GetSmarter is a high-touch online education company that works together with top universities and industry experts. See our course portfolio.
As a GetSmarter student, you complete your course entirely online. This means that you can study with us from the comfort of your home or office without the need to travel. Once your course begins, your Course Convener and Course Coordinator assist you every step of the way to completing your studies. We offer a high-touch online learning service, which makes us very different from any other distance learning institution. We have a team of 50 people who work together with a network of 15+ teachers to make sure you get the most out of your studies with us.
How does learning online work in practice?
A typical online course runs for 10 weeks and includes over 120 students from around the country. Each course is broken down into 1-week modules that start every Monday. During each module, you receive pro-active assistance, in the form of email, SMS and telephone communication, from your Course Coordinator to ensure that you complete your learning activities on time. Each weekly module includes:
Each of these learning activities is included in each weekly module, and they are described in more detail below:
1. Accessing the GetSmarter Learning website
Every student has access, via a unique username and password, to our learning website. You can see a typical module layout in the image below:
2. Course notes
Every module includes a set of course notes, which are usually 20 to 40 pages in length. You can see a typical page out of a module's course notes in the image below:
3. Video lectures
Video lectures cover similar material to that which is found in your course notes. They allow our Conveners to focus on more complex material and provide a more engaging learning experience for our students.
4. Practice quizzes
Each module includes a practice quiz that allows students to assess themselves in a practice environment. This type of quiz is self-marking and gives students an indication of whether or not they have a good grasp of the module's material. For each question answered, students receive rich feedback on why their answer is correct or not and therefore the self-assessment quiz is seen as part of the learning process. The image below shows a typical practice quiz:
5. Discussion forum
Each module includes a discussion forum that allows you to interact with your Course Convener and fellow students. It allows you to ask questions and participate in relevant discussions. The forum also allows you to build professional networks and to socialise. Some of our courses have upwards of 6,000 discussion forum postings in a 10-week period. An immense amount of social learning takes place on our online short courses, and with direct access to your Convener, you are always assured of getting authoritative answers to your questions.
6. Extra Reading material
Each module includes further reading and references to allow you to explore the subject content a little more widely. This material is not examinable, but is a great way to extra value out of your studies.
7. Module assignment
In order to receive maximum value from your learning experience, we include an assessment for each module that tests whether you have achieved the specific learning outcomes of that module. Each module's assignment is due on the same day that the next module is made available to you. We focus on practical outcomes as far as is possible. As a student you receive your marked assignment together with rich feedback from your Course Convener on your performance in that assignment.
Continuous guidance and support
During the course presentation, you will receive continuous academic support from the Course Convener on the discussion forum, and administrative support from the Course Coordinator by email and telephone.
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