FAQs about the next academic year
Frequently asked questions regarding the format of the academic year 2020/2021 for WMG full-time Master's students
Last updated: 24th September 2020
Dedicating a year to your Master's studies is a big commitment and one which may well be causing you and your family some concern in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. In WMG, we want to reassure you that we will be providing the best learning experience possible, ensuring your safety, and supporting you to fulfil your conditions without undue stress.
We have therefore restructured the autumn term and will be taking a flexible approach to the start of the next academic year.
This page will cover as much detail as possible to make sure you are well informed about our plans for the upcoming year. However if you have not found the information you are looking for, please email wmgmasters@warwick.ac.uk so we can respond to you directly and add it to the FAQs.
As our education team continues to develop provision for the next academic year, further details will be added.
As offer holders, we will also email you with any significant changes.
Enrolment and registration and tuition fees
When will enrolment start?
Once you have an unconditional offer that you have accepted you should be able to enrol. The enrolment process is online You will have been contacted by the enrolment team so please follow the instructions, or if you've not received any information but already have your unconditional offer, please email us for assistance: wmgmasters@warwick.ac.uk
You should enrol by Monday 5th October in order to pursue your course this academic year.
In extenuating circumstances we will be able to accept late enrolment up until 19th October. In case of late enrolment, please complete this Late Enrolment Form in order to let us know.
Will I need my visa before enrolling online?
You will be able to enrol and start online activities regardless of your visa status, but you must have an unconditional offer in order to enrol.
Can I enrol before clearing my conditions?
No, you will need to have cleared your conditions in order to enrol. For students struggling to clear their conditions due to extenuating circumstances, there will be some leeway until the 2nd week of October. If you find yourself in this situation, please let us know so we can look at your case and see if there is anything we can do to help. Alternatively, we may need to defer your entry to next year.
When should I arrive to campus?
If possible, you should aim to arrive at campus for the start of term in October, as there will be some face-to-face academic and social activities scheduled throughout the autumn term, as long as government guidence permits.
If you are not able to arrive at campus in person because of visa delays, travel restrictions, or other issues, you can join us in person, as soon as you are able to travel. All students must be present and physically on campus by Monday 11th January 2021 at the latest.
Warwick holds a Welcome Week from 28th September - 2nd October. The final details of activities for this year's welcome week are being confirmed and will be published on the Welcome Week pages in due course.
Please complete this form to tell us when you will be arriving to campus.
Should I arrive early for two weeks of quarantine before the start of term?
This is your choice - it is not strictly necessary as you will be able to engage virtually for the Warwick Welcome Week (w/c 28th September), and WMG Induction (w/c 5th October). This way, it will therefore be possible for you to have a busy and engaging two weeks during your period of self-isolation.
Please note that if you arrive before 28th September, there will not be any departmental or university activities scheduled. So to save you getting bored, it would be ideal for you to start your self-isolation (quarantine) from the weekend of 26th/27th September.
We have scheduled some face-to-face module engagement from the week commencing 12th October so it would be preferable for you to have completed your period of self-isolation by then if possible.
NB: Not all students will have a face-to-face module starting on 12th October, and if you are unable to arrive by 28th, you will be able to engage fully online during your period of self-isolation.
When will I have to pay my tuition fees?
Tuition fee payment has not changed from previous years. You should pay your fees by the start of term 1 (October 5th). You can pay in full, or if you prefer to set up instalments, the payment scheme will be 50%, 25%, 25% at the start of each term. More information on when to pay is available here
Will the university offer me any assistance in finding a flight to the UK?
Yes. In order to assist students in researching their flight options, The University of Warwick has partnered with Key Travel to provide access to a booking portal which can be accessed via the International Student Arrivals page.
Will the university be arranging airport transfers for when I arrive?
The university will be offering airport transfers from 23rd – 27th September from Birmingham (BHX) and London Heathrow (LHR) airports. They will aim to organise additional transfers if there is significant demand outside of these dates, and have also partnered with National Express to provide discounted coach fares for students travelling from UK airports to Coventry. To book, register your interest and for further information on airport travel options, please visit the International Student Arrivals page.
Visas
When will the CAS process start?
When you have accepted your unconditional offer, and paid your deposit (or confirmed sponsorship), you will receive your CAS email. You'll need to confirm the information we hold for you is correct, and your CAS will then be created. Please note this may take up to 10 days. Please complete this form if you are eligible for a deposit exemption.
For detailed information on your CAS and applying for your visa, please refer to the university's immigration pages which are very comprehensive: https://warwick.ac.uk/study/international/immigration
Can I get a CAS before I clear my conditions?
You will have to clear all your conditions, accept your unconditional offer, and pay your deposit, before we can issue a CAS.
Students taking the online Pre-sessional English course will be able to request a CAS for their main course once they have met all conditions of their main course offer. The CAS will be sent once students have completed the first 2 weeks of the Pre-sessional English course with satisfactory progress and attendance.
When should I apply for my visa if I am planning to join the course online for the autumn term?
You can apply for your visa now, as your course will still be starting on 5th October, even if you are not physically going to arrive until later in the autumn term. You will need to enter the country before your latest start date which is listed as 11th January 2020.
The immigration team strongly recommend you to apply for your visa before 1st October if at all possible. This is because we are anticipating a major immigration rule change in October. These changes include an increase to the Immigration Health Surcharge and the termination of the Tier 4 Pilot Scheme, so in order for the changes not to affect you, you should apply for your visa before 1st October. You can read our immigration FAQs here.
Induction and the Autumn Term
What will we be doing during induction?
