3. Teaching and Learning

3.1 Organisation of Teaching and Learning


Almost all lectures and classes will take place in the teaching space in the mezzanine level of the Mathematical Institute’s Andrew Wiles Building. Some of the lectures are shared with the undergraduate mathematics programme and can therefore have a large audience, but all problem solving classes are solely for M.Sc. students and you should expect there to be fewer than 15 people in each class.

In terms of workload, in the first term you should expect to spend about 14 hours per week on core lectures (lectures for the core courses as well as Practical Numerical Analysis, Mathematical Modelling and Additional Skills) and a further two hours per week on lectures for each special topic course followed. You should also expect to spend about four hours per week in problem solving classes, as well as further personal study time to work on the problem sheets and consolidate lecture material.

Termly timetables can be found on the MMSC course webpage.

If you have any issues with teaching or supervision please raise these as soon as possible so that they can be addressed promptly. Details of who to contact are provided in Section 7.2 Complaints and Appeals.

3.2 Expectations of Study

You are responsible for your own academic progress and so it will be important for you, as an individual, to plan your own study time. As already indicated, the course has a large amount of structured teaching time, with about 20 hours of lectures and classes per week in the first terms. In addition you are expected to spend time working on the problem sheets and consolidating the material covered in lectures and classes. You will also be expected to work during the vacations with revision being required during the Christmas and Easter breaks. Special topic and case study reports will also be written during these vacations whilst most of the summer will be taken up with dissertation work. You will be responsible for planning your own work pattern during the vacations and so you may work in a "flexi-time" fashion, working harder sometimes in order to enjoy a break at other times.

The University has a policy on paid work. However, in general, it is strongly recommended that students on the M.Sc. in Mathematical Modelling and Scientific Computing do not undertake paid work during the course.