ONCAMPUS Online

You will need to have access to a laptop, tablet or computer that meets a minimum specification.  In order to check if your laptop, tablet or computer meets this minimum specification, please check the information below for different operating systems. We also recommend you having a working webcam so that you can see your fellow classmates and tutors online. You will need to have access to a reliable internet connection.

Windows

• Operating Systems
• Windows 7
• Windows 8
• Windows 10 / 10S
• 32 and 64-bit versions are both supported.

Recommended Hardware

• Pentium 4 or newer processor that supports SSE2
• 512 MB of RAM
• 100 MB of hard drive space for installation (minimum 1 GB required to start an exam)
• Software required
• .NET Framework 4 or higher

Mac

• Operating Systems
• macOS 10.11 and higher
• Recommended Hardware
• Macintosh computer with an Intel x86 processor
• 512 MB of RAM
• 100 MB of hard drive space (for installation, minimum 1 GB required to start an exam)

Chromebook

• Operating Systems
• ChromeOS: Current and second last version
• Recommended Hardware
• 1.7 GHz processor or faster
• 1 GB RAM
• 100 MB of hard drive space (for installation, minimum 100 MB required to start an exam)

We have worked with the award-winning CEG Digital to develop an online programme that brings together our face to face teaching experience and their digital expertise to create a platform that is welcoming to students and easy to use. We’ve developed an approach to online learning that blends innovative ways of accessing lectures and discussions with opportunities to practice and consolidate your learning every step of the way. You access everything through an easy-to-use online platform: Your course content, your connections with other students and tutors and rich learning resources. 

We have retained a ‘live’ (synchronous) element to the programmes to ensure that we use our tutor’s presentation experience and get you used to listening to lectures in, and interacting with others in, English. Some content you can work through at your own pace and some you will have delivered live. Your tutor will spend time giving you feedback on your in-class interaction and contribution as well as your submitted work. We will help you to get ready for the UK academic culture by ensuring that you participate in it.

If you have started your course online and have travelled to the UK to continue your studies, depending on UK government guidelines, you may have some hybrid classes. This means that if social distancing is still in place in the UK when you arrive you are likely to have some face to face lessons in the classrooms but you will also have to access some material online for self-study or live lectures from your accommodation. This will be similar to the online material.

Assessment takes 2 forms – checking your understanding every week on the online product and longer pieces of work that you will submit as homework. Most courses have a mid-term and end of term assessment that are closer in style to exams and allow us to understand how ready you are to take these exams. Summative assessment (the assessment that makes up your grade) will be the same in the online and face to face programmes and varies from course to course. It could be a written exam, a practical assignment (experiment in science for example) or an essay or presentation. You will be told about the assessment for your course in detail at the beginning of the course.

Because the assessment is the same for online and face to face – at whatever time you join the programme face to face you will have guaranteed progression to our partners. For those of you applying through UCAS – the learning outcomes are the same for both online and face to face modes of delivery.

We will ensure that you have a platform where you can meet other students and start to make friends. You will make friends in the classroom (either virtually or face to face) and there will be social events taking place online, e.g. zoom quiz nights, as well as face to face where government guidelines allow. We know your cultural and social experience is important to you and we will make sure we continue to give you opportunities to mix. You will have access to all the social events at our partner universities too.

During your live lessons, you will have access to your tutors in real-time. Where lessons are not live you will be given clear information about when tutors will be available to help you.  You will be able to schedule appointments with them as needed via email or video calls and we will always aim to answer your questions as quickly as possible. Tutors will also make use of the VLE to share information with you to support your studies.

You will have support in the same way you would for face to face lessons, this will be provided by our expert tutors and support staff.

You can think of synchronous lessons as being when you have a tutor directing your learning in real time, this might be via a lecture, or it could be via a guided session when the tutor gives you a short presentation and then asks you to complete some further work. Asynchronous sessions are where you will be undertaking learning without a ‘live’ tutor. This might be a recorded lecture, or it could be some work you are asked to do with some written instruction from your tutor.

Lab-based programmes will be available online for the first term in line with our other programmes and whilst we may have to make some adjustments to the curriculum we will work to ensure that the majority of your lab time will fall in the second and third terms when you will be in centre, UK government guidelines permitting. Your experience of studying a lab-based programme online will be different, but we are confident that our online expertise and specially developed programme will still provide you with excellent preparation for your University course.

The majority of courses will be recorded, please check with your centre.

Enrolment will commence up to two weeks before the start of the course and our teams will be in regular contact with you to advise on key dates and actions as the start of your course approaches to ensure you are fully prepared for the start of your programme.