The questions and answers below provide guideline information for students in the Department of Government.
Can I select a course which falls outside my degree regulations?
You ordinarily must adhere to the regulations for your degree programme when selecting courses. Taking a course outside of a degree programme requires a ‘suspension of regulations’ and approval from both your Academic Adviser and the Departmental Tutor. Thus, if you are considering requesting a suspension of regulations, please discuss this first with your adviser. If he or she is agreed, you can make a formal application by choosing the ‘request an unlisted course’ button while selecting courses on LSE for You. A tutorial for making a suspension of regulations request can be found here.
Changing a foundation or core course requirement is not normally possible. By contrast, it is sometimes possible to substitute option courses within the same department, e.g. a listed History course for another History course. In deciding whether to approve your request, your adviser and the Deparmental Tutor will consider the educational purpose of the requirement in question and whether your proposed substitution will meet it. It is your responsibility to ensure that the course you request will not create a timetable clash. Any ensuing timetable clash will be subject to a separate approval process as detailed below.
In exceptional circumstances students can be permitted to take courses offered at other University of London colleges. The course must fit with the programme of study and a student must seek approval from their academic adviser, the Departmental Tutor and the course leader for the intercollegiate course. Information can be found on the taking a course outside LSE webpage.
Special information for third year students
If in year 2 you took a module required for the degree on a paper permitting an outside option, the Departmental Tutor will often be able to approve ‘recovering’ the outside option in year 3 via a suspension of regulations (e.g. if you were able to choose three Government courses plus one outside option in year 2 but chose four Government courses instead, the Departmental Tutor might be able to approve an outside option in year 3 for a paper that ordinarily requires a Government module). Please detail the circumstances when requesting a suspension of regulations on LSE for You.
In unusual cases, third-year students may request substitution of a module from other departments at LSE, or at other University of London colleges, for a required Government module. Such requests will be considered on a case-by-case basis, but will be approved only when the student has received permission from the convenor of the relevant course and when the subject matter covered: (a) falls unambiguously within the discipline of political science; (b) is taught at an appropriately advanced level; (c) is radically distinct from that available on modules offered within the Government Department. Please see the Departmental Tutor with any such requests. Only one required course can be so substituted.
Can I change my class group?
Consistent with School rules, the possibility to change class group is an exception and not the rule. A request to change class will normally only be approved for exceptional reasons, such as medical reasons. Students requesting a change of class are required to provide full information and also supporting documentation (e.g. medical certificate). Extenuating circumstances which necessitate a class group change should be discussed with the Academic Adviser. The Academic Adviser can then write to the Departmental Tutor as part of the request to change group.
The School’s Timetables office goes to great length to create balanced groups and workable timetables for everyone and there are costs associated with changes - for instance, it is not feasible to have a situation whereby one class group has 15 students while another has only 8 as it would be unfair to the students in each group and the class teachers. Class sizes are restricted by both minimum and maximum numbers.
Given the complexity of producing mutually consistent timetables for many hundreds of students, requests to change class groups cannot be approved for reasons such as timetable comfort (e.g. a student only has one class on day x so would prefer it to be moved to another day, or if a student lives far away and a 9am class means they need to wake up early, etc.), for personal preferences (e.g. a student’s friends are in group x so they would like to be in that group also), or to facilitate scheduling part-time work.
A request to change class can be made through LSE For You. Please note that class sizes are carefully monitored. For this reason, students must attend classes shown on their personal timetable. If a class change request is made, the student must continue to attend the class to which they were originally allocated until the change is authorised and then processed by the Student Services Centre. A warning email is automatically generated if a student is marked absent from two consecutive classes and absence from classes could lead to a bar on sitting an exam.
See here for more information on class group changes.
Please note that class change requests will not be considered after week 5 of Michaelmas Term.
What happens if I have a timetable clash?
It is possible for students to encounter a timetable clash when they select their courses. If so, they should refer to the advice on the LSE Timetables website which advises changing class group for a class-clash or changing course for a lecture-clash. A timetable clash is never an acceptable excuse for missing a class (except in cases when a teacher reschedules a class unexpectedly and the new class conflicts with an existing class) and should always be resolved.
In exceptional circumstances it may be possible to have a timetable clash approved by the department and students should seek advice from the Departmental Tutor in the first instance. A Timetable clash would never be approved if it meant that a student would not be able to attend over 2/3 of their lectures in each of the clashing courses during the year; in practice this means: if a student has lecture for two courses which conflict every week of the year, even if they attended course 1 on even weeks and course 2 on odd weeks, they would only be able to attend a maximum of 50% of lectures in each course. In that case, the timetable clash would not be approved. If the timetable clash is in Michaelmas Term but not in Lent Term, then the student could effectively attend 15 lectures in each course (5 each in Michaelmas Term and all 10 in each course in Lent Term, totalling 15/20 for each course), in which case authorisation could be considered.
