Neuroscience

Hi can anybody give me some information on the Neuroscience course such as how much is online learning and any information on an international year. Any help would be much appreciated. 😊

Reply 1

Keele Rep

Official Rep

Original post by KJG0001

Hi can anybody give me some information on the Neuroscience course such as how much is online learning and any information on an international year. Any help would be much appreciated. 😊

Hi @KJG0001,

You can find out all of the course information about our BSc (Hons) in Neuroscience at https://www.keele.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/undergraduatecourses/neuroscience/.

The course offers a hybrid delivery of teaching - with core online learning supplemented by in-person practicals, tutorials, seminars, and workshops. This means that the core content (what might traditionally be designated a 'lecture') is designed for online consumption, giving you the space and flexibility to digest at your own pace and to ask questions anonymously. To complement the core virtual learning, laboratory practicals, tutorials, seminars and workshops will take place on-campus.

Methods of teaching on the course therefore include:

Laboratory practicals
Short online videos of core content, with curated reading
Live, campus-based tutorials, seminars and workshops
1-2-1 academic supervision in Final Year Project

The exact amount of time you spend on campus and online will probably depend on the modules you are taking, so could vary from semester to semester. There's links to the modules for each year on that webpage and, if you click on the module description, you can get a better idea of the breakdown of content and mode of delivery for each.

The first year compulsory module 'Biochemistry', for example, breaks down into 22 hours of workshops/tutorials/lectures supporting asynchronous materials and interaction, 6 hours of IT workshops supporting data analysis and report writing, 10x 9 hours engagement with asynchronous content (i.e., online content), 2x 2 hour online tasks/class tests 55 hours preparation of in-course assessment and 123 hours independent study: preparation/revision for online tests and engaging with directed reading.

There's also information on that page about the international year, with links to the partner institutions we currently work with. There's also more information about global opportunities for Keele students at https://www.keele.ac.uk/study/studyabroad/opportunitiesforkeelestudents/.

Hope that helps but if you have any other questions, please ask!

Amy Louise
PhD English Literature & Student Ambassador, Keele University

Keele University

Keele

Reply 2

username6111767

deleted

(edited 11 months ago)

Reply 3

Keele Rep

Official Rep

Original post by solitarynucleus

I'm currently studying neuro/biochem combined hons at Keele. I actually signed up to this site to reply to your thread.

All lectures are online. The lectures were recorded during the pandemic, so are highly variable in quality. Some of my lectures were classroom audio recordings from 2018, which were very difficult to hear. Some weren't uploaded, and we were told to watch Youtube instead. Some of them are from lecturers who left years previously. Obviously this is not the expertise I was hoping for.

The student support I have received is nil.

Having online university in 2023 severely curbs socialising and collaboration if you live off campus.

It's not 'the university experience,' I thought I would receive. For example, I have not met, let alone had meaningful interactions with, the majority of my lecturers who have taught my lectures. Online university is extremely impersonal and isolating.

For what it's worth, I regret my decision to study at Keele. I would really urge you to consider somewhere with full in-person learning, especially for neuroscience, because there are so many unknowns in this relatively new field that are worthy of discussion and debate with both your student peers and your lecturers. If you impress a lecturer, there's always the possibility you can volunteer in a lecturer's lab. This would be an immense privilege to participate in scientific discovery and develop experience for the next step in your education. This is an opportunity denied to me.

Hi @solitarynucleus,

I'm really sorry to hear that your experience of the course - and of Keele more widely - has not been what you were expecting.

If there is any aspect(s) of your experience at Keele that you feel could be improved, I would definitely encourage you to get in touch to discuss your feedback further with your course Student Voice Rep (https://www.keele.ac.uk/qa/studentengagement/studentvoicerepresentatives), the Staff Student Voice committee (https://www.keele.ac.uk/qa/studentengagement/studentstaffvoicecommittee), your Student Union representatives (https://keelesu.com/yourunion/electedofficers), and by providing feedback through individual module and course feedback forms. Many of these feedback methods are anonymous, to ensure you can give honest feedback with confidence.

You can also speak with your academic personal tutor, module lead, or Programme Director. Keele won the coveted No.1 spot in the “Best UK University” category in this year’s Student Crowd awards and we pride ourselves on the friendliness and approachability of our staff, and on their engagement with our students, so it's really important that we hear your feedback in order to ensure that this can be provided to relevant staff and departments.

Amy Louise
Student Ambassador, Keele University