UCL Department of Political Science 2021-2022 FAQ

Term Dates 2021-2022

Term	Dates
First term	Monday 27 September 2021 to Friday 17 December 2021
Second term	Monday 10 January 2022 to Friday 25 March 2022
Third term	Monday 25 April 2022 to Friday 10 June 2022

College Reading Weeks

Monday 8 November 2021 and Monday 14 February 2022

Will the UCL campus be open for students in 2021-2022?

Yes. We are planning for our campus to be open to all students for the start of the new academic year in September 2021. You will have a blend of face-to-face (F2F) and online teaching and learning, designed to support you to succeed academically.

Am I required to be on campus?

Yes, students are expected to be in London and on campus. Students will need to attend F2F sessions on campus if they are to meet their learning outcomes.  

What happens if my travel to London is delayed?

Some students will not be able to join us in London at the start of the year because of continuing coronavirus travel restrictions in some countries. If this affects you, we will support you as best we can, until you are able to arrive on campus. If coronavirus restrictions significantly delay your arrival in the UK you may be able to catch up when you arrive, if more than 3 weeks, you may need to interrupt or defer your studies to 2022-23.

How will courses be taught?

All programmes will be blended by design for the whole academic year, offering both face to face (F2F) and online learning activities.

Through multiple feedback points, students have told us that they are content with blended delivery for next year, but want to come to campus for more active pedagogical approaches (practicals, tutorials, discussion groups, team-based learning, group projects, peer teaching etc.). Taking this feedback into account, our academic staff are best placed to judge the most effective balance of F2F and remote teaching and learning for their programme, within the framework that has been agreed:  

• the vast majority of lecture activities will be taught online; through asynchronous or synchronous delivery or a combination of both
• Seminar teaching will be taught face to face
• some programmes will need special consideration due to their integrated nature, use of practice or practitioners as teachers

Will any safety measures be in place or will things return to how they were pre-pandemic?

Our blended model of education will help us manage through the coronavirus pandemic particularly during the winter months. By offering large group lectures online and limiting some class sizes, we are confident we can flex our campus to provide both interactive face to face learning activity, even if social distancing requirements change temporarily during the year.

To make sure UCL is as safe as possible, we will continue to provide on campus COVID-19 testing facilities and the Connect-to-Protect tool, zoning systems around our buildings, enhanced cleaning of buildings and teaching spaces, plus asking everyone to wear face coverings, if they are able to do so. These precautions will be in place for as long as the UK Government and our health advisors tell us that they are required. 

As UK restrictions ease, we will learn lessons from the return to schools and workplaces, the roll out of vaccines, and other progress against the UK Government roadmap. UCL will need to make further decisions about safety on campus as we approach the start of session. 

A resurgence of coronavirus is always a possibility at some point in the next academic year. However, we have robust contingency plans, based on our experience and resources that have been developed this year, so we are confident that you will be able progress your education with us whatever the circumstances. 

Why are lectures/large group activities delivered online?

Our online lecture provision (live and recorded) has worked well this year and has been welcomed by our students, particularly the ability to pause lectures and revisit the content.

The guidance to deliver lectures online is based on safety, pedagogy, student preference, staffing, and practical considerations.  

What is the group size for F2F?

As our F2F teaching will be focussed on seminars, we plan for seminars to be 15-20, only in specific meaningfully interactive or practical settings will this be larger.