Teachers' and Advisers' Conference

Teachers' and Advisers' Conference

Wednesday 3 July 2024

Whether you are a specialist subject teacher or HE adviser, this one-day conference will support your professional development, helping you provide more informed advice and guidance to your students. We will have streams of subject-focused activity throughout the day, so you can mix and match sessions to support your own interests and development needs. You’ll have the chance to network with your peers, share best practice and talk to current students to find out what it’s really like to study at a world-leading Russell Group university.

At the event, you can:

• engage with world-leading experts in your field and discover how our courses can lead to excellent career opportunities for your students
• discuss the latest thinking in curriculum development and teaching approaches with our education experts and your peers
• see some of our state-of-the-art facilities
• fine tune your skills to support your students as they navigate the transition into Higher Education

We have now finalised the details of this year’s event, and are delighted to offer a variety of engaging and interactive sessions including flight simulators in the Engineering session, lab tours in the Biological Sciences session, video otoscopy in the Health Sciences session and practical sessions on developing excellent art portfolios. Please find programme information and session descriptions below for information.

We are delighted to be able to offer complimentary overnight accommodation and an evening meal to those who may have further to travel*and will reimburse travel expenses for up to £100 per delegate**.

*limited places available, please book early to avoid disappointment

**receipts required

Details of sessions:

Keynote: The Student Room

Navigating the maze: Community insights into university decision-making

The Student Room shares a snapshot of the conversations young people are having on their platform, providing a glimpse into the thoughts, worries, and experiences of students as they approach the end of another academic year. Additionally, they'll explore the role of influencers - peers, teachers, and parents - in shaping students' university decisions.

Session 1: 10.50am

Details of sessions:

Demystifying Humanities:

In the Humanities session, we will consider the latest trends in scholarship and their implications for Key Stages 4 and 5 curriculums, the ever-expanding range of ways to access primary sources and teaching resources and discuss the step up from school or college to university and how all can work together to facilitate this transition.

Winchester School of Art:

Visit our Winchester School of Art campus to explore our research led curriculum, with a focus on our response to current global challenges. You’ll take part in practical sessions across our department of Art, Media and Technology that will help your students develop their portfolios. Learn about the employability focus of the school and hear some of our success stories.

Engineering:

Explore our cutting-edge engineering facilities, including world leading wind tunnels, civil engineering labs, flight simulator (have a go!), and our design focused teaching. You’ll hear from our world-leading experts on the very latest developments in research and teaching in your field.

Biological Sciences:

In the School of Biological Sciences we’re tackling some of the world’s greatest life science challenges from food security to the treatment and prevention of disease and thwarting the impacts of climate change. Our research-led educational programmes inspire the next generation of biological scientists.

During your visit there will be an opportunity to understand how programmes of biomedical sciences, neuroscience, pharmacology, zoology and general biology are shaped and differ, and the jobs associated with these choices. We will offer (limited) opportunities to hear about plants in the greenhouses, evolution with local experts including Neil Gostling, and how degrees are evolving to fit changing research landscapes and recruitment climates. But mostly we want to show how biology can be for all.

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Session 2: 1.45pm

Details of sessions:

Winchester School of Art:

Visit our Winchester School of Art campus to explore our research led curriculum, with a focus on our response to current global challenges. You’ll take part in practical sessions across our departments of Design, that will help your students develop their portfolios. Learn about the employability focus of the school and hear some of our success stories.

Health Sciences:

Lots of students are interested in a career in healthcare but are unfamiliar with the broad range of courses available to them, all of which lead to fascinating and fulfilling careers. This session will give you the opportunity to explore some of the incredible options on offer at Southampton so that you are better equipped to guide those students!

Audiology:

Hearing loss, deafness, tinnitus and balance problems are major health issues and have an impact on quality of life. Our students learn the clinical and professional skills you need to become an audiology healthcare professional, managing these conditions and supporting patients while developing academic, professional and employability skills. We are the only UK university with in-house audiology and auditory implant clinics. In this session, Academics and Student Ambassadors will demonstrate video otoscopy which allows examination of your ear drum while you watch on a screen.

Cardiac Physiology:

Cardiac Physiology (Healthcare Science) is a challenging but rewarding field that focuses on the detection and assessment of heart disease in patients in a wide range of settings, working at the very forefront of technological advances aiding the diagnosis and treatment of cardiac conditions. Find out more about this fantastic career and opportunity for your students in this session!

Occupational Therapy:

Every day we engage in multiple activities that are an essential or chosen part of our lives, for example getting dressed, preparing a meal, looking after a per, meeting a friend, going to work/school, playing a sport, crocheting, gaming.

For most of us we do these activities as a typical part of our day and they are an important part of what makes us who we are. It is not until we are not able to do one or more of these activities that matter to us, due to an illness or injury, that we realise:

a) the importance of the body and mind to help us do everything we want and need to do.

b) how the places and people we choose or need to do these activities with effect how we can do them.

