is designed to address the School of Engineering L&T

Strategy, and it goes significantly beyond the minimum expectation set out in

University-wide policy.

A collection of useful resources for tutors are posted on VITAL, and there is a

tutor guidance workshop at the start of each academic year. Dr Matt Murphy

is available throughout the year to provide additional advice and support as

required.

6.1 Year 1 Tutorials

These group sessions are timetabled for one hour every week and are

compulsory for all students, with attendance recorded in the Yr1 Labs and

Tutorials VITAL site. These tutorials provide a combination of:

Pastoral Support (typically 6/24 sessions):

Induction

Development as a learner

Attainment and engagement monitoring

Periodic 1-1 meetings to review progress and performance. Academic Support (typically 14/24 sessions):

Small group problem solving classes from core science modules (Solids & Structures, Thermo-fluids, Materials).

These are predominantly academic in nature but also provide an opportunity to uncover and address pastoral issues.

Formal Teaching & Assessment (typically 4/24 sessions):

The engineering curriculum includes many elements of group work, and in Yr1 students commonly work in their tutor groups. Several components of group teaching and assessment are therefore scheduled as part of the tutorial programme.

At the start of each semester academic staff are provided with the week-by-week schedule for Year 1 tutorial activity. Detailed notes and guidance are

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given for each session, and full worked solutions for the problem classes are distributed by the relevant module coordinators. 6.2 Year 2 Tutorials

There are no timetabled tutorial sessions for Year 2 students but tutors do continue to have a pastoral support responsibility to their tutees. Tutors are expected to, as a minimum, organise the following tutor group activities:

Semester 1, Week 1-2: Group Meeting

To welcome students back; to look ahead to the coming year; to encourage students to begin think about their life and employment after university; to remind students of the importance of work placement and study abroad opportunities

To uncover and address any pastoral care issues

To set a weekly time slot when students can drop in to see their tutor according to their need throughout the year.

Semester 2, Week 3-4: One-to One Meetings

To review semester one performance and engagement

To discuss student’s extra- and co-curricular activity, and to review their plans to find graduate employment.

6.3 Year 3 & Year 4 Tutorials In Year 3 every student undertakes a 300 hour individual project, and an important element of this is the regular interaction with their project supervisor. A close working relationship normally develops and the responsibility for pastoral / academic support and guidance therefore transfers from tutor to project supervisor.