Coordinators lacking coordination...

Categories: uncategorized

Date: 17 November 2004 18:35:00

Aaarrrgghhhhh! Ok, so I've stayed away from ranting about the laughable efforts at organisation of my Masters for a while, but I have to get this one off my chest.

We (for this read I) have been pestering for ages to get a list of coursework assignments for this term. Not a huge request, just want to know what we'll be given, and, ideally, how much it contributes to the total marks etc. You'd think that a group of lecturers, whose job it is to do these things, would be able to manage that? Especially when one is employed specifically to coordinate all the others. Anyway, apparently this was just too hard, and not at all possible, and after I'd asked a few times, I gave up. The work continued to pile up, and the last week or so we've all been despairing of getting it all done on time, let alone seeing any daylight other than through the library windows!

Then, today, said coordinator presents us with a list. Showing (hopefully) all the work for this term. So, what's the problem you say? Well, not only is it only 4 weeks till the end of term, so its not exactly as useful as it might have been a month or so ago, but it also shows we have another 3 or 4 assignments which we haven't been given yet. And don't know when we'll be given them. So, as well as the 4000-6000 word term paper (which, if we had more time, would be quite interesting given we could choose the topic) worth half a module on its own, the 2000 and 3000 word essays (one of which we can't do untill we have another lecture on the subject), 2 presentations and a statistics problem whic we already had...

...we now have another statistics problem, another computer modelling problem (see earlier posts for the madness that one caused!), a field trip write up and a lab write up. All to be done in the next 4 weeks. No, 3 and a half weeks. Along with lots of hours of lectures a week in comparison to the start of term cos the 'coordinator' has only just got the guest lecturers spots sorted out now.

And he told us that we should really be able to keep track of our assignments ourselves, and know when things are due in, and seems to see this as a big favour he's done for us, which he shouldn't really have to do. Though the point was to know the assignments we haven't been given yet. Unless we're supposed to be psychic too....

I repeat, AARRRGGGHHHH!!!!

Ok, think I've got it all out now. Must get back to it, or this pile will never get any smaller. Helpful/studious thoughts this way please x