How will I learn?
Online– Learn online with ATU by attending live lectures through our online learning environment. Simply log on from work, home, anywhere and be part of weekly lectures. Engage in discussions, live chat, and interact with fellow students and lecturers. Unable to attend? Recorded sessions are available within hours, so students can watch back at a time that suits them.
Blended/Flexible – Blended learning is a flexible way of completing your course of study, combining online aspects with in-classroom experience to allow for an accessible learning style. In a blended course, students may view lectures, access readings, ask questions and complete assignments online, so time in the classroom can focus more on discussion and activities.
On-Campus – Some of our courses are available to study part-time on-campus. For an on-campus course, you will attend all lectures in the relevant campus and have the full in-classroom experience at ATU.
Experiential Learning
Students will learn and experience all the practical elements in the learning outcomes. Guest lectures, tutorials and residential workshops are accessible to all online students either via live streaming or as recorded sessions.
Peer-to-Peer Learning
Working collaboratively is part of the college experience and part-time learning is no different. Group learning and assignments encourage peer support and small classroom sizes ensure students are supported throughout the learning journey
Assessments in the forms of quizzes and assignments are used to gauge students’ understanding of a topic throughout the semester. Examinations take place at the end of each Semester. For Examinations, students may have to attend at the ATU campus through which they completed their studies. For some programmes it may be possible for the Exam to be taken remotely via online proctoring. ATU Students resident in the Republic of Ireland will be invited to attend exams at an exam centre located in Ireland. Students’ resident outside of Ireland or with exceptional circumstances may be eligible to attend remotely via online proctoring, where examinations are taken online and supervised virtually, subject to availability.
Whether you are studying part-time, online, blended, or full-time, it is very important that you allocate enough study time to your course to stay focused, reduce stress and achieve your goals.
For part-time online or flexible learning, it is recommended that you should try to allow for 5-6 hours per week per 5 credit module, to your studies. Most courses typically involve 3 x 5 credit modules per semester which leads to an average 15 – 18 study hours per week.
Typically, online, flexible, professional development courses have about 3 hours of live lectures per week (but this can vary per programme). The rest of your study time consists of independent learning, communicating with your lecturers and classmates and carrying out assignments.
Live lectures normally take place between 6pm and 10pm, Monday to Thursday but this may vary depending on the availability of specific lecturers. If the scheduled times for the live online lectures do not suit you, recordings will be made available through Moodle.
NOTE: You may be required to take some time off work for examinations or workshops. Please check the relevant course webpage for this information.
