Contact hours and workload
Overall workload
You should expect to spend approximately 35 to 40 hours a week studying on your course. These hours consist of structured activities and independent learning.
You will experience a mix of in person teaching, that will take place on campus, and structured online learning delivered through the University’s virtual learning environment.
Structured learning activities
MSc programmes deliver taught unit/modules in the first and second semester, with the Summer dedicated to a dissertation. The second semester will have less structured learning as you will start to prepare for your dissertation. Both during the dissertation preparation and the dissertation, supervision will take place at times suitable to you and your supervisor.
Typically, you can expect to spend between 20 to 25 hours on structured learning activities per teaching week, of which approximately 60 to 80% will be in timetabled sessions on campus, and the remainder online. The hours of structured time are dependent on the optional units you decide to take, with more practical subjects normally having more structured time than more theoretical ones.
In-person teaching and online activities
Timetabled sessions delivered in person on campus will be a mix of lectures, seminars, tutorials, and laboratories. Online activities may include following a recorded lecture, or other learning materials, or joining a timetabled live interactive session through Microsoft Teams or Zoom.
Independent learning
The remainder of your time outside these structured activities will be spent in independent learning which includes individual research, reading journal articles and books, working on individual and group projects, preparing coursework assignments, presentations, or revising for exams.
To support you in your studies you will be able to access, outside of timetabled learning, facilities on campus and in Bath such as study spaces, computers, and the Library.
IT requirements
To take full advantage of the online resources available to you, and to ensure you are prepared for learning fully online, should that become necessary, you will need regular access to a computer with a microphone and camera, along with a reliable internet connection. The University will make available to you the key software you need for your course, including access to Microsoft Teams and Zoom through your University account.
Key software for your curriculum will be accessible remotely. For your course you will also need a desktop or laptop computer running relatively recent versions of either Windows, Mac or Linux operating system. Windows 10, MacOS 10.14 (Mojave) or Ubuntu 20.04.2 LTS are recommended.