BA Politics & Geography Programme Specification

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Awarding Institution:

University of Exeter

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School(s)/Teaching Institution:

Schools of Humanities and Social Sciences and Geography, Archaeology & Earth Resources, Cornwall Campus

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Programme accredited/validated by:

Not applicable

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Final Award(s):

BA (Hons)

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Programme Title:

Combined Honours in Politics and Geography           

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UCAS Code (if relevant):

LL27

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FHEQ Level of Final Award(s):

H

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QAA Subject Benchmarking Group:

Politics and Geography

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Date of Production/Revision:

April 2007

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Programme Structures and Requirements, Levels, Modules, Credits and Awards

This Combined Honours degree programme is studied over three years and, with the exception of the optional fieldtrips (GEO2502B, which is normally held in the second year, and GEO3505B, the optional third year Residential Fieldtrip), is university-based throughout that time. The programme consists of three stages, and each stage is normally completed in a single academic year. Each stage of the programme consists of modules to total 120 credits, thus the entire programme consists of 360 credits. The credit weighting of a module is proportional to the total workload and one credit is normally equivalent to 10 hours of work. The level of a module, designated by the first number in the module code, indicates its position in the progressive development of academic abilities and skills across the programme. Level 1 modules are taken at Stage 1, Level 2 modules at Stage 2, and Level 3 modules at Stage 3. Each Stage includes 30 weeks of term-time, with three terms each of 10 weeks; teaching time is divided into two semesters within the 30 weeks of term time; semester 1 is 12 weeks and semester 2 is 11 weeks.

Modules and other study components can be taken only with the approval of the School. Modules are not all available every year; options are offered each year at the discretion of the School and may be subject to change over the duration of the programme. A module may be taken only if the necessary prerequisites have been satisfied, if the timetable allows, and if the module or an equivalent module has not been taken previously.

Stage 1
All students must take POC 1001 Modern Political Analysis, I (15/1) [15 credits, 1 semester]; POC 1002 Modern Political Analysis, II (15/1); 30 credits from the following list:
POC 1003 British Government and Politics (15/1);
POC 1004 State of Britain: Actors and Agenda Setting in UK Public Policy (15/1);
POC 1007 Globalisation of World Politics, I (15/1);
POC 1008 Globalisation of World Politics, II (15/1);
PLUS GEO 1401 Approaches to Geographic Knowledge (20/1); GEO 1403 Introduction to Environment and Society (20/1); GEO 1505 Investigating People and Place (20/1).

Stage 2
All students must take POC 2001 American Politics (15/1); POC 2002 Introduction to Security in World Politics (15/1); 30 credits from the list of level 2 modules in Politics; GEO 2501 Geographical Research Skills (20/1); (For GEO 2501, there are Human and Physical Geography Pathways. CH Politics/Geography students will be required to take the Human Geography Pathway for this core module); 40 credits from Geography Level 2 modules.

Stage 3
There are two pathways at level 3. Under Pathway A, students take POC 3040 Politics Dissertation (30/2); 30 credits from the list of Politics level 3 modules; 60 credits from the list of Geography Level 3 modules. Under Pathway B, students take GEO 3420B Geography Dissertation (30/2); 30 credits from the list of Geography level 3 modules; 60 credits from the list of Politics level 3 modules.

Details of Geography modules can be found at: http://www.uec.ac.uk/geography/geography_modules.htm

Assessment at Stage 1 is formative and does not contribute towards the overall mark for the degree programme, although an overall pass is necessary for progression to Stage 2. The overall mark for the degree is calculated from the marks for Stages 2 to 3, which are weighted in the ratio of 1:2 respectively. All modules are condonable within the University condonable system.

Under the University’s rules on modularity, students may take up to 30 credits per year in another department within the Schools of Humanities and Social Sciences and of Geography, Archaeology and Earth Resources, or within another School. In this case, students would drop modules from the above list as follows

Stage 1: Modularity is not allowed at this stage
Stage 2: up to 30 credits from either ‘30 credits from Politics level 2 modules’ or ‘30 credits from Geography level 2 modules’.
Stage 3: up to 30 credits from (Pathway A) ‘60 credits of Geography level 3 module(s)’ or (Pathway B) ’60 credits of Politics level 3 modules’.

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Educational Aims of the Programme

The aims of the programme are to:

• Offer an excellent Honours-level education in Politics and Geography that explores the interface between the disciplines.
• Introduce students to the historical and geographical aspects of human society and the physical environment and their complex interrelationships.
• Produce graduates who can engage imaginatively in the process of understanding and analysing complex and sophisticated problems in the two disciplines by critical approaches that blend detailed and broad levels of analysis.
• To develop students’ independent critical thinking and judgement.

