Staff Contacts | Diary Dates | Induction Day
Course Structures | Module Codes | Choosing Modules | Practicals | Assessment
MChem students: progression | BSc students: careers or further study | FAQs
What to do if you have to miss classes or an exam | ... you are having difficulties
It may be useful to be aware of the members of staff with specific responsibilities for Year 3 MChem students and Final Year BSc students. There is a more complete list of Staff on the Departmental Website (http://www.liv.ac.uk/Chemistry/).
Dr David L. Cooper (extn. 43532, dlc@liverpool.ac.uk, Room M06 Donnan Labs) is Coordinator for all Year 3 and Year 4 students on BSc and MChem programmes. He is responsible for checking on work and progress, and is available for day to day advice if you are having any problems with the course.
Dr Dave Adams (extn. 43534, D.J.Adams@liverpool.ac.uk, Room 139 Donnan Labs) coordinates the placements of Year 3 FZ61 and FZ11 students who are out in industry.
Dr Ian O'Neil (extn. 43485, chemexam@liverpool.ac.uk, Room 240 Robert Robinson Labs) deals with Examinations. You should consult him if you want further information about the examination procedures.
Dr Nick Greeves (extn. 43506, ngreeves@liverpool.ac.uk, Room 402 Robert Robinson Labs) is the Director of Teaching.
Phil Harrison (extn. 44656, phil.harrison@liv.ac.uk, Careers Resource Centre) is the Careers Adviser in the Careers Service with responsibility for Chemistry students.
Term & Semester dates are listed here.
Friday, 20 September 2013: Induction Day.
Monday, 23 September 2013: Start of First Semester.
Vacation (14 December 2013 – 5 January 2014): Revision for First Semester examinations.
Revision Week (6 January 2014 – 10 January 2014)
13 January 2014: First Semester examinations begin.
24 January 2014: First Semester examinations end.
24 January 2014: End of First Semester.
27 January 2014: Start of Second Semester.
Vacation (5 April 2014 – 27 April 2014): Revision for second Semester examinations.
28 April 2014: Courses continue.
Revision Week (12 May 2014 – 16 May 2014)
19 May 2014: Second Semester examinations begin.
30 May 2014: Second Semester examinations end.
30 May 2014: End of Second Semester.
17 June 2014: Module Review Board.
24 June 2014: Final Board of Examiners (& Progression Board).
Graduation ceremonies July 2014.
The 1st Semester practicals are done in four-week blocks. Significant mark deductions are applied for missed deadlines. The various teaching laboratories will be open Wednesday afternoon (2pm-5pm), Thursday (10am-1pm and 2pm-5pm), and Friday (10am-1pm and 2pm-5pm). F102 and F1F3 MChem students (CHEM375) do all of Inorganic, Organic and Physical plus "database skills". FZBF MChem students (CHEM355) must do Organic, but choose between Inorganic and Physical. Final Year BSc students (CHEM365) are invited to choose two from Inorganic, Organic and Physical but, in order to avoid overcrowding in particular labs, especially those Year 3 BSc students with lower Year 2 marks might not get a free choice. Some Combined Honours students take CHEM395, which consists of one branch of practical Chemistry plus "database skills".
The choice of 2nd Semester practical depends to some extent on the choices made in the 1st Semester. Decisions for the 2nd Semester will be made a few weeks before Christmas. MChem students are likely to be offered a placement with a research group. Final year BSc students pick one branch of practical Chemistry and then usually work in a teaching laboratory which will normally be open on Thursdays and Fridays; some alternatives are available, including computational and schools-related projects. Note that FZBF and FZB2 students are not necessarily restricted to Organic Chemistry.
[See separate documents in VITAL for full details of Assessment Criteria, including important information on Plagiarism and Collusion and on the Departmental Policy on Feedback to Students.]
Written examinations are held at the end of each Semester. Past exam papers are available. Lecturers may also be able to supply practice questions for you to attempt.
After all the written papers have been marked, the external examiners will come to the Department in June and, together with the staff, assess the scripts from the examinations in both Semesters. Further information about various aspects of the assessment will be given during the year; you can also consult Dr Ian O'Neil (extn. 43485, chemexam@liverpool.ac.uk).
The pass mark for each module is 40% (except in the case of M level modules). There is no "35% rule". The pass mark for M level modules is 50%.
THERE ARE NO AUGUST/SEPTEMBER RESIT EXAMINATIONS FOR YEAR 3 AND YEAR 4 STUDENTS
The Year 3 MChem programmes are meant to be more challenging than the corresponding BSc programmes and are aimed primarily at students who expect to perform at the 2.1 level (and above). Except in the case of students on industrial placements, any Year 3 MChem students who do not continue into Year 4, either by choice or because they do not satisfy the requirements, will automatically be considered for the award of a BSc degree. The main requirements for progression into Year 4 are to achieve an overall average of 55% (at the first attempt) and to pass modules worth at least 90 credits.
The CHEM380 module covers various important employability skills, and includes sessions on producing a good CV, making job applications, and preparing for interviews. Even if you do not intend to start looking for employment until after you have graduated, you could do well to seek additional advice now from the Careers Service.
The Department also offers opportunities for a wide range of postgraduate work at both Masters and Doctoral level, but has moved to a system in which only students with a Masters degree are usually admitted to the PhD programme. In order to be in a position to compete with well-qualified applicants (e.g. ones having Masters degrees) from other universities, BSc students may wish to consider various one-year taught masters courses (MSc and MRes) that are offered at the University. More detailed information about such postgraduate opportunities will be provided during the Year.
MAKE PLANS FOR YOUR FUTURE EARLY AND DO NOT IGNORE INTERVIEW OPPORTUNITIES, EVEN IF YOU ARE CONSIDERING STAYING ON FOR POSTGRADUATE WORK
You are expected to attend all lectures in the modules for which you are registered, to do all of the relevant set work on time, to attend tutorials and oral presentations, and to attend regularly in the laboratory. If you are unable to do any of these because of illness or for other reasons you must follow official Absence Guidelines. Make sure you obtain a medical certificate from your GP or the hospital, as appropriate. The University's procedures on "Mitigating Circumstances in Relation to Performance in Assessments and Examinations" (and the corresponding Application Form) are available elsewhere. In particular, there should be copies of the forms outside the Undergraduate Office. If, for just cause, you miss a deadline for submitting some of your work then you should talk to the relevant module leader about the possibility of late submission.
Any student who misses an examination or part of an examination due to illness or other exceptional circumstances, or whose performance was impaired by illness or other exceptional circumstances, should make relevant information available immediately to Dr Ian O'Neil (extn. 43485, chemexam@liverpool.ac.uk). The University's procedures on "Mitigating Circumstances in Relation to Performance in Assessments and Examinations" (and the corresponding Application Form) are available elsewhere. Students must report any such circumstances no later than one week before the meeting of the Board of Examiners at which the results of the assessments concerned will be considered.
If you feel that you are not coping with any part of the year's work, you should discuss the matter as soon as possible first with the Module Leader and/or with the Year 3 Coordinator.