Claire's Blog: My Experience of Having a Personal Tutor
Claire: My Experience of Having a Personal Tutor
Hear from Claire, a Psychology UG and Student Inclusion Officer, on her experiences of Personal Tutoring during her first year at Warwick.
What is a Personal Tutor?
"They are an academic member of staff assigned to you by your department to be your point of contact and support whilst you are on your course. Generally, your Personal Tutor will oversee the academic and general wellbeing of their tutee group, which consisted of around six people for me. I had tutorials bi-weekly as a part of this group, in which we practiced debate skills (for example, on the ethics of AI) and structuring our arguments for our first formative and summative assignments."
What did I like about having a Personal Tutor?
"I appreciated how we were supported through our first written essay at university level, and it felt less daunting as our Personal Tutor had already listened through our ideas and we had a rapport established with them as our marker as well. I found the feedback given during the tutorials was essential in understanding how our course鈥檚 marking style worked, and we had opportunities to practise how to give a presentation. The smaller group style, and normal classroom setting, made the process seem less formal and friendlier. This directly helped encourage my interaction with the material provided compared to when in a lecture hall of 200."
What was the highlight of this experience?
"As a Psychology student, it is important to practise what you preach. My Personal Tutor gave great advice on seeking support from Disability and Wellbeing services. I found this to be really helpful, and I honestly couldn鈥檛 have completed my first year without the support services the University offers. I found my Personal Tutor to be very knowledgeable when I consulted her on Reasonable Adjustments, and the fact that each department also has a Disabled Student Champion reassured me of the dedication Warwick has towards supporting their students. Personal Tutors work hard to help guide their tutee group, and I am glad to be able to reach out to them as a resource in our University."
My top tip for making the most of your Personal Tutor:
"The biggest realisation I had this year from interacting with my Personal Tutor is that, whilst they are here to support you, it鈥檚 up to you to make the effort.
For example, it's up to you to use feedback from assignments in a proactive way that furthers your academic writing skills, rather than just skimming through it. It's up to you to sign up for the activities and opportunities your Personal Tutor, or wider department, advertises. It was actually thanks to my Personal Tutor that I found my first university job, and first opportunity abroad during the summer holidays.
Your Personal Tutor is here to support you throughout your course, and help you access additional support systems you may need, but it鈥檚 your agency that allows you to make the most of this experience."