Occupational therapists are life changers who problem solve with their patients to find creative ways to overcome the barriers preventing them from doing all the activities they want and need to do.

Come and find out how we do this and the exciting range of places and people we work with and alongside to help patients not just survive but thrive and live life their way, doing what matters to them.

Midwifery – ‘with woman’:

Midwifery is the health science and profession dedicated to pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. This profession enables you to be an advocate and gain a rewarding career with various career pathways and specialist roles. Midwifery is for individuals passionate in providing skilled, knowledgeable, compassionate non-judgemental care for women, newborns and their families.

For this Teachers’ and Advisors’ conference we will demonstrate the initial examination of the newborn. We will use a neonatal mannikin and the equipment required to perform this. Student ambassadors will also be present to share their experience both with their academic studies and clinical placement.

Podiatry:

Feet - We all have them, but we tend not to think too much about them until something goes wrong! How much do your feet and legs matter to your health? The ability to remain mobile and pain free has major implications to independence and quality of life. Perhaps your students would benefit from a stable career in these uncertainty times? Great pay, 96% employment rate for Southampton graduates and no shift working, Opportunities in the Public and Private sector. Maybe your students have been to see a podiatrist for treatment of an in-growing toenail or heel pain? Our BSc Podiatry will provide your students a ‘ticket-to-ride’ to the varied and fascinating career of podiatric medicine. Find out more about this exciting healthcare profession!

Find out more about Audiology, Cardiac Physiology, Midwifery, Nursing, Occupational Therapy, Physiotherapy and Podiatry from our world leading academics and current students throughout this session.

Maths, Physics and Business:

Business: Our research-led teaching and connection with the industry is the key for our success. The passion of our staff to provide a great learning experience for our students have given us a strong reputation in the fields of Accounting, Business Management, Marketing and Financial Technology. With all our teaching activities and facilities, we prepare our students to build a successful career.

Physics: Our facilities, key partnerships in industry, and research community have given us a strong reputation in the fields of astronomy, quantum, light and matter, and theoretical particle physics. We are dedicated to high quality teaching and have invested heavily in our research groups and equipment to maintain our status as one of the best places in the world to work in the fields of physics and astronomy.

Maths: Our research, ranges from the optimum delivery of healthcare, to the stability of electricity networks. Our academics are working at the forefront of their fields, and this is reflected in the quality of our teaching. With more than 60 active research and training links with industry, we give our students the opportunity to specialise in areas of direct interest to future employers.

Careers to change the planet - Geoscience:

Are your students studying A-level sciences and want a career that will help to tackle our planets greatest environmental challenges? Geoscience is the study of the whole earth system – the land, the oceans, the atmosphere, the interior and how these are all inter-connected.

Geoscientists study the past, the present and the future of our planet and other planets in our solar system. Geoscientists find solutions to current and future challenges faced by us and our planet. This includes developing sustainable energy solutions, understanding and tackling climate change, and protecting populations from natural hazards. In this session we’ll delve into what geoscience is, how are all the sciences (e.g. physics, chemistry, biology, maths, geography and geology) used to study the Earth’s system and solve environmental challenges. We’ll look at careers in geoscience and how your students can become skilled for the future jobs market. We’ll get the perspective of current students and alumni on what it is like to study geosciences (Geology, Environmental Geoscience) at university. You’ll have the opportunity to get your questions answered by lecturers, students and alumni.

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Mini exhibition: 12.30pm

There will be the opportunity to network with some of our students and meet representatives from our faculties and student support services including the following;

• Student Loans Company*
• Ignite your Journey
• Learn with US Transition Programme (EPQ)
• Global Mobility
• Residences
• Student Wellbeing

*Take the opportunity to meet with Charmaine Valente from the Student Loans Company about the end-to-end student finance journey, from application to repayment, ensuring your students transition to higher education is seamless. You’ll have the opportunity to ask questions on all areas of student finance including eligibility and entitlement, Disabled Student Allowance and hear about the inception of ‘Life Long learning which will come into force in 2025 and also learn about student finance school resources.

You can read below some feedback from our event held in 2023.

“Today’s sessions were absolutely outstanding. Believe me, I’ve been to many of these types of events at other universities and today outperforms all of them by a mile (or more!)…….. I’ve never had study opportunities explained the way you did today - the format was so well balanced to ensure we got enough of everything we need.”

(Matt Coffey, Assistant Head of Sixth Form, The FitzWimarc School, Essex)

“Too many highlights to list here! Top of them would be the passion and engagement of the staff and students who presented and spent time with us - outstanding assets that sold the University and the course a thousand times more than any prospectus or tour alone could. The level of information presented, and examples of research and practical application, career outcomes information, pastoral and accommodation support, the list goes on. This was without a doubt the best education information/engagement event i have attended in nearly 17 years in education - exceptional! “

(Anon)