MA/Msc/PG Dip Information and Library Management (DL) Msc/PG Dip Information and Records Management (DL)
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Faculty of Engineering and Environment MA/MSc/PG Dip Information and Library Management (DL) MSc/PG Dip Information and Records Management (DL) Programme Handbook 2015 - 2016 Contents 1 Welcome from the Programme Leaders ......................................................................... 3 2 About this handbook ...................................................................................................... 5 3 Who’s Who and Communication .................................................................................... 5 3.1 Who to go to for help ............................................................................................... 5 Programme Administrator – Distance Learning .............................................................. 5 Student Support Team ................................................................................................... 6 Programme Leaders: Julie McLeod and Jackie Urwin .................................................... 6 Module Tutors ................................................................................................................ 7 3.2 Communication ....................................................................................................... 7 Contacting Your Programme Leader and Module Tutors ............................................... 7 Email .............................................................................................................................. 7 eLearning Portal............................................................................................................. 8 4 Programme Information ................................................................................................. 8 4.1 Programme Aims .................................................................................................... 8 4.2 Programme Learning Outcomes ............................................................................. 8 4.3 Programme Structure ............................................................................................ 10 4.4 Learning Teaching and Assessment Strategy ....................................................... 15 4.5 Student Feedback ................................................................................................. 18 5 Programme and Assessment Schedule ....................................................................... 19 6 Resources and Laboratories ........................................................................................ 19 6.1 IT facilities ............................................................................................................. 19 6.2 Technical Support ................................................................................................. 20 7 Professional Bodies ..................................................................................................... 21 8 Other Course Specific Information ............................................................................... 22 8.1 Learning Materials ................................................................................................ 22 8.2 Staff Profiles ......................................................................................................... 25 9 FAQs ........................................................................................................................... 29 2 Programme Handbook 2015 - 2016 © 2015-16 Northumbria University 1 Welcome from the Programme Leaders Biddy Casselden Julie McLeod Welcome to the PG Dip/MA/MSc Information and Library Management and PG Dip/ MSc Information and Records Management programmes delivered via distance learning by the iSchool in the Department of Mathematics and Information Sciences, Faculty of Engineering and Environment. The purpose of this handbook is to give you information about the programme you are studying and its organisation. It provides you with a ready reference guide to practices and procedures of the programme as well as informing you of what to do regarding, e.g. sickness. Although you may not study it all in detail now, you need to at least familiarise yourself with its contents. Note: Information about the Faculty, the University and generic information about learning, teaching and assessment are provided in the Faculty Student Handbook. You should also familiarise yourself with its contents. The distance learning Masters are two year programmes of study leading to a professional and academic qualification – either an MA/MSc in Information and Library Management or an MSc in Information and Records Management. The first 16 months of study, if successfully completed, lead to a Post Graduate Diploma award. You may or may not already have a lot of information, library or records management experience but, by the end of your studies you should have strengthened and expanded your knowledge and understanding of your chosen subject to the level of specialist in the field. Reflecting on your knowledge and practice should have become a natural mechanism for continuing your self and professional development. Built into the programmes are some important elements aimed at supporting learning at a distance. These include: . An induction week, taught at a distance (mainly using the University eLearning Portal) which aims to familiarise you with the programme, each other, your tutors, and the tools you will be using to help you study (such as the electronic library). 3 Programme Handbook 2015 - 2016 © 2015-16 Northumbria University . Specially devised learning materials in electronic format supported by the University eLearning Portal (Blackboard). Materials available through the Portal can be printed out and/or downloaded from home. Where appropriate you will be supplied with relevant support texts. For each module you will be provided with documentation outlining the content of the module, the assessment and assessment criteria and helpful hints on approaches to the study of that module. Individual and group tutor support using a range of technologies, including the telephone, e-mail and discussion boards. You are of course also welcome to visit us in person. Two study schools (optional but recommended) - one at the start of the programme and the other at the start of your dissertation. From the very beginning of your programme you will be encouraged to establish a learner network to provide a supportive learning environment, to enable you to share experiences and to enable you to learn from one another. Much of the information that you will need is to be found in comprehensive and definitive form on the Northumbria website. There is general information available from the student hub https://my.northumbria.ac.uk/studentaccess.aspx When summary accounts of regulations and procedures are provided in the handbook, you must be aware that these are not the regulations, and definitive versions are to be found elsewhere. The handbook will show where the definitive versions can be found on the University website. Julie McLeod and Biddy Casselden 4 Programme Handbook 2015 - 2016 © 2015-16 Northumbria University 2 About this handbook This handbook is designed to provide a guide to your programme of study at Northumbria. It should be read alongside the University and Faculty Student Handbooks which contain more general information about being a student at Northumbria within the Faculty of Engineering and Environment. It does not provide all of the information that you will need although it attempts to tell you where to find most of that information. The latest version of much of the further information that you need is to be found in a comprehensive and definitive form on the Northumbria website. Take time to explore the information provided by the student hub at https://portal.northumbria.ac.uk/studentintranet/Pages/Dashboard.aspx 3 Who’s Who and Communication 3.1 Who to go to for help You will be working with and/or meet a broad range of academic, administrative and technical staff throughout your studies. The majority of staff come from the various subject areas within the Faculty. However, we also draw upon subject specialisms outside the Faculty and external consultants, industrialists and advisors. Staff from the Faculty and from the wider university (such as the University Library, IT Services and Student Support and Wellbeing) are here to help you get the most out of your Programme. In this section, we introduce you to some of the key people who will support you at Faculty and subject area level. Programme Administrator – Distance Learning The Mathematics and Information Sciences team is responsible for all administrative, non- academic matters relating to the programme, for example, dispatch of learning materials, co- ordination with tutors to mark assessed work, returning feedback on assessments etc. They are responsible for ensuring the effectiveness of administrative support for distance learning students and are your first point of contact for administrative enquiries in respect of issues such as enrolment, fees, and so on. 5 Programme Handbook 2015 - 2016 © 2015-16 Northumbria University Your first point of contact for all administrative queries is either the dedicated email for distance learning students is Emma Hansom the programme support co-ordinator. Contact details are: Email: Emma Hanson/Lisa Smith [email protected] Telephone: +44 (0) 191 227 3384/3699 (Emma Hansom/Lisa Smith) Address: Mathematics and Information Sciences Distance