Workshop series held in October and November 2024
Exams and revision: This workshop explores some top tips and strategies to help you prepare for upcoming revision and exams.
Reading and notetaking: In this workshop we’ll consider different strategies for reading effectively and taking active and useful notes for your assignments.
Getting started with your search strategy: This informal session looks at how search strategies can provide a handy structure to your research. We'll explore breaking down a topic into keywords, exploring alternatives and how to use search operators to make database searches easier.
Planning an essay: How do you plan an essay? You might know a bit about how to take notes. You might have been given advice on how to structure a piece of writing. But how you do you move from a few notes to a full first draft? In this mini workshop we’ll look together at how a student at the University of Birmingham plans their essays to give us some inspiration.
How to paraphrase: In this workshop we'll look at the role of sources and reporting verbs in your writing and practice paraphrasing using a few simple steps.
Writing effective introductions and conclusions: This workshop focuses on structure, content and wording, providing you with clear strategies and tips for writing introductions and conclusions.
Commenting on the evidence: In this workshop, we take a closer look at what makes a really strong paragraph.
Critical thinking: This workshop explores how to apply critical thinking to your assignments.
Research skills for dissertations: This workshop explores how to access and use key resources for your dissertation including journals, databases and other relevant sources of information.
Developing your postgraduate study skills: This workshop explores some key skills needed to thrive in your PGT programme.
Workshops held during Welcome Week September 2o24
Learning at University: This workshop will help you gain confidence with 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.
Introduction to Library Resources: This workshop will introduce you to some key Library resources that will help you with your study: how to access and use your module Resource List and how to get the most out of the library catalogue, FindIt@Bham.
Core University digital tools: This workshop will introduce you to the core digital tools of the University such as Canvas, Microsoft 365 and LinkedIn Learning. We’ll show you how to get the most from these tools and where you can go for further help and support beyond the session.
Using GenAI for studying: This workshop is a great introduction to GenAI tools and how they can be used to enhance your study and learning. You’ll also have a better awareness of the risks and limitations of using these tools, whilst ensuring that you maintain academic integrity.
Workshops held during March 2024
Critical thinking and writing: this workshop explores how to apply critical analysis to your writing to achieve higher marks in your assessment.
Reading and notetaking strategies: this workshop considers different strategies for reading effectively and taking active and useful notes.
Improving your academic writing: this workshop will help you to improve your writing style. It looks at how to write clearly, concisely and critically, and how to edit your own work effectively
How to write effective paragraphs: You may have been told that you need to be more critical in your writing. This workshop looks at how you can do this in practice by writing effective paragraphs that use and comment on evidence.
Editing and proofreading techniques: Extra marks can often be achieved by ensuring your assignment is as accurate and error-free as possible. This workshop will explore some effective editing and proofreading techniques to achieve this.
Exams and revision: This workshop will help you prepare for your exams whether you're taking them online or in-person.
Dissertation workshops
These workshop recordings cover some key skills needed for successfully completing a dissertation.