We want to support all students and give them the help and support they need throughout their student journey.
All Undergraduate (UG) and Postgraduate Taught (PGT) students will be allocated a Personal Academic Tutor (PAT) when they start at the University.
Your PAT is a member of staff in your academic department who is your first port of call mainly for any academic issues that you may have.
What can my PAT help with?
Your PAT is here to help with many issues which might be affecting your studies, and particularly to provide academic advice and guidance. They can provide some initial support with personal issues, and if they can’t help directly with more complex problems, they’ll signpost you to other teams at the University who can, for instance Student Services or Proctor’s Office.
Your PAT is there to help throughout your student journey – and you should check in with them regularly, regardless of how you feel it’s going. PATs can get you back on track if you feel like you’re struggling, and they can also help you to improve and progress if you feel like you’re doing OK.
Who is my PAT?
Most students will have the opportunity to meet with their PAT in their first week at University, or within the first few weeks of starting their programme of study, but if you haven’t met them yet for whatever reason, you can find details of your PAT in the My Details tile on the UoC app, or via Moodle.
How often should I meet with my PAT?
You should meet with your PAT at least three times a year – and in some cases you may need to meet with them more often than this over the academic year.
Typically, these meetings tend to take place:
- During Induction, Welcome Week or Reinduction (this will depend on the start date of your programme, e.g. September for most Undergraduate students)
- Later in the Autumn term
- After Christmas in the Spring Term
Meetings with your PAT may take place on an individual one-to-one basis, or they might take the form of group meetings where you meet with your PAT alongside other students on your course.
PATs are encouraged to check in with you regularly, however, if you would like extra meetings with your PAT, just reach out and request it, either via email or in-person.
Can I change my PAT?
Every UG and PGT student gets allocated a PAT, and while most are a good fit, in some situations, you might feel like your allocated PAT isn’t the most appropriate member of staff for you. This could be because you’ve now chosen a niche area of your subject to specialise in, and your PAT isn’t a specialist in this area, or it could be for more personal reasons.
In this instance, you do have the option to change to a different member of staff. To do this, all you need to do is have a chat with your Programme Leader or Head of Division/School and fill in a “Change of PAT” form to get the process started.