Graduate and MMath Students form an essential and respected part of the undergraduate teaching force at Warwick. Our students are of the highest calibre: most have 3 or 4 A’s at A-level and STEP. They expect and deserve good teaching. They also need the support and encouragement of people who vividly remember how challenging undergraduate mathematics can be.

What do supervisors do?

Supervisors meet groups of 4 or 5 students once or twice a week to answer questions, discuss assignment problems, and stimulate participation and debate. You will typically be asked to mark three assignments per student per week. This must be done responsibly and promptly, as in most subjects assessed work is worth 15% of the final mark. At the end of each term you will be expected to complete a student report form on each of your students.

Whom will I teach?

First year Maths students are in groups of 5 and given 2 supervisions a week for nine weeks in the first two terms and one supervision a week for five weeks in the third term, external students are in groups of 4 get 1 supervision a week for nine weeks in terms one and two only. If you have maths students you will be given the option not to supervise in the third term at a later date.Second year maths students get 8 supervisions in term one, and are given the option to recieve another 6 in term 2. There are Support Classes for all years (but not all modules), generally the larger support classes are for the second years, but there is little marking (work is marked by Supervisors), third and fourth year modules generally have smaller classes but some marking.

What will I teach?

Supervisors teach first year students who take courses in Foundations, Analysis, Linear Algebra, Differential Equations, Geometry and Motion. Some revision supervisions, or supervisions for students who need extra help, may be arranged at the discretion of the Supervisions Coordinator (currently the Director of Undergraduate Studies). You may be asked to help with Probability A and B by your supervisees, but you would be under no obligation to do so and should concentrate on the core maths modules first.

How much will I teach?

For supervisions there is a menu on the form for you to specify your preferred number of (contact) hours a week, you should remember that there is marking on top of this. As a rough guide for the one contact hour of supervisions you are essentially paid for 2.5 hours work (preparation, contact, marking). If given a support class you are most likely to have one support class a week for a module (if you give 2 then you are paid double), but you should factor in preparation time, and time for marking if there is any (you get paid extra if there is marking). The marking rates are copied below, there is an increasing scale depending on whether there is marking and how much marking you would be expected to do.

How do I know how to teach?

There is a compulsory training session for new supervisors during their first week of term to go through the basics (both the logistics of giving supervisions and guidance on teaching), and the following week there is a session specifically for TAs to learn how they should be running support classes, this session is compulsory for postgrads who intend on doing more than 30 hours teaching during the year, but even if you don't intend to do this much you should make every effort to attend (it also looks good on your CV!).

What’s in it for me?

• The supervision rate for 2018/19 is £35.48 per contact hour (this covers an hour contact and hour and a half marking/prep at £14.19 per hour).

• Support Class rates depend on class size and marking. The basic rate when there is no marking works out at (2018/19 rate) £32.86 per contact hour (one contact hour, one prep hour). Marking rate then depends on the number of students registered on the module when registrations close at the end of the third week, with an increasing scale in blocks of 15 students. An old detailed breakdown of rates can be found here (to be revised for 2019/20).

• You gain teaching experience and some valuable lines on your CV.

• You have the satisfaction of helping others learn a subject you love.

• You learn while you teach – not just about teaching, but about mathematics too.

Continue to the form