Geography Placement 3rd Yr

GEOG30800 Geography Placement 3rd Yr 120 Full year Undergraduate Cont Education/Prof Developmen Yawei Zhao Unit coordinator Emma Shuttleworth Unit coordinator 1 FHEQ level (Framework for Higher Education Qualifications) ' Middle part of Bachelors ' European Credit Transfer & Accumulation System Rating : 60.0 The course unit will consist of students taking up a year-long work placement (up to 12 months) with an organization/body in a Geography-related sector, sensu latu. Given the enormous scope of academic geographical enquiry, it is anticipated that almost any professional sector will potentially be relevant, depending on the interests and ambitions of the individual student. Placements in the environmental, manufacturing, retail and financial sectors and industries will be acceptable, among others.The content of the module will be professionally focused with the student working in a defined role/s over the course of the placement. The student will gain specific experience related to the placement role, with a view to developing and enhancing teamwork, communication, literacy and digital skills, among others. These experiences will form the basis for the reflective assessments associated with the module.A course unit coordinator will liaise with students throughout the placement year ensuring that (a) contact is made between the student and UoM and (b) that the student is engaging with the academic/practitioner-based reflection outlined in the assessment.The course unit coordinator/tutors will engage with each student via Blackboard (online digital teaching platform) and/or Skype for Business to assess progress and engage in pastoral care (drawing on several years’ of successful experience in Geography of supporting international study abroad placements in this fashion). The course unit coordinator will also arrange pre and post-placement briefing sessions. A reflective practice symposium will be held at the end of the year for students to share experiences face-to-face with staff and peers and to discuss the process of reintegrating in the final year of study.With a track record of professional placements for MSc students, Geography has a database of existing contacts in local and national organisations that have engaged with placements previously. Geography staff and students will use these contacts to facilitate year placements. The expectation is that the network of contacts will be curated and developed with increasing links to Geography alumni and will grow year on year. However, in the first instance and subject to numbers, Geography will also draw on placement opportunities facilitated the Careers Service.Students will receive guidance via a non-credit bearing seminar to outline the process of obtaining a placement in Year 2 of their degree programme. The course unit will consist of students taking up a year-long work placement (up to 12 months) with an organization/body in a Geography-related sector, sensu latu. Given the enormous scope of academic geographical enquiry, it is anticipated that almost any professional sector will potentially be relevant, depending on the interests and ambitions of the individual student. Placements in the environmental, manufacturing, retail and financial sectors and industries will be acceptable, among others.The content of the module will be professionally focused with the student working in a defined role/s over the course of the placement. The student will gain specific experience related to the placement role, with a view to developing and enhancing teamwork, communication, literacy and digital skills, among others. These experiences will form the basis for the reflective assessments associated with the module.A course unit coordinator will liaise with students throughout the placement year ensuring that (a) contact is made between the student and UoM and (b) that the student is engaging with the academic/practitioner-based reflection outlined in the assessment.The course unit coordinator/tutors will engage with each student via Blackboard (online digital teaching platform) and/or Skype for Business to assess progress and engage in pastoral care (drawing on several years’ of successful experience in Geography of supporting international study abroad placements in this fashion). The course unit coordinator will also arrange pre and post-placement briefing sessions. A reflective practice symposium will be held at the end of the year for students to share experiences face-to-face with staff and peers and to discuss the process of reintegrating in the final year of study.With a track record of professional placements for MSc students, Geography has a database of existing contacts in local and national organisations that have engaged with placements previously. Geography staff and students will use these contacts to facilitate year placements. The expectation is that the network of contacts will be curated and developed with increasing links to Geography alumni and will grow year on year. However, in the first instance and subject to numbers, Geography will also draw on placement opportunities facilitated the Careers Service.Students will receive guidance via a non-credit bearing seminar to outline the process of obtaining a placement in Year 2 of their degree programme. The module aims to provide students with an extended period of professional work experience broadly related to the field of Geography with a view to enhancing their understanding and ability in the study of Geography and as well as enhancing their future employability. • Have a raised awareness of the current job market and the working practices of employers in a Geography-related sector.• Understand and communicate links between the year in professional placement and the wider programme of geographical enquiry that is the undergraduate degree. • Engage with professional practice.• Recognise the requirements of professional practice and ethical obligations and considerations. • Develop and apply relevant communication, literacy, and digital skills in a professional workplace.• Engage with a variety of stakeholders within the professional environment where appropriate. • Demonstrate effective time-management skills by setting and adhering to work priorities and identifying opportunities to engage with input from colleagues, other professionals and external stakeholders. Students will engage with the placement as the primary method of learning.Reflection on the placement will be assessed via distance learning approaches (reflective blogs) administered through Blackboard as a pass/fail component of the placement year.A dedicated Blackboard site for the placements will furthermore allow sharing of resources and contribute to group cohesion for the placement cohort (drawing on successful experiences in the Study Abroad programmes).Staff/student contact Staff/student contact:• 1 x 2-hour online briefing sessions pre-placement (at end of second year summer exam period)• 1 x 2 hour in person de-briefing session post-placement during Welcome Week• 2 x 1-hour online check in sessions with Programme Directors• 4 x 15 minute meetings with Academic Advisors • 1 x 1-hour online check in from Programme Director after first month• 1 x 4 hour online reflective practice symposium before returning to UoMWith a further 4 hours of support meetings with Programme Directors and Careers Service, additional 1-to-1 meetings during office hours and drop-ins, and 4 hours of Peer Mentoring workshops in Year 2.Private study 15 hours (blog assessments and prepping for presentation)Other ActivitiesUp to 1820 hours (based on a 35-hour week for 12 months) minus public holidays and annual leave entitlement.Total hoursUp to 1844 0 Other 100% The course unit assessment for Professional Placement will include two main strands of assessment: blogs and a symposium presentation on return to UoM.Blog posts will provide students opportunities to reflect and share perspectives on their placement regarding engagement, knowledge transfer, work place ethics and behaviour and the particular challenges of their day-to-day and long-term tasks. Drawing on successful experience with the Study Abroad blog posts, a series of thematic contributions will be indicated for around half of the blog posts, with themes to be confirmed but potentially including topics such as employability opportunities, ethical challenges, role of digital skills, socio-cultural norms of the workplace, etc. Thematic contributions help to stimulate reflection around the ILOs. Other blog posts will be open-ended to allow each student to explore unique aspects of the placement experience. Blog posts will be accepted in either written or video format (supported by SEED e-learning and Blackboard).In the summer before returning to UoM a 8-10 minute presentation will be delivered as part of an online symposium event promoting reflection on the placement and supporting reintegration into academic study. This will take place before the resit exam board so all students can be progressed into their final year of study in good time.Assessment will be on a Pass/Fail basis in line with UoM regulations and will appear on transcripts as such. Students will though receive formative feedback throughout the year from their engagement with the course unit coordinator via email and Zoom/Teams as well as formative feedback on submitted blogs/videos on Blackboard. Oral formative feedback will be provided during the symposium experience.Assessment:Written or video blog posts (minimum of 4) - 400 words per blog or equiv video blogs    75%Presentation and engagement with online symposium  (8-10 minutes)                            25% Written feedback via Blackboard for each post.Oral feedback during symposium. N Guidance notes on how to prepare for the placements will be provided via Blackboard. 0 0 0