If the timetable clash can be authorised according to the points above, the Departmental Tutor will supply the student with a Timetable Clash form which will need to be completed in full and returned to the Student Services Centre for processing.
Can I transfer degree programme?
The Government Department routinely approves requests to transfer out of the department onto degree programmes of other LSE departments. However, such requests also require approval from the new programme. Students need to complete a Programme Transfer form and obtain the necessary signatures including approval from the new department. It is best to discuss a transfer request with both the Academic Adviser and Departmental Tutor.
Transfers into or within the Department of Government
To preserve the integrity of LSE’s admissions procedures, transfers between programmes in year 1 are ordinarily impossible. The only exception is that it might be possible for joint degree students (BSc Government & Economics; BSc Government & History; BSc Politics and International Relations; BSc Politics and Philosophy) to move to the single BSc Government degree at the beginning of year 1. Transfers between Government degrees in year 2 are exceptional and approved on a case-by-case basis.
Any student interested in transferring to a Government undergraduate programme will normally need to demonstrate that they would have met the original admission criteria for the degree programme they wish to transfer to. They will normally need to have completed all of the first year modules that they would have taken for the proposed new programme. Students will also need to have a spotless record in terms of class attendance and class work; a 2.1 in every first year course with no failed courses; an average of a good 2.1 in the first year.
Any student wishing to transfer to a Government degree should contact the Departmental Tutor as early as possible to establish whether a transfer might be considered. It is not advisable for students to wait until they have their first year exam results before approaching the department about a transfer.
How often do I need to meet with my Academic Adviser?
The main function of the academic adviser is to act as a friendly ‘sounding board’ with whom students can discuss academic and pastoral matters during their time at LSE. Academic advisers can:
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be the first port of call for any of their students with personal or academic problems
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give their students information about course options and progression
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help their students to understand coursework feedback
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be available to discuss students’ examination results when these are published at the end of each session
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write references
All students should meet their Academic Adviser at least once per term, normally in the first two weeks of term, and it is the student's responsibility to contact their adviser to make an appointment. Meetings are normally expected to take place during the Academic Adviser's office hour which can be booked via LSE for You. If the student cannot make their Academic Adviser's office hour because of classes, they should write to the Academic Adviser to re-arrange the meeting.
Teaching Staff office hours
All teachers must hold an office hour once a week during term time in which to see students. If these times are inconvenient (for example if you are a part-time student) or if you feel that the topic requires greater discussion, please contact the member of staff by email to make an appointment.
A complete list of office hours for all teaching staff within the Department can be found on the Department website. Office hours are also often announced by academic staff via Moodle, in class and are also posted outside the Professional Services Office (room CON 3.18). For some office hours, students are encouraged to just turn up; others require appointments to be booked via LSE for You. The information online will specify how staff organise their office hour.
Students can use office hours to speak to staff about a range of issues: progress on a course; have a conversation about wellbeing; gain feedback on formative assignments and class presentations; have an in-depth discussion about an academic area of interest; discuss exam/assessment preparation.
The office hour is a particularly good way to obtain feedback about academic progress. Teachers’ verbal comments can be a rich and informative supplement to written feedback, giving students an opportunity for a more in-depth discussion of any issues. The office hour is the quickest way for students to gain feedback on their work.
Students are encouraged to make use of the office hours on offer, not just for staff in the department but also for any staff who teach on outside options.
Academic References
Students may occasionally need an academic reference (for instance when they apply for a job; a postgraduate degree; for a scholarship, or for a training opportunity). Students can request a reference from their academic adviser, from permanent academic staff or a class teacher who knows the student (this may include a dissertation supervisor or someone giving seminars). Academic staff will normally be unable to provide references for students whom they do not know and it should be noted that they should not be expected to comment on something that they are not directly aware of. Students are always expected to (1) ask academic staff if they would be happy to be named as referees (never give a name without asking the person first!) and (2) give plenty of notice to their referee, normally at least three weeks. Some colleagues may be able to provide a reference with slightly shorter notice but they are not obliged to, and most would be unlikely to accept a reference requested less than two weeks before it was due. It is often a good idea to provide a prospective referee with an updated CV and some explanation of the position the reference is for.
Whom do I contact if I have a query?
Students can contact the Undergraduate Administrative team, Carla Seesunkur and Nina Pasquali at gov.ug@lse.ac.uk or on 020 7955 6498 / 7929. Students are also welcome to drop into the Professional Services Office where Carla and Nina are based. The office is at CON 3.18 and the opening hours are: 10:00-12:30, 14:00-15:30 Monday to Friday.
The Departmental Tutor, Dr David Woodruff, can be contacted at d.woodruff@lse.ac.uk.