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Programme Outcomes

On successfully completing the programme, a graduate should be able to demonstrate:

A. Subject knowledge and skills

1. detailed knowledge of core subject areas in Politics and Geography, with specialisation at the forefront of the subjects in certain areas.
2. an understanding of the nature of change in and the reciprocal relationships between physical and human environments and the significance of spatial relationships as influences upon human and physical environments.
3. an understanding of a range of political theories, their significance and the major critical positions adopted towards them.
4. the ability to use different types of source materials for political scientists and geographers; evaluate different and complex types of sources; use primary sources in a professional manner.
5. Define a suitable research topic and pursue it to completion.

Teaching and learning methods
Outcomes A1 – A4 are developed in Stages 1 and 2 of the programme through lectures and tutorials. Specialisation is developed in Stage 3 in small-group teaching. A5 is developed through the syllabus but is especially important in the Dissertation.

Assessment
 Outcomes A1 to A4 are assessed by a combination of written examinations, continuous assessment essays, oral presentations, fieldwork projects and group project work. A5 is assessed by the dissertation.

B. Core academic skills

1. the ability to answer questions concisely and persuasively both orally and in writing.
2. the ability to evaluate critically theoretical models and competing views.
3. awareness of the basic philosophical questions arising from academic research.
4. comprehension of the complex terminology and discourses, and ability to deploy such terminology in a comprehensible manner.
5. the ability to plan, execute and present an extended piece of original research.

Teaching and learning methods
Outcomes B1 and B2 form the backbone of all modules taken at all stages, but the level of complexity develops according to stage. B3 and B4 are developed throughout the programme in lectures, seminars and continuous assessment. Students are encouraged to address B5 in the Stage 3 Dissertation.

Assessment
These skills are assessed through a combination of term-time essays, oral presentations, fieldwork projects, Project and Dissertation work, and examinations. The criteria of assessment pay full recognition to the importance of the various skills outlined.

C. Personal and key skills

1. critical, creative and independent thinking.
2. confidence and flexibility in identifying and solving complex problems.
3. proficient use of electronic information retrieval and management tools; ability to access information from a variety of sources.
4. effective interaction within a group.
5. effective self-management (autonomy, time management, self-motivation, self-reflection, seeking and using feedback, personal responsibility, self-criticism).

Teaching and learning methods
Outcomes C1, C2 and C3 are developed through the processes of acquiring subject knowledge and core academic skills (see A and B above). Outcome C4 is developed in group discussions in academic tutorials. Outcome C5 is developed by student progression through a learning and teaching programme that is gradually more self-managed and the personal tutor and Personal Development Planning systems. Independent study forms a major part of our learning and teaching programme, most notably in the Stage 2 project and the Stage 3 dissertation.

Assessment
Outcomes C1, C2 and C3 are assessed primarily through summative and formative essays, assessed presentations, project work, the dissertation and examinations. Outcomes C4 and C5 are assessed indirectly throughout the programme, in that where modules require the development of these skills, it would be very difficult to achieve a good mark in the assessments without having developed such skills.

D. These skills are in line with the Benchmark statements of Politics and Geography
 

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Support for Students and Students’ Learning

On the Tremough campus in Cornwall, the Learning Resources Centre contains a library of 70,000 volumes and some specialist collections. Politics, with History, is building its library collection and has allocated c. £40k p.a. for (at least) the next four years to build up the teaching collection for Politics (and History). Staff are also making maximum use of on-line materials, including e-journals, EEBO, EBSCO and JSTOR in the teaching programme. An inter-campus loan facility gives students full access to the University Library on the Streatham campus. Students may also make use of the special collections held in Cornwall and Exeter. For dissertation work, in particular, students have an excellent range of libraries and archives within the county, and are also encouraged to use collections outside Cornwall, for which letters of introduction are written as necessary.

Both Schools provide a Personal Tutor System for students based on the principles contained in the TQA Manual Code of Good Practice for Personal Tutor Systems. Students are allocated a personal tutor in each department who will be available for discussion of any problems or queries. In normal circumstances, the student will remain with the same two tutors throughout their university careers. The tutors will be available through office hours but will also see the tutee as a matter of course three times a year: once at registration (September/October); once with their Politics tutor for a structured annual appraisal of their performance during the inter-semester break (January); and once to discuss examination results and overall performance at each stage (June). The appraisal is particularly important – here, students discuss a pre-completed self-appraisal with their tutor, and agree an ‘action plan’ to consolidate and improve performance over the coming year. Personal tutors report to the Programme Leader. The Personal Tutor Scheme is overseen by the two Heads of School.

Both Schools ensure that a full record of the student’s attendance, marks and seminar contribution is maintained over the duration of the programme. For Politics, records of attendance, submission of work and marks will be delivered through the BART system, and seminar contributions will be monitored through WebCT submissions.
 