Our induction team are putting together a wealth of activities under the key areas of socialisation, well-being, and academic preparation. Induction focuses on bringing you into the WMG community, connecting you with the academic teams, your personal tutor and your peers, and preparing you for your Masters studies. It will be available online for all students, and where possible, with complementary face-to-face sessions for students already on campus.
What will we be doing in the Autumn term after induction?
Throughout the Autumn term we will be dedicating a significant amount of time and resource to Study, Professional and Analytical Skills (SPA) learning to provide you with a solid foundation for your Master’s study. This is delivered online.
As the autumn term progresses most students will then focus on their individual research project (dissertation). We will provide extensive guidance and tools for you to engage with your chosen subject, select your project, and connect with your academic supervisor.
A foundational module for each Master's course will be delivered predominantly online (some may be blended for students already on campus). For most courses, this will be one of your core assessed modules. Specific details on the foundational module will be communicated within the next few weeks by your Course Leader.
Will I be able to engage with the autumn term online activities before I have my visa?
Yes, you will be able to enrol and fully participate in all activities remotely if you are still waiting for your visa.
When will I get my timetable and choose my elective modules?
Your timetable for term 1 will be provided after you have completed your induction. Your timetable for term 2 will then be shared with you later in the autumn, when (where applicable) you will also have the opportunity to book your elective modules. For further information, please visit the Welcome page.
What if I have not yet been able to clear my conditions - can I still enrol?
You will need to have an unconditional offer in order to enrol.
If I’m on campus, can I do some course modules or will it all be study skills and project work?
For most courses, there will be at least a foundation module and assessment during the autumn term. For students on campus, depending on your course, it may be possible to do a second module.
Will I be disadvantaged if I don’t come to campus in October?
If you are unable to arrive to campus until later in the Autumn term, or even the start of January, we will be providing a full programme of virtual learning and engagement. This does not mean your MSc is now an online course. As soon as you are able to arrive to campus, you will benefit from blended learning, as long as conditions allow.
What do you mean by blended learning?
Blended learning is a combination of independent online learning and small group face-to-face sessions that are interactive and provide a more flexible and personal learning experience for you. We will be blending online and virtual learning with seminars, workshops, and simulations as we always have in WMG, whilst rigorously observing social distancing practices as guided by the UK government and Public Health England. See below for more detail.
Course modules – blended delivery
How will I be taught?
Modules in WMG are always delivered through a variety of learning activities: lectures, seminar work, syndicate group activities, industrial games, simulations, exercises and case studies to encourage teamwork and practical grounding of the material. All of these activities can be effectively delivered via online e-learning tools if necessary.
For this coming academic year, to cater for students unable to arrive in person by October 2020, we aim to deliver some online module teaching during the autumn term. However, the majority of the blended module teaching will start in January 2021 and continue through to July or August.
Patterns are likely to vary by module, but all modules from January are expected to have some interactive and face to face sessions. Online learning will normally be a mix of live, real time sessions, alongside some independent learning and pre-recorded material.
Where health and safety allows it, we will aim for small group activities (seminars, workshops and tutorials) to take place face-to-face. Workstreams are currently modelling how to make maximum use of available classroom space, given potential social distancing restrictions, as well as how to manage campus spaces, where students might have face-to-face and online classes in the same day. Considerable work is taking place to ensure the campus is safe and clean.
There may be periods where teaching activities will need to flip from blended to fully online – should there be a second spike in infection of Covid-19 and/or localised temporary lockdowns. However, we expect a relatively seamless transition between different modes of delivery should the need arise.
Can I do my whole academic year online from home?
This is not an online MSc course, so you will need to come to campus to participate and engage face-to-face with tutors and classmates, even if this is in January rather than during Term 1.
Will I need my own laptop and what is the minimum specification I will need for my course?
Yes, all students will need their own lap top device.
Please see this page for general hardware and software requirements, and additional course specific requirements where necessary.
Dissertation
When will I submit my dissertation?
The dissertation is normally submitted in late August. As course modules are likely to run until July or August this year, the dissertation deadline will be set slightly later in September.
Most students will have additional focus on their dissertation during the Autumn term, so we envisage that you will complete certain stages of your dissertation earlier than usual. This means that work on your dissertation will be relatively advanced by the time your module load increases.
If your specific circumstances mean that you have not been able to use the Autumn term to advance your dissertation, we will be looking into the possibility of extending your registration period and dissertation hand-in date to November. This will impact on graduation, so is being reviewed very carefully. More details will be provided in the communications from course leaders regarding the specific plans for each course.
Graduation
When will graduation take place?
The intention is for graduation to take place as usual in January (2022).
If a student needs to extend their period of registration due to individual circumstances, this will delay their graduation to July 2022. Any such situations will be handled on a case by case basis and should be discussed from the outset with your personal tutor, dissertation supervisor, and the appropriate administrative team.
Accommodation
When should I apply for accommodation?
The University Accommodation Office manages accommodation for all Warwick students, both on and off campus. Please submit your application via the form on the Accommodation Office page before the deadline of 31st July. If you have not applied for accommodation before this date, there is no guarantee that the university accommodation office will be able to provide accommodation, however please contact them directly as they will provide any support they can: accommodation@warwick.ac.uk
Will I get accommodation if I don’t arrive until November or even January?
The university accommodation office will provide as much support as possible to students joining later in the Autumn term or at the start of January. Rooms cannot be reserved for later in the year though, so you would either have to book and pay for your accommodation, or arrange it for when you arrive. In the latter case, this is more likely to be through our network of private landlords than campus based or partner accommodation blocks as they will most likely be full by October.
Health and safety
The university Health and Safety teams are working hard to ensure a safe and secure learning and study environment on campus. We are working within government guidelines, currently to a 2 metre model for social distancing purposes.
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