Student workshops and online resources 2025/26

The Academic Skills Centre (ASC) helps students to develop their academic and digital skills. Watch the following videos to learn about the support on offer at the Academic Skills Centre and to get started with library resources.

We offer confidential online individual appointments for undergraduates and postgraduate taught students (UG and MA/MSc). We can help with writing skills, study strategies, referencing, or searching for high quality sources for your assignments.

Additional support

Additionally, our Assessment Support Hub offers a wide range of online digital and academic resources. This Canvas course is home to various support guides from the ASC and includes important wellbeing information. We would like you to encourage all students to take advantage of these resources.

 Online Drop-Ins and Online one-to-one with Skills Advisors from Edgbaston Campus are available for students who need additional support. These advisors can help address specific questions or concerns. 

Upcoming workshops

Please refer to the list of upcoming workshops to book a place. 

Preparing for Your Assignments: Workshop Series

We’re running online workshops in term one to help you develop key skills needed to excel in your assignments. Our workshops are here to try and demystify key academic skills and provide practical ways of approaching them.

All sessions are online and will be recorded. Suitable for undergraduates and postgraduate taught students.

Referencing & Citation
Wednesday 4 February 5:00 – 6:00 PM (UAE time)

Thursday 5 February 12:00 – 1:00 PM (UAE time)

Master the skill of referencing & Citation in this interactive workshop. Learn about different referencing styles, how to cite various types of sources, and avoid plagiarism. We will also explore tools like EndNote and Zotero to help manage your citations and reference lists efficiently.

This is an in-person workshop for Dubai students held in Academic & Digital Skills Centre room 1203. Book a place

 

Writing your literature review
Thursday 5 February 2026, 4:00-5:00 PM (UAE time)

The literature review is an important component of a dissertation. This workshop will explore what an effective literature review involves, focusing on how to structure a review, and how to write critically about the literature.

This is an online workshop Book a place



Using EndNote 21 to store references
Tuesday 10 February 2026, 4:00-5:00 PM (UAE time)

New to reference management software or EndNote 21? Come along to this session which will cover the basics: loading EndNote 21, importing references, creating groups, and connecting your EndNote 21 library with MS Word.

This is an online workshop Book a place

 

Writing skills for your dissertation (secondary research)

Wednesday 11 February 2026, 4:00-5:00 PM (UAE time)

This workshop will focus on some key writing skills for your dissertations. This will include:

  • How to use signposting to structure your argument
  • Writing critically
  • What to include in your introduction and conclusion
  • Approaches to editing and proofreading

This is an online workshop Book a place

 

Critical thinking - how do I get a 2.1 or above

Wednesday 25 February 2026, 4:00-5:00 PM (UAE time)
In this workshop we’ll explore how to apply critical thinking skills to your writing in order to achieve higher marks in your assignments.

This is an online workshop Book a place

 

Exams and revision
Wednesday 25 March 2026, 4:00-5:00 PM (UAE time)

This workshop will help you prepare for your remote or in-person exams. It will help reflect on your own approaches to revision and consider different strategies for revising, ensuring you’re prepared on the day for the exam.

Wednesday 25 March 2026, 4:00-5:00 PM (UAE time)

This is an online workshop Book a place 

Writing Skills

These workshops are designed to help you enhance your academic writing. Suitable for UGs and PGTs. 

Writing skills for your dissertation (primary research) 
Tuesday 17 February 2026, 4:00-5:00 PM (UAE time)

This workshop will focus on some key writing skills for your dissertations. This will include:

  • How to use signposting to structure your argument
  • Writing critically
  • What to include in your introduction and conclusion
  • Approaches to editing and proofreading

This is an online workshop Book a place

 

Improve your academic writing
Thursday 19 February 2026, 3:00-4:00 PM (UAE time)

Looking to develop your academic writing style further? This workshop will help you to:

  • Develop your academic voice
  • Integrate critical discussion
  • Understand how to make your writing clear and concise 

This is an online workshop Book a place

 

Reflective writing
Tuesday 3 March 2026, 4:00-5:00 PM (UAE time)

Dissertations and other projects often call for methodological or theoretical reflections. You might be asked to reflect on your learning, your writing, or your practice.  Whatever the context, this workshop will help you get you started with your reflective writing.

