Dr Aideen McParland, Head of Level 1, welcomes our new cohort of Undergraduates.

Congratulations on securing a place on BSc Psychology at Queen's.  We look forward to meeting you and working with you over the next three years.  We wish you every success in your journey with us in the School of Psychology.

If you have not already done so, you should follow the enrolment and registration process within the University.  You will have received a communication about how to do this.

Next week (week 1 beginning 21^st September) there will be four induction sessions, which you must attend. These induction sessions will introduce you to tutorials, labs, modules and key School staff and procedures.  Your personalised timetable for semester 1 is now available on QSIS. Each session in week 1 on the timetable corresponds to three of the four induction sessions – tutorials, labs and modules. The remaining induction session – key staff and procedures – will take place in the Ashby / David Keir Building (ASH/DKB) Marquee, which will be located behind the DKB.  You will have been advised separately of your assigned induction session time via email. Please note that the PSY1009 online lecture, begins in week 2 and, therefore, will NOT be running next week in week 1. 

This year, the BSc programme will follow a connected learning approach, where there will be online and on campus teaching. Recorded lectures will be made available online for each module. For most modules there will also be a weekly in-person seminar provided on campus at the time and place indicated on your timetable.  

For these seminars, students in the programme will be divided into three groups. Your seminar will take place on either Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday morning 9am-11am. Your timetable will tell you which day your seminar will take place. 

Inability to be on campus for the start of teaching: Students who are not able to arrive with us in Belfast for the start of semester due to travel restrictions or who are still in a period of mandatory quarantine following arrival will be able to access teaching materials online. Please inform the School in advance if this applies to you so that appropriate plans can be put in place and you are adequately supported to begin your studies. Other than in these circumstances regarding quarantine/travel restrictions, if you are unable to be on campus for the start of teaching then you must contact the School to discuss your situation. We will be as supportive and accommodating as possible, but you must contact us so that we can better understand your specific individual circumstances. Please contact us by email at psychology@qub.ac.uk. 

Tutorials: Your timetable also tells you about your tutorial group allocation. Tutorial groups are groups of 10 students that meet with their tutor weekly and work together to develop their academic skills (e.g. writing skills) or to complete a group project.  Note that, due to the Covid-19 situation, some tutorial groups will have most of their meetings online whilst others will meet face to face. However, unless your tutor informs you that your tutorial is scheduled online from week 1, you should turn up at the timetabled time and location for your first tutorial. At this tutorial, your tutor will discuss with you whether they intend to hold their tutorials online or in person. 

We hope this provides some clarification about your timetable, although it is important to note that changes to the timetable are always a possibility given the ongoing changes that are being made throughout the country in response to the COVID-19 situation.

This handbook is designed to help our students orientate themselves to their studies and contains important information about the University and the School.‌

Download the Student Handbook.

I am Dr Agnieszka Jaroslawska, the academic coordinator of the Peer Mentoring Scheme at the School of Psychology. It is my pleasure to welcome you to Queen’s University Belfast. We are delighted that you have decided to pursue your degree with us, and we hope that you will enjoy your time in the School.

Starting university can be an overwhelming experience. From learning simpler things like finding your way around, to discovering ways to balance coursework and figuring out which student organizations or experiences to be a part of. It is a lot to learn, plan, and keep track of.

To alleviate much of the confusion when transitioning to university, the Peer Mentoring Scheme at the School of Psychology aims to help you adjust to the university environment and make connections on campus. The scheme offers the benefits of making new friends in a small group setting and across year groups. Importantly, it is informal, friendly, and hopefully fun as well.

A peer mentor is someone who is trained to be a mentor to you. They are there to listen when you need to talk, and to answer any questions you have about your course in general or university life. Peer mentors can spend up to an hour per week in contact with you. This varies from person to person; you may find you need less contact at some times and your mentor will understand that. Each mentoring relationship is different.

If you want to know more about mentoring skills, you could apply to become a peer mentor for the next academic year.

I wish you every success with your course and if, as academic coordinator of the Peer Mentoring Scheme, I can help you in any way please contact me.

Good luck!

Dr Agnieszka Jaroslawska

Academic Coordinator of the Peer Mentoring Scheme

Connect with Dr Jaroslawska.