Student Guidance & Support Officer
The School of Applied Sciences
Before Christmas we wrote to you all to inform you that we had appointed a Student Guidance & Support Officer. Katie Blow is now in post and we felt this would be an appropriate time to introduce you further to her, her role and also to help clarify how she can help you as a supplement to your role as Personal Tutors.
How does this role help you as staff?
The role of the Guidance Office is to provide students with alternative pastoral support to their Personal Tutors. If an issue is having an impact on a student’s academic studies and you are unsure of where to go for help, the Guidance Office can help you and/or the student understand the options available. Academic issues should still be dealt with by a student’s Personal Tutor.
Katie can offer students support with issues that are having an impact on their studies, general wellbeing or time at Huddersfield including (but not limited to);
• Welfare, Stress & Anxiety
• Disability concerns and awareness
• Suspension of studies
• Money matters
• Accommodation
• Extenuating Circumstances & Extensions advice
Katie will also be taking over the Attendance Monitoring meetings from the Academic Skills Tutors, she will holding the interviews regarding low attendance or high reported absence with students and the follow up from those meetings.
In an attempt to reduce staff workload and streamline the extension application process for both students and staff similar to the current extenuating circumstances process, Katie can act as a central person within the School to help students decide if an extension or an E/C would be the best option for them.
For staff, Katie can offer guidance on when to accept an extension request, what evidence is required and can make a suggestion for staff to approve extension or not (based on information given by students).
If staff would prefer, extension requests can go through Katie to make an initial decision to then be approved by staff, removing the potential for students to claim Academic bias or judgement and securing a more transparent system.
How is this different to what we already have in place in the School?
Staff in the School Student Support Office are available to help students with many aspects of administration they are at the University. The team is on hand to help students with queries relating to, amongst other things, their modules, timetabling, attendance monitoring and academic record.
The School’s Academic Skills Tutors are here to help students strengthen their research, problem-solving, time-management and other study skills. Their focus is to support students in becoming independent learners and thinkers.
If you are not sure where your students need to go, you can always ask Katie and she will help you find out.
Contact with Katie
Katie Blow can be found in W2|16 in the West Building.
To book an appointment to see Katie or for any enquiries please email or call.
Email: sapp.student.support@hud.ac.uk
Website: https://www.hud.ac.uk/sas/studentsupport/guidance/
Location: W2|16 West Building
Phone: 01484 471037
Facebook: facebook.com/huddersfieldscience
Twitter: @HudSAS