Welcome for new students
There is a College-wide welcome event for all new students in Arts and Law which includes an address from the University’s Vice-Chancellor and the Head of College. There are also recent graduate speakers, and you can talk to the College’s careers team representatives to help you start planning how to get the most out of your time here right from the start!
Students 'Staying Local'
There is a College-wide ‘Staying Local’ welcome event which is organised for all new students in Arts and Law who live at home or off-campus in their first year. It is important to us that our local students have the opportunity to meet with other new and existing local students beginning of welcome week in a similar way to on-campus students when they meet with other students in their Halls - our local students have reported how much they appreciate the opportunity to ease into welcome week with this relaxed event.
Student mentor and buddy schemes
Support for your learning at university doesn’t just come from your tutors, many of our enthusiastic current students act as mentors or buddies to new students. There are a number of schemes across the Schools/departments in the College:
You may be provided with a welcome buddy to provide a friendly face for your first few weeks at University (e.g. German Studies)
Some modules offer Peer-Assisted Support Sessions, known simply as PASS, which are weekly study groups run by higher year students who have already successfully completed the module. This year (2011/12) PASS study group were run by and for students in African Studies, Archaeology, English, Hispanic Studies and Theology. http://www.as.bham.ac.uk/PASS/
If you choose to study a Language you may also be offered a Language buddy – an Erasmus or International exchange student who is a native speaker of the language you are studying and who you can help with English language practice.