Student Learning Development

For students resitting exams

Questions about exam results or whether you need to resit? Please contact your adviser of studies; you can find their details on your student portal.

Challenges

Students often tell us they find the following things challenging when preparing for resits:  

• Feeling isolated: It can be harder to study without your peers around. Studying with others can help you stay motivated and on track, but many students find this more difficult over the summer.  

• Negative feelings about resits: It’s natural to feel disappointed or disheartened, but remember: making a second attempt doesn’t define your ability or potential, it’s just one step in your learning journey.  

• Uncertainty about who to ask for help: You might feel unsure where to turn now that some staff and services have reduced availability.  

• Uncertainty about how to revise: If revision didn’t go well the first time, you may feel stuck on how to improve, but support is available to help you move forward with confidence.  

 How we can help 

• Revision workshops: Open to all students, our friendly workshops offer a space to learn and apply practical revision strategies alongside others taking summer exams  - dates coming soon!
  
  
• Maths one-to-one appointments: these are available online or in-person, and are for any student who needs to do calculations or maths in their studies (apart from Honours and PGT students in the School of Maths & Stats who are advised to seek help from their own school)
  
  
• One-to-one online appointments with your College’s Effective Learning Adviser for tailored advice on how to plan and revise effectively. 
  
  
• Our online resources are available anytime to guide your revision and study strategies:
  
  
  • MVLS/CoSE Assessment & Academic Development Moodle - advice on exam prep, avoiding procrastination, and using feedback
  • CoSS/CoAH Academic Development Moodle - sections on Independent study (including time management) and Reflecting & revising for assessment are particularly relevant. 
    
    
• Wellbeing support is available through the Counselling and Wellbeing Service: looking after your mental health is a key part of preparing for exams  
  
  
• Contact your College and/or School for information about subject-specific help 

Getting ready for next year  

If this year’s assessments didn’t go as you’d hoped, it can really help to take some time to think about how you want to approach next year’s courses and how you can navigate any potential challenges. We recommend:  

• Planning to ask for help early if needed with both academic and personal challenges. Ensure you have contact details for:
    
  • Your College’s Student Support Officers  
  • Your Adviser of Studies  
  • Your subject teaching staff  
  • Student Learning Development  
  • The Counselling and Wellbeing Service  
  • The Disability Service   

• Familiarising yourself with your course: check the course outline, intended learning outcomes (ILOs), and assessments ahead of time using course handbooks or induction materials. If you’re unsure where to find these, check with teaching staff on your course. 

• Attending classes offered by Student Learning Development: we offer a range of classes and 1:1 appointments to help with academic writing, research and study   

• Seeking help with time management, organisation and procrastination. These can be really challenging: you may find the Counselling and Wellbeing Service’s workshops useful, or make a 1:1 appointment with your College Effective Learning Adviser