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College Teaching and Learning
College provides each student with a Director of Studies (DoS) who is
responsible for steering and facilitating their learning. All DoSs are
experts in the subject whose studies they direct; a great many are also
world-class research academics. In Churchill most DoSs are Fellows (academic
staff members) of the College. DoSs meet their students at the beginning and
end of each term to provide them with formal advice and guidance, but they
are available throughout a student's undergraduate career if particular
issues crop up that need attention or action. Our DoSs are notably
pro-active and immensely committed to their students' academic development
and well-being.
The principal job of our DoSs is to arrange student supervisions —
the weekly, small-group, sometimes one-to-one tuition that it unique to
Cambridge and characterises its teaching and learning. For most students
supervisions are immensely rewarding. They allow us to challenge and
stretch you, and allow you the opportunity to develop your understanding and
pursue the questions in which you are especially interested. The consequence
is that your learning is broadened, deepened and made even more stimulating
and enjoyable. At Churchill we pay above the standard rate to many of our
supervisors in order to obtain the very best supervision for our students.
Student teaching and learning questionnaires allow us closely to monitor the
effectiveness of tuition. This effort is rewarded by the outstanding
examination results our students achieve.
Churchill also provides you with practical tools to enable your learning.
The most important of these is probably the College Library, which is large
and comfortable, open 24 hours a day throughout the year and which has
good holdings in all subjects. The Library offers a number of different rooms
and seating/studying options, but we also make seminar rooms available to
students who wish to study privately in groups. Information Technology is
increasingly central to education in Cambridge. Churchill was one of the
first Colleges to invest heavily in this and our computing provision and
staff are both excellent. We also provide specialist English language and
writing support for students whose note-taking and essay-writing skills
need to be improved.
Subject-related socialising and the building of esprit de corps are
important to academic development. In Churchill many subjects run academic
student societies in which outside speakers give talks or students make
presentations on their work. Sessions are often linked to subject formals in
Hall and each year whole-College subject dinners allow the Master, Senior
Tutor, Fellows, graduate students and undergraduates to get together and
talk in a less academic setting.