Roles and responsibilities

Core Purpose

• To encourage your students to make the most of opportunities available at the University and enable them to support their personal development and employability within and out-with the formal curriculum
• To help foster, in all students, a sense of belonging to a community of learners
• Help to address any concerns or problems that might affect your students studies
• Sign post the relevant support services available at the University
• Meet with your students on a regular basis
• Provide a written reference to aid with future employment or for postgraduate study

Main responsibilities

• To provide general academic guidance and support, including: welcoming their tutees, guiding and supporting students in their academic and personal development and following the progress of all their tutees 
• To share with other staff in Schools the process of providing pastoral responsibilities and duties of care for their tutees, referring students to central services and other specialist sources of information and guidance as and when appropriate
• To liaise with support services within the University
• To meet regularly with their tutees, in line with agreed activities designed to support their tutees' personal development (eg employability, knowledge of the attainment of the Graduate Attributes)
• To respond promptly (normally within three working days) to a request for contact; where this is not feasible, the Personal Tutor should arrange a suitable response
• To provide references for a future employer or programme of study for their tutees
• To undertake training and continuing professional development associated with their role

• Senior Personal Tutor Directory

Core Purpose

1. To ensure that new Personal Tutors understand the expectations of their role, have access to the required training materials and are kept up-to-date with developments in provision
2. To provide advice to Personal Tutors regarding unusual or complex issues
3. To ensure that the effectiveness of personal tutoring within the School is regularly and systematically monitored  

Main responsibilities

• to report directly to the Head of School (or nominated deputy) with respect to his/her responsibilities
• to have oversight of personal tutoring arrangements within the School
• to brief personal tutors within the School on their responsibilities and to provide feedback on additional training needs to help inform the further development of the scheme
• to liaise with other Senior Tutors via the Senior Personal Tutors Network
• to provide a single point of contact for Personal Tutors and Personal Tutor Co-ordinators within the School
• to deal promptly and effectively with concerns raised by Personal Tutors and Tutees, advising Tutees in cases where they have been referred to them or where the student has been unable to obtain a satisfactory response from the Personal Tutor or Personal Tutor Co-ordinators to have regular interchanges with student representatives
• to contribute to the Schools’ quality assurance and enhancement processes, ensuring that appropriate action is taken to address reasonable student concerns and giving all tutees the opportunity at least once per year to comment on both personal tutoring arrangements and the wider framework of student support in the School

Personal Tutor Guidance for Students

The aim of the Personal Tutor system is to provide you with a member of academic staff who will be available to you for support and guidance throughout your studies. They will encourage you to reflect on your progress and to take advantage of the opportunities available to you during your studies to enable you to best prepare for future employment or further study.

Your Responsibilities

In order to gain the maximum benefit from your contact with your Personal Tutor, it is your responsibility to:

• Attend meetings arranged with your Personal Tutor. These meetings may be in groups with other tutees or individual meetings. If for any reason you cannot attend, you should let your Personal Tutor know in advance so that alternative arrangements can be made.
• Participate actively in scheduled meetings with your Personal Tutor and in group meetings. Participation in such meetings although not compulsory, will be monitored and non-engagement is likely to mean that you will not know your Personal Tutor well enough at the end of your studies for them to be able to provide you with a meaningful reference.
• Check your University email account regularly for communications and respond promptly to requests for information.
• Ensure your details are up-to-date on your Student Hub.
• Keep a record of activities and reflections on your progress, performance, and the longer-term aspirations associated with these activities (eg through use of the ACHIEVE website and Feedback logs).
• Inform your Personal Tutor of any circumstances which may be affecting your academic performance and so that effective support can be offered.
• Ask your Personal Tutor, if you wish, to act as one of your referees for internships, job applications or further study. While we expect Personal Tutors and Tutees to put effort into building a constructive relationship, if you feel this relationship is not working, you should contact the Senior Personal Tutor in your School to discuss what might be done to resolve the situation. In cases where it is clear that there is a strong reason for changing a Personal Tutor, this can also be facilitated.
• Make yourself aware of the regulations and procedures relevant to your  studies, and seek advice where you are unsure of what is required.
• Give careful consideration to advice or information given to you by your Personal Tutor, who will always endeavour to act in your best interests.