This is an online workshop Book a place



Writing introductions and conclusions
Wednesday 11 March 2026, 4:00-5:00 PM (UAE time)

This workshop focuses on structure, content and wording, providing you with clear strategies and tips for writing introductions and conclusions.

This is an online workshop Book a place 

Building on Your Own Skills

These online workshops are designed to help you build on your academic skills so you can excel in your assignments, from making the most of your previous feedback to writing clearly about the evidence. Suitable for UGs and PGTs. 

Activate your Library & Learning Resources 

Thursday 22nd January 12:00-13:00 PM (UAE time)

Are you ready to unlock the full potential of your UoBD library? This workshop will activate some key library resources for you that will help you with your study:

  • Access and use your module Resource List.
  • Get the most out of the library catalogue, FindIt@Bham.
  • Request materials using interlibrary loans or MoreBook@bham.
  • Loan a laptop or use the library PCs.
  • Book a study space.

This is an in-person workshop held at the Academic Skills Centre, Room 1203. Book a place

 

Elevate Your Studies with the Ethical Use of AI
Wednesday 28 January, 5:00 – 6:00 PM (UAE time)

Thursday 29 January, 12:00 – 1:00 PM (UAE time)

 This session explores how students can use AI tools to support learning while maintaining academic integrity. It clarifies what ethical AI use looks like in a university context, how to avoid plagiarism and over-reliance, and how AI can be used responsibly for brainstorming, feedback, revision, and study support. Students will also learn how to ask better questions and remain critical thinkers when using AI.

This is an in-person workshop for Dubai students held in Academic & Digital Skills Centre room 1203. Book a place

 

Using Your University Digital Ecosystem to Build Stronger Academic Skills
Wednesday 11 February, 5:00 – 6:00 PM (UAE time)

Thursday 12 February, 12:00 – 1:00 PM (UAE time)

This session helps students understand and make the most of the digital tools provided by the university. It focuses on how to access and maximise the benefits of the university provided platforms to support learning, organisation, communication, and skill development.

This is an in-person workshop for Dubai students held in Academic & Digital Skills Centre room 1203. Book a place

 

Data Analytics for Beginners: Making Sense of Data Without the Jargon

Wednesday 25 March, 5:00 – 6:00 PM

Thursday 26 March, 12:00 – 1:00 PM

This session introduces the fundamentals of data analytics in a simple, practical way. Students will learn what data analytics is (and what it is not), where data shows up in everyday academic and professional contexts, and how to read, question, and interpret basic data sets without needing advanced maths or coding skills.

This is an in-person workshop for Dubai students held in Academic & Digital Skills Centre room 1203. Book a place

Developing Your Skills for Postgraduate Study


For workshops designed for postgraduate taught students, please see our schedule of support on our PGT workshops page. 

 

Previous workshops

Learning at University

This workshop covered some essential learning skills, including time management, independent learning, and notetaking. It will help you to reflect on your own approaches to study, ensuring that you feel prepared for the year to come. Watch the recording.

Finding, using and evaluating information

This workshop explored how to access and use key resources for your discipline, including journals, databases and other relevant sources of information. It also covered how to plan and implement an effective literature search. Watch the recording. 

Critiquing an academic article

This workshop covered how to improve your reading skills and understand what is involved in critiquing an academic article. It also covered how to identify, summarise and evaluate the information presented. Watch the recording.

Introduction to Academic Writing

This workshop covered some of the essential features of essay writing: planning, introductions, arguments, paragraph structure and signposting. Watch the recording.

You can also enrol on the Canvas course which looks at the content in more detail.

Critical thinking

Work through the critical thinking and writing Canvas course. This resource will build on the writing support helping you to identify, construct and evaluate arguments and their components. It will also explore how to write critically so that an argument is clearly conveyed. 

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