Teaching and learning in 2021

Learning and teaching at university may be quite different to your experiences at school.  

There are different types of undergraduate classes within the School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures (LLC). 

They fall into three categories:

1. Lectures
2. Tutorials/Seminars
3. Practical classes (mainly in language subjects)

Our approach to learning and teaching is question driven and theoretical. So, in addition to these classes and to get the most out of your courses, you will need to read widely.

Lectures

Lectures are taken by all students on a course and are delivered as interactive presentations which may involve audiovisual material.

Lectures are given by specialists in their field, and are designed to guide you through the background, questions and debates related to the topic you are studying.

Don’t forget to take notes: the information provided - as well as the approach taken by the lecturer (i.e. the angle from which he or she looks at the material) - will be very useful when it comes to writing your coursework essays later.

Tutorials/Seminars

The material introduced in lectures is often discussed further in tutorials.

Tutorial groups are smaller and are led by an experienced academic (a lecturer or, in some cases, PhD students).

The emphasis here is less on what the academic says and more on what you think about the topic yourself.

You should prepare for tutorials by considering any questions or topics proposed in advance, by reading the recommended secondary literature, and by noting down your thoughts and ideas. You will then be asked to voice these thoughts and ideas in class discussions: student participation is most important in tutorials.

Seminars are quite similar to tutorials in set up, but are stand-alone classes and not linked to a lecture. Many option classes in the honours years are seminar-type classes.

Practical classes

In language courses in particular, you will have a number of practical classes: for example, conversation, applied grammar, text production etc.

Here you will have the opportunity to try out and further practice your language skills in a range of practical tasks under the supervision of an experienced language teacher.

You should prepare for the class by doing the required homework.

Make sure to use the opportunity to ask questions about anything you are not sure about.

Self-study

You should expect to spend about 200 hours on ‘learning and teaching activities’ for a 20-credit course, and 400 for a 40-credit course.

As in all universities across the UK, only a proportion of this will be in lectures, or in tutorial or seminar settings.

You’ll spend the rest of your time on independent study and producing coursework, such as essays.

The feedback you receive in class and for assignments - both from lecturers and other students - will help guide your self-study activities, and the University's Institute for Academic Development (IAD) is a great source of advice and guidance.

Find out more about how to get the most out of self-study on the IAD website

Taught postgraduate programmes are MSc (masters) degrees, typically completed full time over a single year. Some can be taken part time over two years.

You will take 'courses' (often called 'modules' at other universities) worth a total of 120 credits, then write a dissertation worth 60 credits. 

Courses are normally worth 20 credits each, so alongside the 'core' courses you must take for your degree, you may also have the opportunity to take 'option' courses.

In order to progress to the dissertation stage of your programme, you must pass at least 80 credits of coursework, with an average of 50% or above across the whole 120 credits.

If you are a part-time student, you will generally take the 'core' courses in Year One and the 'option' courses in Year Two.  However, the part-time programme is flexible, in that you can agree which courses you will take in each year with your Programme Director when you start.

There are some taught MSc programmes that don't follow the structure above - you will be able to see this when you consult your Degree Programme Table.

Degree Programme Tables

Each degree has its own Degree Programme Table (DPT), which sets out your 'core' courses (those you must take) and those which are optional.

It is important that you familiarise yourself with your DPT so that you know exactly what you must and can study on your programme.

Your Degree Programme Table can be accessed through the University of Edinburgh's Degree Regulations and Programmes of Study (DRPS) pages.

Take me to Degree Regulations and Programmes of Study for LLC

How to choose an option course

One of the benefits of studying with us is having a wide range of courses to choose from.  

When choosing an 'option' course, important things to ask yourself include:

• Are there any entry requirements or pre-requisites? You may be required to have specific prior knowledge or skills.
• Is there a quota? Some of our courses are very popular and heavily subscribed. You should have a second option available, just in case your first option doesn’t work out.
• Is this a course that will be valuable to me in writing my dissertation?

Course descriptions (which provide details of the syllabus, reading lists, assessment methods, etc.) are available on the Degree Regulations and Programmes of Study (DRPS) pages.