Introductory description

Adopting a blended learning approach, the Study, Professional & Analytical (SPA) Skills Module is purposefully designed to meet the complex learning and professional needs of postgraduate students. The module is composed of three interlinked yet distinctive learning strands: Study Skills, Professional Skills, and Analytical Skills. This blended module runs asynchronously and synchronously with the student learning journey providing a programme of carefully designed learning activities, materials, and resources.

Module aims

Outline syllabus

This is an indicative module outline only to give an indication of the sort of topics that may be covered. Actual sessions held may differ.

SPA is designed to support student learning and professional needs. In order to accomplish this, the module is designed as follows:

Study Skills sessions cover the wide-range of academic support topics that students need to succeed at postgraduate level, including their post-module assignments. This includes critical thinking, academic writing, and academic integrity (including referencing). Study Skills is purposefully designed to enable students to succeed, irrespective of previous qualifications, areas of study, culture or discipline. Study Skills is 30% of study time.

Professional Skills sessions provide students the opportunity to develop a range of implicit and explicit transferable, employability skills which may be applied across all aspects of learning and will link directly to future careers. These skills are embedded throughout the module and are constructively aligned with the Warwick Core Skills. Professional Skills is 10% of study time.

Analytical Skills sessions provide students with the required high level of knowledge and skills about research and research methods to enable students to undertake and successfully complete an independent dissertation and original piece of research. Analytical Skills is 60% of study time.

Learning outcomes

By the end of the module, students should be able to:

• Demonstrate the transferable Warwick Core Skills
• Support their argument and claims through correctly cited and accurately referenced sources of credible knowledge and information
• Apply core study skills of academic writing and critical thinking to subject-related knowledge and practice
• Critically apply their knowledge of analytical skills in order to evaluate research in their discipline

Indicative reading list

View reading list on Talis Aspire

Research element

A considerable part of the module focuses on the development, growth and enhancement of individual analytical and research skills to provide students with the skills and competencies needed to undertake an independent, original piece of research. In addition, the Study and Professional Skills strands of the module are also grounded in research and aim to build students' skills to undertake independent research and complete a dissertation.

The module has been designed so as to be underpinned by the principles of scholarship whereby research, teaching and learning are intrinsically linked throughout.

Interdisciplinary

This module is purposefully designed for WMG postgraduate students, irrespective of subject area or if they are enrolled on a full or part-time programme. SPA is by nature interdisciplinary and is designed to incorporate examples from across the disciplines taught in WMG whilst embodying the intersectionality of everyday professional life.

The core teaching team represent a range of different academic backgrounds and disciplines reflective of the interdisciplinarity within WMG. With learning and teaching materials co-designed by colleagues from engineering, science, business and social science backgrounds the module has been carefully designed to be suitable across disciplines to form a broad foundation for successful learning at postgraduate level.

International

The module is designed for a multi-discipline, international cohort. Learning materials and examples are drawn from a range of disciplines, cultures and countries covering the whole range of subjects and disciplines taught in WMG in order to teach specific core and threshold concepts.

Subject specific skills

SPA provides students the opportunity to develop skills needed to successfully undertake their studies and independent research. In recognising the variety in student backgrounds, students will be supported to develop a foundational to advanced level of skill capability depending on their needs. The study and analytical skills developed in SPA are supported by students' professional skills development (see transferable skills).

Transferable skills

The Professional Skills strand focuses on developing student's transferable skills that are also embedded into study and analytical skills learning and teaching. Professional skills are constructively aligned to the Warwick Core Skills. Transferable skills students will acquire on the module include, but are not limited to:

Communication, including academic writing, referencing, presentations, active listening
Critical thinking
Ethical values, including academic integrity
Information literacy, including searching for and evaluating information
Problem solving
Professionalism, including time management
Teamwork & working effectively with others