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Academic top-tips guide for International Students

What to expect as an International Student

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What to expect as an International Student

Many education systems around the world use mainly exams to test your knowledge, the UK uses a range of different assessment types including essays, reports and presentations. 

People may speak in different accents. This can mean that at times it can be difficult to fully comprehend something. You can ask your lecturers for clarity if you do not understand something.  

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Independent learning is a part of the learning process at UWL. You may be used to having supervision to support your work, however at UWL, students are expected to take more responsibility for their study and work independently in addition to attending lectures, seminars and personal tutor sessions.  

Teaching happens in a variety of ways and group work can be a part of the teaching process. At times you may be expected to work in groups with other people. 

UK Education requirements/system 

UK Education requirements/system 

  • You must pass all your modules to progress to the next year. If you have a problem with an assignment you will automatically be given a second opportunity.  

  • If you experience difficult circumstances that mean you would not be able to meet your assignment deadlines, please share this with your personal tutor or module leader. If your issues are likely to be ongoing you may find our extensions and mitigating circumstances page useful.  

  • You may be unfamiliar with some of the assessment types that you come across. If you need help understanding, talk to your module tutor or contact the study support team (study.support@uwl.ac.uk).  

It is ok to ask for help

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It is ok to ask for help

  • You aren’t expected to know everything right away. As you progress within your course, you will develop more knowledge around your subject area. If you do not know something along the way, then be sure to ask.  

  • If you have any questions in the moment, ask. It is better to ask than to let the confusion continue.  

  • Even though your lecturers are senior to you, feel comfortable asking questions if you are unsure about something. Asking for help is completely acceptable and a sensible thing to do.   

Turnitin

Turnitin

Turnitin is a system that you will use to submit your written assignments.

  • Confirmation

    Make sure you check your email for confirmation of submission. This is your proof of submission. 

  • Feedback

    Once your work has been marked, make sure that you check not only the grade but the feedback available through Turnitin. Feedback is valuable in helping you to improve your work for future assignments.  

  • Similarity

    • When you submit your piece of work, your work gets scanned and compared with everything else that has been published to look for similarities. Turnitin will highlight anything that has been written that matches your writing.  

    • There is going to be an element of similarity in your writing which is completely fine.  

    • When you get your similarity score back from Turnitin, make sure to check what is being highlighted. Often your score can go up for things like a cover sheet or your reference list. However, if you have large bodies of text highlighted within your work, it may be the case that you have paraphrased incorrectly.  

    • There will always be similarity for things like references in your bibliography and also direct quotes as long as they are appropriately credited and referenced.  

    • Don’t be alarmed if you score more than zero percent, when you are writing a bibliography you will need to copy source information directly and this is acceptable, as is the occasional use of direct quotations.  

    • Submitting – if you ever have an issue with Turnitin i.e. the link is not available or is not allowing you to submit, make sure you notify your module leader as soon as possible. IT will have a record of any IT issues logged and recorded.  

    • There can be an option to submit a draft of your work into Turnitin before submitting your final assignment, but you must check with your module leader because each lecturer has a choice whether this option is turned on or not.  

    • When this option is available on Turnitin, it can be a very useful tool to check for plagiarism before you submit as it will highlight any area that is directly copied. 

Plagiarism

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Plagiarism

  • Plagiarism is something that all students need to be aware of as it is something that can happen unintentionally. If you include borrowed information in your writing without stating clearly that the information is taken from elsewhere, this could be considered plagiarism. So it is really important to make sure that you reference correctly to avoid any misunderstandings.   

  • You need to make it very clear to the reader where the information in your writing has come from and it is important to know that if you are rewriting source information, it needs to be changed significantly so that the sentences become your own. It may sound a little daunting but there is a huge amount of support to help you with this, so do not hesitate to ask any questions.  

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  • You can find lots of useful referencing information on the cite them right section of the library website and there are specific referencing workshops provided by the library. The Study Support team also provides workshops on paraphrasing and summarising. You can also use Turnitin to check your paraphrasing. If you have any questions at all relating to this, do not hesitate to ask your tutor or the library academic support team.  

  • Try and avoid self-plagiarism. If you have previously submitted a piece of work for a different module, do not copy and paste it into a new assignment.  

  • Avoid copy and pasting information into your work without referencing it. Preferably, you should be paraphrasing every source that you use within your work.  

  • You can use direct quotations; however, you need to be sure that you are formatting it correctly and not overusing it within your work.  

Major Challenges and how to overcome them?

Major Challenges and how to overcome them

If you do not understand your work, approach your lecturers for clarification. Here are a few steps you can follow to overcome academic challenges: 

  • First, identify the challenge with as much precision as you can. Clarity of thought is essential here. 

  • Consider carefully what is needed to overcome the challenge, seek additional resources or seek support with your study.  

  • The Study Support Team can provide you with support regarding your academic work. The team offers various workshops and one-to-one support that can help to develop study skills.  

  • You can also get specific support relating to Mathematics and English Language Support to help you develop your skills.  

  • Your lecturers will ask your class questions during lectures and seminars, this is a perfect chance to practice your English and test your knowledge. 

  • It is often tempting to mainly speak with other students who share your native language. However, your English language skills will improve more if you attempt to speak with a wider group of students.  

One to one Appointments

  • Appointments and workshops

    If you require English Language Support, you can attend the following sessions: 

    One to one appointments - Katherine and John Smith  

    • Focus on Specific areas of difficulty  
    • Language and grammar feedback on sections of assignments 

    Workshops - Katherine 

    • Paraphrasing & Summarising 
    • Academic Style 
    • Grammar for Academic Writing  
    • Speaking & Pronunciation 
    • Paragraph & Sentence Structure 

    Conversation group - Katherine   

    • Weekly session for students to chat about a variety of topics

    Find out more via the study support page.