University of London

WhatsApp groups

I’ve created this website because the questions of new students with the UoL are often the same. Our WhatsApp groups help, but information often has to be repeated when new members join. So, I thought why not create a place where some things available, saving everyone a bit of time.

Also, these groups help us to stay connected despite being scattered all over the world – literally. We have one “main group” or “big group” where basically everyone is in. It’s used to find groups for your next module and for general questions. Here we chat among each other, creating a community of fellow students to support each other. We’re looking forward to meeting you there!

Materials

Sometimes, it can happen that you get access late to your module. Maybe you registered last minute or something didn’t go as planned. Or, maybe, you want to start reading ahead (nerd alert ๐Ÿค“๐Ÿ˜„) because you something going on during the model and you want a head start. In these cases it can be helpful to get some readings done before the module starts. Here are a few resources we used in the past saved on my dropbox. If you can’t find what you need, it’s worth asking in our main group. Someone might have a reading list or some tipps for you.

Frequently asked questions

Let’s be honest – beginning at the UoL can be a bit confusing. They do their best to provide information but experience shows that most newbies have the same questions all the time. Hence, below you’ll find a few answers to some FAQs (status January 2023).

IMPORTANT: If in doubt, please always contact the UoL. The information below has been collected as per my best knowledge, but I cannot guarantee its correctness.

How do the forums work?

Each week, you’ll have to enter two “meaningful” inputs into the discussion forums. However, depending on the module that can lead to only 66% in the grading system, but it’s enough unless advised otherwise.ย 

You’ll know if your post was accepted when you can see a “(1)” behind it. If a tutor doesn’t accept it as sufficient, they usually comment on it asking for more details etc. 

If your post doesn’t get graded within the relevant week (give your tutor some time, not each of them checks student’s posts daily), drop them a message via email or the message function on top of the page in VLE. They might just have overlooked it. 

How do I quickly check if my posts have been graded?

The fastest way to check if your posts have been graded is the following: In VLE, you click on your name in the top right corner, then go to “Grades” and select the module you’re checking. It will show you the ratings for all weeks in an overview. This is helpful to make sure you got all the ratings before the end of the course.

Alternatively, go to “Profile” after clicking on your name, then on “Forum posts”. This leads you to your posts and you can see if there’s a rating or not. Clicking on “See this post in context” allows you to see any comments your tutor might have provided.

How do the assessments look like?

Assessments are currently held online (due to COVID-19). For multiple choice exams you have a 48 hour window. In there, you have 2 hours from the moment you download the questions/access the file.

For essays you mostly have 48 hours for 2 out of 5 questions, starting from 10 am GMT+1 (London).

The essay topics for Life Career Development were made public quite in advance, which allowed for more preparation and writing time. I would assume though, that the expected standards are accordingly high.

I’ve signed up for too many modules, what do I do?

If you’ve signed up for too many modules (don’t worry, that happens a lot), you can defer one or more. Just contact the UoL. 

I can’t/don’t want to take an exam at the end of this term, what do I do?

If you’re sick and you can’t take the exam, no problem as well. Just drop the UoL a message, no need to provide a sick notice. 

The emails from the forums are driving me crazy, how can I get less of them?

Trust me, you’re not alone on this one. Receiving all these single emails can be very stressful and they clog your inbox unnecessarily. To solve this, go to your profile by clicking on your name, choose “Preferences”, then “Forum preferences”. Then, select “Complete” or “Subjects” as opposed to No digest, which delivers every post separately into your inbox.ย Done. Enjoy the silence. ๐Ÿ™‚

There will be more information coming up as we go along. If you have any questions or suggestions, drop me a mail at mona@monastoschek.com or find me in the WhatsApp groups.ย ๐Ÿ˜Š