Teaching and Learning
You will encounter a wide variety of teaching methods at university, probably more than you will have done at school or college.
As a student on one of the school's programmes, you will be taught by lecturers who are experts in their field, which will be reflected in the range of modules offered to you.
Teaching
Teaching methods
Teaching is primarily by lecture and seminar. In lectures, all students taking the module are introduced to a topic. In seminars, students are split into smaller groups to discuss prepared work.
This means that one hour you might be sitting in a big lecture hall listening to a lecture; the next, you could be in a small group trying to work out the meaning of a key political text or tract. In seminars, we also utilise individual and group presentations, films, role-plays and simulations.
As part of our commitment to research-led teaching excellence, we make widespread use of internet-based teaching strategies to complement lectures and seminars. These may be core texts, chapters, articles, video clips or visual materials such as propaganda posters and election manifestoes. This approach will enable you to develop crucial IT skills as you learn the discipline of politics.
Undergraduate students talking about the module Introduction to Political Theory.
Assessments
We present you with a variety of different challenges and types of assessment, including exams, essays, verbal presentations and projects. Each unit is assessed separately, meaning there are no daunting final exams at the end of your degree.
You will be given a copy of our marking criteria which provides guidance on how your work is marked. Your work will be marked in a timely manner and you will receive feedback on the tasks you are given.
Learning
We aim to provide a learning environment that will enrich your life and live up to the ideal of a global education. You will engage directly in our common pursuit of cutting-edge, policy relevant and curiosity-driven research.
In the process, we will stretch you and test you; we will ask you to push yourself and to question your assumptions and those of the people and societies around you. Above all, we will offer you an experience that will indelibly shape the way you view the world and your place in it.
Some learning is very formal, some less so, but it all plays an important part in helping you develop your intellectual capacity, refine your critical faculties and sharpen your analytical skills.
Extracurricular opportunities
We encourage you to take full advantage of the opportunities open for the study of politics at Nottingham. The award-winning student-run Politics Society provides you with a great way to get to know the people around you through trips, socials and sports teams.
They also organise visits from distinguished political figures and notify students of political events happening on campus, hold an annual ball in the summer and offer trips to key locations.