FAQs
Frequently asked questions about 3D Graduate.
By the end of your time here you should have developed:
- knowledge and skills relating to your chosen subject
- more general or transferable skills (including employability skills)
- attributes and perhaps even values
Why is it called 3D Graduate?
This broad education will be of enormous benefit to you in three areas your ‘academic’, ‘personal’ and ‘career’ development.
What’s the point in it?
The main aim is to get you reflecting, so that you have an understanding of not just what you learn but how you are learning. This will help you when you approach your academic studies because you’ll better know what learning style works for you, and that may even help you get a better mark in your studies.
Another aim is to get you planning and to think about what steps you can take to develop yourself. This may not be just through your course, but through other activities you may chose to get involved with, like working in the Students’ Union (SU), doing volunteer work and so on.
The final aim is for you to keep a record of your development, after-all how are you going to show how far you have come if you have nothing to show for it at the end? The website provides you the opportunity to keep a record of your progress, either by keeping a paper-based portfolio or through your own e-portfolio so that when you graduate, you will have something to help you to stand out from the crowd.
What does the 3D Graduate scheme consist of?
The Goldsmiths 3D Graduate scheme includes:- The way your department helps you learn. Goldsmiths is committed to placing you at the centre of your learning experience. Our teaching staff will engage you in learning activities which will increasingly encourage you to take responsibility for your learning. You may be asked assess your own work, or to take part in peer assessment, or keep a personal learning log or work on your own initiative or as part of a group and many other things. All of these activities will help you develop the skills and critical faculties which are a part of graduating in 3D!
- Personal Development Planning (PDP). All universities have to offer students a form of Personal Development Planning (PDP). The 3D Graduate scheme came from our thinking about how to make PDP work for Goldsmiths students. The ‘tools’ section of the website are our materials supporting PDP, although we don’t like to use the term. PDP suggests just ‘personal’ development. We are interested in engaging you in a broad learning experience which will be beneficial to you in your academic, personal and career development, which are of course usually interconnected.
- 3D Graduate website. The 3D Graduate website, is a means to help you manage your development independently. With its useful web tools, e-portfolio and links to all the other opportunities available at Goldsmiths, it’s the best way to help you make the most of your time here.
- Personal Tutoring system. All students have a personal tutor who is to be your first point of contact to discuss ‘3D Graduate’ related issues. Your tutor will offer you a number of personal tutorial sessions, in which you will be asked to think about your development. These may be group sessions or they may be one-to-ones sessions. Make sure you attend these sessions and speak to your tutor about how your department supports you in the process of graduating in 3D.
Do I have to use the website?
No, but we really do think it has great benefits that it will be a shame to miss out on. Not only should it help you in your studies, it can make you more employable in an increasingly competitive market. In almost all departments the scheme is voluntary, so the emphasis is on you to make the most of the opportunity.
Do all Universities have 3D Graduate schemes?
Most universities run some form of Personal Development Planning for students, but very few are as all-encompassing as 3D Graduate. In that respect you’re spoiled, don’t miss out on it!
How does the website work?
The website contains exercises, called 'tools' which are split into three areas. They will help you to reflect upon your learning, identify your needs and encourage you to plan future goals.
The site also provides links to a range of agencies within the College that support your learning experience, such as the Students' Union, Careers Office, Language Studies Centre and others. These agencies offer a range of development activities, which we have called 'opportunities'
An essential element of the 3D graduate scheme is that you chart and record your progress. You can either keep a paper-based portfolio or by create your own e-portfolio online so that when you graduate, and you are looking towards the future, you will have something to help you to stand out from the crowd.
There’s loads on the website, do I have to do it all?
Obviously we think it’s all useful stuff but not everything will be for you. We advise you to work through the exercises in ‘Understand yourself’ as they will get you active in reflective learning. If the exercises work for you then you should progress to the next section ’Maximize Yourself’. The section ‘Making it happen’ includes many careers tools and will be most suitable for your final year.
Will it really help me to get a job?
The 3D Graduate scheme can make you more employable in several ways:- By assisting you in understanding the many ways in which you are developing and helping you communicate this to others.
- By completing the reflective exercises and thinking about your skills, it makes it much easier when you come to fill in those horrible things like CVs and job-applications, because you’ve done all the work in the first place.
- By keeping a portfolio you are collecting evidence that to demonstrate to an employer just how far you have come and all the things you have done.
- 3D Graduate encourages you to get involved in volunteering and get other real-world experience which employers value.
- A better understanding how you learn and the type of study that suits you, can really benefit your academic studies and hopefully help you improve your over-all grade. And nothing will help your employability more than getting a better final mark.
OK I’m convinced, where can I start?
Brilliant, probably the best place to start is the section ‘Understanding Yourself’. Use your 3d graduate tools portfolio checklist [doc - size 54k] to navigate the various areas,
I can’t be bothered, how do I get out of here?
What a shame. Well you can always come back at any time while you are at Goldsmiths. Please let us know why you don’t think 3D Graduate is for you, to help us improve the experience for other students.