Your first week at University: what will happen?
Moving on to University is exciting and brings many new challenges and opportunities. But the transition can be stressful too, particularly in the first few weeks. We help our students to settle in and feel comfortable in a variety of ways.
Induction week
Your first week as a student will not involve much in the way of formal teaching. Instead, you will take part in a full programme of induction events. On your first day you will attend a welcome meeting for all students taking Archaeology degrees, and will meet the academic staff who will teach you over the next three years. You will also be given your Degree Programme Handbook (a vital guidebook – don’t lose it!!). On the same day, you will meet your personal tutor: a member of the teaching staff assigned to look after your personal as well as academic interests throughout your degree. He or she will guide you through the University registration process, help you sort out your timetable and any option choices you need to make, and explain what will happen over the next few days. As the week progresses you will take part in basic study skills sessions and go along to introductory meetings for your Semester 1 modules. By the end of the week, everything should be in place to enable you to start your first full week of teaching with confidence – and to find the right lecture theatres at the right time!
Induction week isn’t all about meetings and form filling. We host a fabulous day trip to Bede’s World, where you will meet all the other students on your programme, and try out a host of activities such as flint knapping, bread making, willow fencing and pottery manufacture. All our new undergraduates are assigned a student mentor (a student in Stage 2 of their degree, and a great person to talk to about University life). You will be introduced to your mentor at Bede’s World, and will have regular meetings with them
throughout your first year.
At the end of the second week of term you will also have the opportunity to join a weekend fieldtrip, visiting a wide range of archaeological sites, and getting to know other students on the way.