Information Technology (IT) Services provide a wide range of services at the Cornwall Campus throughout the University including open access computer rooms, some of which are available 24 hours, 7 days a week. Helpdesks are maintained on the Cornwall and Exeter campuses, while most study bedrooms in halls and flats are linked to the University's campus network. E-mail is a standard channel of communication between students and staff. Student support materials, e.g. module descriptions and reading lists are available on the Cornwall Campus Geography web-site or or via WebCT for Politics modules.

The University provides a wide range of student support services at the Cornwall Campus including:

- Student Counselling Service
- Study Skills Service
- Falmouth and Exeter Student Union (fxu)
- Disability Resource Centre

The Cornwall Campus Careers Advisory Service provides expert advice to all students to enable them to plan their futures, through guidance interviews, psychometric testing, employer presentations, skills events, practice job interviews and CV preparation.

The School and the University are pleased to welcome students with disability and provide extensive support services. The disability Resource Centre will develop a Personal Learning Plan for any student with disability, and this plan will enable the School to maximise the accessibility of the programme with support from the Personal Tutor in consultation with the School Disability Liaison officer and other members of the School. Almost all modules are classroom based and can be made accessible to students with a broad range of disabilities. However, the Fieldtrip involves particular problems for some students and the dissertation normally requires students to undertake archival work and both may involve planning ahead to meet student needs. Students are encouraged, where possible, to contact their Personal Tutor and the Disability Liaison Officer in the semester before the Dissertation to enable forward planning. Similar considerations apply to those students undertaking the Geography fieldwork modules.

In accordance with University policy, the Cornwall Campus has a Flexible and Combined Honours Student/Staff Liaison Committee, of which undergraduate representatives of this degree (and the staff Programme Co-ordinator) are members. This allows students to contribute directly to the enhancement of educational and other provisions of the programme.

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Admission Criteria

Candidates must satisfy the general admissions requirements of the University and of the Schools of Arts, Languages and Literatures and Humanities and Social Sciences. Our ‘Typical offer’ is intended as a guide only. We expect this to be our ‘average’ offer but reserve the right to make offers at both a higher and lower level than that indicated, based on individual applications.
Our typical offers are as follows:

School/College leavers:

GCE AL: ABB – BBB at GCE AL (A2), with a GCE AL grade B in Geography.

International Baccalaureate: 29-27 points (5 in Geography).

Non-school-leavers and overseas students:

Non-school leavers and overseas students are considered on an individual basis. Overseas students must show proficiency inn the English Language and have an appropriate qualification (e.g. Certificate of Proficiency in English of the Cambridge Local Examinations syndicate, IELTS, TOEFL, or other equivalent examinations). Non-school-leavers will normally be interviewed and will be expected to have taken some recognised systematic course of study within the last three years (e.g. Access courses, Open University, GCE etc.).

Admissions information relating to disability, widening participation and mature entry

The full university disability statement is at:
http://www.ex.ac.uk/disability/statement/

The university’s widening participation web pages are at
http://www.ex.ac.uk/wp

Information for mature students is at
http://www.ac.ac.uk/mature/

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Regulation of Assessment and Academic Standards

Each academic programme in the University is subject to an agreed School assessment marking strategy, underpinned by institution-wide assessment procedures. The security of assessment and academic standards is further supported through the external examiners appointed for each programme. Their responsibilities are described in the University’s code for external examiners and include access to draft papers, course work and examination scripts. Attendance at the Board of Examiners and the provision of an annual report are both required. Clear procedures are in place for the monitoring of these annual reports at both School and University level. See the University’s Teaching Quality Assurance (TQA) Manual for details of these processes. (see http://www.admin.ex.ac.uk/academic/tls/tqa/)

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Indicators of Quality and Standards

The University and its constituent Schools draw on a range of data in their regular review of the quality of provision. The annually-produced Performance indicator Dataset details admission, progression, completion and fist career destination data, including comparisons over a five-year time-span.

The School was subject to HEFCE Teaching Quality Assessment in 1995, when the provision in Geography was graded as Excellent.  The Geography Department is currently (2007) subject to an externally monitored Periodic Subject Review. The Politics provision at Exeter was subjected to a QAA review in 2001. It was awarded 23/24 points (excellent).

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Methods for Evaluating and Improving Quality and Standards

The University has procedures in place for the regular review of its educational provision, including the annual review of both modules and programmes, which draw on feedback from such sources as external examiners’ reports, student evaluation, student achievement and progression data. In addition, subject areas are reviewed very four years through a subject review scheme that includes external input. These procedures are recorded in codes of practice contained in the TQA Manual. In addition, nearly all subject areas are reviewed from time to time by the external Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education; see the QAA web site for review reports on subjects at Exeter.