Academic Support & Progress Report

 The Programme Leader informs students on a regular basis about their progress, advises them how to strengthen their weaknesses and their way of studying, informs them on regulations and policies of the University and the College and gives them a valuable guidance in matters of continuous studies or career.The contact details (e-mail, office hours, etc.) of the Programme Leader are available in the Programme Handbook and the announcement boards.

 All lecturers teaching at undergraduate programmes have certain office hours to help and support students during academic semesters.Students may visit the lecturers at the office hours without an appointment in order to have any of their questions answered, get instructions about the paper(s) of the module and get a feedback on the submitted written papers and their general progress.

The contact details of the programme lecturers are available in the Programme Handbook. Office hours are announced on the first week of the semester on the announcement boards and the MC-Class.

 Undergraduate students of the Mediterranean College are associated with a personal tutor since the first weeks and throughout every academic year. Each tutor is responsible for a small number of students for reasons of effectiveness and development of personal contact.You may contact your personal tutor and jointly define how you will communicate and cooperate in general. There will be four predetermined and compulsory meetings throughout the year.

Nevertheless, you are encouraged to keep regular contact with your tutor and not hesitate to contact him/her for:

• Information and advice on the programme of studies, the content of modules, the teaching and assessment methods applied.
• Support in the enhancement of your academic skills, for example, in research, writing, presentation, preparation for exams, etc.
• Support with any personal issues you are dealing with and probably affect your performance.
• Information on professional and personal development issues.

The contact details and the office hours of your Personal Tutor are available in the Programme Administrator/ Archive or the announcements boards.

 At the Mediterranean College we understand the challenge of completing university studies in a foreign language. To this end, we have established an English Department intended to enhance the language competence of our students, who attend English speaking programmes. The English Department is responsible to plan and carry out English courses in the framework of every field of studies provided in the College.Students may also come in contact with the English Department to:

• Be informed on their performance in English
• Take part in tests to get an assessment on their level
• Be personally trained in their individual weaknesses (e.g. essay writing)
• Declare their interest to participate in English tutorials
• Declare their interest to participate in City & Guilds certification exams and the preparatory courses organized

English department has drop-in hours. Hours and activities are available on the announcement board of the department.

 During our long history in providing university programmes of the British higher education we have concluded that Greek secondary and tertiary education does not provide students with all those skills required for a successful academic course in the British educational system.Moreover, a large percentage of our postgraduate students are mature students that have stayed away from “class” for many years and therefore find it difficult to adjust to their “new” academic environment.

The above factors led us to design a support framework with services that will help students understand modules better and improve those skills that constitute prerequisites for a success on university level.

Students are encouraged to use these services, which include:

• Academic Writing Skills Workshops. Seminars & workshops for academic writing (essays, reports, dissertations).
• Academic Reading Skills. Seminars & workshops for academic reading.
• Citing & Referencing Workshops. Seminars & workshops for proper citing and referencing.
• Research Skills Workshops. Seminars & workshops for the development of research skills.
• Presentation Skills Workshops. Seminars & workshops for oral or poster presentation of projects.

The scheduled seminars and workshops are available on the MC-Class and the announcements boards. Students can also be individually supported in the above issues by their Programme Leader and/or Personal Tutor or find useful information in relevant sections of the partner University digital library.

 “Draft submission” is the submission of a draft to the lecturer in specific time limits set by the College, a few days before the deadline of the official submission of the paper to the College and the University.Aim of the “draft submission” is for students to get a timely feedback by the lecturers as regards their performance and guidelines to the proper completion of the papers, so as to maximize their performance and minimize the possibilities of failure.

Students may get information on the policy of “draft submission” from their Programme Leader and on the applicable deadlines from the announcement boards, the lecturers or the Programme Administrator.

 “Mock exams” are informal written exams organized by the Mediterranean College on real exam topics (e.g. topics of earlier exams) before the official exams. The student papers are regularly assessed and followed by an oral feedback. The grade is not counted, but it is regarded as a reference point for the further preparation of the student in the specific module.”Mock exams” are designed so that students can test their readiness on a specific subject and get familiar with the real conditions of an actual exam.

Students may get information on the policy of “mock exams” from their Programme Leader and on the exam dates from the announcement boards, the lecturers or the Programme Administrator.

 Written and oral feedback is an integral part of the assessment methods applied in every module of the Mediterranean College. Students get a feedback from their lecturers with regard to the projects, the written exams and the presentations submitted.The careful study of the lecturer’s analysis as to the strengths and weaknesses of the written paper and the justification of the grade help students in their future papers and their way of studying.

Feedback is given by lecturers either orally or in written, in the class or during the office hours.

 It is a policy of the Mediterranean College to inform parents/ guardians of the undergraduate students on their performance. This information takes place officially twice a year along with the Parent Meeting event. Parents/ guardians are also able to get more regular information, if they wish to, by contacting the Programme Administrator or the Programme Leader.Parent meeting dates are available in the Academic Calendar. An invitation is sent by post to the address stated by the students.

If you want your parents/ guardians not to be informed on your studies, you may submit a formal declaration at the Programme Administrator.