Affiliate FAQs

DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHOLOGY


Information for
Psychology Affiliate Students

FALL TERM ARRIVALS 2007-8

Important Contact Information

Dr. Brad Duchaine
Affiliate Tutor
Alexandra House
Room 208
X21005
b.duchaine@ucl.ac.uk

Irma Kurniawan
Affiliate Demonstrator
Bedford Way
Room 204C


Matthias Gruber
Affiliate Demonstrator
Alexandra House



Alastair McClelland
Departmental Tutor
26 Bedford Way
Room 204d
X25384
a.mclelland@ucl.ac.uk

Diane Cheung
Affiliate Program Secretary
26 Bedford Way
Room 314
X25333
d.cheung@ucl.ac.uk

Jo Strange
Undergraduate Administrator
26 Bedford Way
Room 303
x25334
joanna.strange@ucl.ac.uk

John Draper
Departmental Administrator
26 Bedford Way
Room 306
x25338
j.draper@ucl.ac.uk

International Office
South Wing, Main College, Room 19
x37765
international@ucl.ac.uk

Internal Extension Numbers can be dialled on any UCL office telephone or called from outside UCL by omitting the first digit and prefixing the last 4 digits with 0207 679


Frequently Asked Questions


Where can I find more information on the affiliate program?

Please check this site frequently:
http://www.psychol.ucl.ac.uk/courses/affiliate/index.htm

This site will be updated often with important announcements. Also, a link to a discussion board where you can ask questions will be implemented will be added soon.

How many psychology classes should I take?

If Psychology is your primary department, you must take at least two psychology classes. Beyond these two courses, you can take additional courses in psychology or in another department.

If Psychology is your secondary department, you must take at least one psychology class.


How many courses should I take in total?

You need to sign up for 2 course units per term. So, if you are here just for the fall term, you need 2 course units. If you are here for the full academic year you need four. Half of your course units must be in your home department.


I need to register RIGHT NOW or I won’t get into my psych classes and I will totally freak out…

There is absolutely no rush to register for psychology classes (as long as you register by 5th October). However, courses in other departments may fill up. So, if there is a course you really want to take in another department, it would be wise to check with their affiliate tutor soon to see if you can register.


Where can I find information about the courses offered?

You have been given a guide with course descriptions. Additional information (e.g., past lecture notes) on most courses can be found at:

https://www.online.psychol.ucl.ac.uk/courses/courselisting.aspx

Note: To see lecture slides you must access this page from within the UCL campus and have a psychology site password, which will be given to you shortly by Andrew King.

How do I register for courses?

To register for Psychology courses follow the following steps:

1) Fill in a PSYCHOLOGY COURSE APPROVAL FORM.
2) Have it approved by and turn it in to the affiliate tutor or the affiliate demonstrators.
3) Enter your courses into the PORTICO system.

Other departments have different procedures for registration. Some departments may allow students to simply sign up for a class using PORTICO. Most, however require that you speak with their affiliate tutor first. The safe thing is to see the relevant affiliate tutor right away. Courses in other departments can and do fill up.


When is the best time to find the Affiliate Tutor to get his initials/signature?

Brad Duchaine will be available 2-4pm on Tuesday 25th September to discuss / approve course choices.

When is the deadline for Registration?

The deadline for entering your final course choices into the PORTICO system is 5th October 2007. However, if necessary, changes can be made by Jo Strange (Undergraduate Administrator) up until 19th October 2007.

Where is the International Office?

Room 19, South wing, Main College – Ref: E4, Map 2.


Where can I find individual course instructors?

Contact details are in your course information sheet.

Why do some courses run for the whole term while others run for only half a term?

The advanced courses (3rd year courses) generally run for only half a term. However, this does NOT mean that they require only half the work! On the contrary, although they meet fewer times you are expected to do a great deal more independent reading for these classes. Simply attending the lectures and doing only the core readings will not adequately prepare you for the examinations.


What are “Seminars” and do I need to register for them?

If you are taking 2 or more psychology classes, then you are required to attend a weekly seminar meeting. For those of you from the United States, think of these as recitations or discussion sections for all of your courses combined into one weekly meeting. These seminars serve as a basis for discussion of material arising in lecture courses, and as a forum to help students prepare for their final assessments or end-of-year examinations. Seminar leaders will prepare standard appraisal forms that include remarks on attendance, oral participation, and % grades on three brief essays. Copies of these appraisal forms will be made available to students’ home universities as evidence of our general policy that small-group teaching is integral to affiliate students’ experience in the Psychology Dept., and as specific evidence of each student’s performance in the small-group learning experience.

The seminars are led by the Affiliate Program Demonstrators. You do not need to register for your seminar; you will automatically be assigned to a group.

What about exams?

Fall-term only students generally do not sit exams. Instead, you will turn in two 2000-word essays per course by the end of the term. Details on the essay topics will be available by around mid-term.

If you are here for the entire academic year, you sit final exams with the regular degree students. The final exams are in the “third term” – “term” is the UK word for semester. Examination schedules will be available sometime in the spring term.

If I am here for the year, can I write essays instead of sitting exams?

No.

I am here for the year and but want to leave London early; can I make alternative arrangements for the exams?

Almost certainly not. The International Office has strict guidelines that the departments must adhere to. You should ascertain your exam schedule before making any plans to leave before the 10 June. And, even then, be aware that occasionally exams must be rescheduled and that a rescheduled exam is not a valid excuse for absence.


How should I prepare for the essays/exams?

This is precisely the kind of question that the demonstrators will be able to help you with at your weekly seminars. If you are only taking one psychology class and are not going to seminars, you can still ask your assigned demonstrator for assistance.