1. Personal Academic Tutors
Why do I need a Personal Academic Tutor?
Most students find that they need some assistance, guidance or reassurance at some point during their studies. Please contact your Personal Academic Tutor as soon as a concern or issue arises ie before it escalates into a full scale problem.
Who is my Personal Academic Tutor?
Your Personal Academic Tutor:
is usually a member of academic staff from your Faculty;
may change each year or be with you for the duration of your studies, depending upon your Faculty;
is listed in e:Vision; we aim to provide an introduction within your first few weeks.
What do we discuss?
Your Personal Academic Tutor will take an active interest in your academic progress and personal well-being. Suggestions of things you might want to discuss include:
How you are dealing with and settling into university or that year of study.
How you are managing academic work and preparing for assessments.
Feedback and reflections on your performance and progress.
Module choices.
Career aspirations.
Personal issues that might be hindering your studies.
Your Personal Academic Tutor is not an expert on everything, but they will listen and help you to work out the next steps including who you should talk to.
What is a Personal Academic Tutor?
Your Personal Academic Tutor will:
support you through university life and help you to get the most from your studies;
discuss any issues that are stopping you from engaging effectively with your programme, and work with you to find resolutions;
help you to focus on your personal and professional development, including your career aspirations;
be a point of contact for you to raise personal welfare issues;
be available to offer advice, support or guidance, or to direct you to appropriate sources of assistance in the University;
provide a reference for you on completion of your studies.
When do we meet?
As a minimum, for a three-year programme, we recommend you meet your Personal Academic Tutor:
Year 1: three times per semester.
Year 2: twice per semester.
Year 3: three times in the year.
Some meetings may be scheduled in small groups with other tutees; others are one-to- one. Your Personal Academic Tutor will let you know how they prefer to make individual appointments.
As with all scheduled teaching, your attendance is recorded and monitored. Make sure you give your Personal Academic Tutor Advance notice if you need to cancel or reschedule.
What students say …
“My tutor has been crucial to the positive changes in my academic life.”
“Knowing/understanding my progression, motivate and push me to achieve potential ... the strength of knowing the PAT is there to support me.”
“Developing a relationship can lead to a strong academic and character reference. PATs can give neutral and experienced advice.”
2018/19
For a full list of Student Services and Support see