Feedback

Feedback is an essential part of getting the most from your degree. As a student, you will receive feedback from us on every piece of assessed work. This may take the form of written notes on your script, a "common problems in Homework X" handout, a model answer (which you can compare with yours to see where you went wrong), or a discussion with your tutor or a laboratory demonstrator. If you do not know why you did badly in a particular assessment, please ask the lecturer for more information.

Feedback also goes the other way, from you to us. There are two principal ways in which students can provide input to the Department: through questionnaires, and via the Student-Staff committee. However, If there is an urgent issue, e.g. a timetabling problem or an essential textbook which has gone out of print and is unavailable, you should contact the appropriate Year Tutor.

Questionnaires

Each semester you will be asked to complete an on-line questionnaire for each module you have taken that semester. From this information we will determine the reaction to the course and find possible ways to improve. The results are analysed and the lecturer concerned is asked to respond to any written comments made; the results for each module are then examined by the Teaching Committee and Head of Department. A summary is posted on the student noticeboard. The questionnaires provide valuable feedback data on each module so you should make every effort to complete the on-line questionnaires when asked. We are currently looking at introducing a QR system for feedback, where you will be able to leave feedback through your smart phone all the way throughout your time with us.

Student Staff Committee

The Department of Physics and Astronomy has a student-staff committee who meet to discuss matters of mutual interest such as teaching, examinations, organisational matters and social events, but any topic can be raised by staff or students. The committee normally meets four times per year, twice in each semester with additional meetings if necessary. The students have representatives from each year group and the staff members include the Head of Department and/or Head of Teaching and various lecturers from Physics and Astronomy. Being a member of the Staff Student Committee gives you the perfect opportunity to be the spokesperson for your year group, you also get to have a say in how the department operates, plus it looks great on your CV.