Advisers of studies
Each undergraduate student in the Faculties of Arts, Divinity and Science is assigned an Adviser of studies, who is a member of academic staff in the same Faculty as the student. There is a compulsory meeting at the start of the academic year to discuss and approve module choices, and the Adviser of studies is available for consultation at other times.
You cannot enrol in any module without the approval of your Adviser of studies. As well as approving module choices, your Adviser of studies will also advise on keeping degree options open for as long as possible, and help you understand any relevant aspects of academic regulations. You can see who your Adviser of studies is in the online advising system (Advisers of studies will be assigned around August for new students and for students entering Honours).
Different support arrangements are made for students in the Faculty of Medicine, who do not need to make any module choices, due to the prescribed curriculum structure.
Role of advisors of studies
The role is slightly different for sub-honours Advisers of studies and Honours Advisers of studies, though both share the overall objective of helping students to plan and conduct their studies successfully.
Sub-honours Advisers of studies
Sub-honours Advisers of studies advise students during the sub-honours part of the Honours programme (usually two, sometimes three years), and also students on General degree programmes.
You will normally stay with the same sub-honours Adviser through the first two years, even if you change your degree programme.
Sub-honours Advisers of studies have knowledge of all degree programmes within your faculty, so can help you choose appropriate modules for your current programme, and also to keep your options open for as long as possible. They can approve 1000 and 2000-level module choices in any subject, even in other faculties. Module approval takes place at the advising meeting, conducted in person at the start of each academic year.
If you are on a General degree programme and need to get approval of 3000-level modules, you will also need to meet the relevant Honours Adviser of studies.
Honours Advisers of studies
If you are studying on an Honours programme, and you meet the published requirements for entry to Honours after two or three years of study, you will be transferred to an Honours Adviser of studies in the relevant school. Joint Honours students will have more than one.
Honours Advisers of studies control access to the Honours-level modules in their particular subject and, unlike sub-honours Advisers of studies, they can only approve Honours modules in their own subject.
The primary role of the Honours Adviser of studies is to ensure that you register for an appropriate selection of modules that will enable you to fulfil the requirements of your Honours degree programme.
Module approval takes place at the advising meeting, conducted in person at the start of each academic year. If you are on a joint degree programme you will need to meet each of your Advisers of studies separately.