ADV712, 749, 750, & 751: Independent Supported Study SP Module Handbook 2025-26 | Plymouth

ADV712, 749, 750, & 751: Independent Supported Study

Module Information

This module enables students to achieve 20 M-level credits in a topic relevant to their own professional practice. Students begin by defining a topic and negotiating their own learning objectives with a supervisor before going on to meet the assessed module learning outcomes at M level.

The module provides the opportunity for students to engage in reviewing the literature and deepening their understanding of the relationship between theory and practice, as well as gaining insight into their own style of learning.

The supported study modules listed on the front page of this handbook are all aligned to MSc Advanced Professional Pathways, but are delivered in the same way. Each supported study student defines their own work-based topic to focus on. Often, topics cross disciplines or concern a patient group that many health professionals encounter, and so blending the modules creates a cohort of students from various professions who may come together during webinars. The benefit of this is that, via the Moodle forum, you can discuss things common to all students, e.g. working in isolation or timelines, etc. This can be helpful for motivation and also to help the module leader identify any issues early and manage them in a timely way. For this reason, all the content (module handbook, module tasks, etc.) is held on a central Moodle site (metasite), but you will submit your assignment on your pathway-specific Moodle site, e.g. ADV749 for dietitians. The module sites for each cohort can be found in the University portal under My Modules.

Support and Supervisors

The unique aspect of the supported study modules is the student-led emphasis, which begins with the topic to be studied. The support comes from a dedicated supervisor who has experience in master’s level study or supervision and the topic area, but may or may not be from the same profession as the student. Where the student has subject-specific enquiries that cannot be addressed with an internet search, etc., the module leader can help identify a member of the academic staff to deal with the isolated enquiry to facilitate progression of the project and written assignment. Students have a range of experience, and it is important that the support received relates to project management, M-level critical reading and writing, literature searching and reflection. This is factored into the choice of supervisor by the module lead and/or pathway lead for the student. The individual module supervisor will be the point of contact for module tutorials, formative feedback and module-specific support during the module.

If a supervisory relationship is not working, the module lead can firstly meet with the student and supervisor to see if a solution can be found or, in rare circumstances, facilitate changing the supervisor. This is only an option in the first four weeks of the module.

The supervision expectation is outlined in the module handbook, and generally, too little or too much time spent in supervisory meetings is a concern. Too little can risk the student preparing work that may not meet the assessment guidelines or disengaging altogether. Too much supervision can mean that the student is relying on the supervisor to produce work and can indicate that the student is not well orientated in the module and is not progressing well. In either instance, the module lead is likely to be alerted by the supervisor and a triad meeting is arranged to address any issues.

The format of the module involves an initial webinar with an overview of the module. The supervisor will then complete four supervision sessions with the student across the module. The majority of the work is undertaken by the student outside of contact time with the supervisor, and this normally equates to 200 hours of study per 20-credit module at M level in total. There are 3 webinars across the modules that will be recorded and uploaded to Moodle. There is also a question and answer section on Moodle to promote discussion.

Module Aims

This module aims to enable students to reflect on their learning from relevant independent study and CPD activity, and to use this learning to enhance their own professional practice. The module allows you to study an area of interest in-depth that may not have been previously possible in other modules

It aims to:

• Allow for more in-depth study of a topic of the student’s choice.
• Develop independent thinking.
• Facilitate a critical exploration of an area of personal choice and importance to practice.

Assessed learning outcomes:

At the end of the module, the learner will be expected to be able to:

• Reflect on, apply, and critically evaluate personal learning gained through a period of independent study
• Demonstrate advanced evidence-based knowledge and skills from the relevant specialist subject area
• Apply critical analysis of theory and research findings to own practice and development of service
• Demonstrate critically reflexive approaches to practice
• Identify and evaluate improvements for practice and service provision

Module Summary

The supported study modules involve starting out with a practice-related question or goal. You bring your experience, knowledge, ideas and skills to the process of seeking out and accumulating evidence from a range of sources.

This type of module brings opportunities and also challenges. One aspect of this may be in the organisation of your own ideas. You have chosen a module that, by definition, implies a much more self-directed approach. You have not been given a specific assignment title, but have instead embarked on a piece of independent work.

This is both exciting and challenging. You already have considerable experience in addressing this type of issue in your day-to-day practice. Studying with the support of your supervisor will help you bridge the gap between identifying issues, planning, problem-solving and achieving outcomes in practice, and applying this approach to your learning.

Indicative Syllabus Content

The independent learning activities undertaken within this module will vary and depend on the agreed learning objectives for each student. This may include self-directed learning focused on specific CPD activities (such as relevant short courses), or learning activities linked to specific work-related projects. The module team will provide support for the students throughout the module, which will be tailored to individual needs. This will include;

• An introduction and overview of the module
• to develop learning objectives for the module
• facilitate the student’s progress during the period of independent study

This module will, therefore, require the student to evaluate and combine information from many different sources and theoretical approaches. The participant will be expected to appraise the impact of current theories and evidence on their identified practice issue, reflect on its significance and apply the learning to practice. You will be expected to read widely, and critically appraise the available evidence base in order to meet the learning outcomes of this module.

Moodle DLE (Digital Learning Environment)

Moodle DLE is a website that provides central storage and space for documents, information, links and ideas related to your module as well as a portal for submission of your coursework. The module team will share appropriate information, documents, publications and other resources used to support your learning on this site. It is important to familiarise yourself with the use of Moodle and regularly check your student email for module information.

If you require assistance regarding Moodle, please contact the module lead.

Assessment

This module is assessed by 100 % coursework

Useful dates:

Assessment Information

Title: [This is student determined in agreement with supervisor]

Assessment Description:

The assessment consists of formative and summative elements; the summative element consists of one component with two sections:

• Chapter 1: The assignment as defined by your learning objectives. Your individual learning objectives MUST be stated in the introduction to this chapter.
• Chapter 2: A reflection on your learning process
  Assessment for this module is assessed at M level, and these assessment criteria can be found in the programme handbook appendix.

Formative

Formative feedback on your written work:

You can submit one bullet-pointed draft outline of your proposal up to a maximum of one page of A4. In addition, we welcome a sample short paragraph of your own writing to receive feedback on your writing style and referencing technique (approximately 300 words). Please submit any formative feedback via the Moodle site with your Module code. A date for formative submission is outlined in the table earlier in the handbook.

Summative:

3000-word written piece including:

Chapter 1: 2500 words on the work undertaken to meet your learning objectives (LO 2- 5). This includes

• Demonstrating advanced knowledge/skills in your topic area,
• Critical analysis of theory and research relating to your topic
• Relevance to the development of your professional practice
• Demonstrating critically reflexive approaches to practice
• Identifying and evaluating improvements for practice and service provision.

Chapter 2: 500 words reflecting on, applying and critically evaluating your learning (LO 1)

Table 1: Assessed learning outcomes for ADV712, ADV749, ADV750, ADV751

• Reflect on, apply, and critically evaluate personal learning gained through a period of independent study
• Demonstrate advanced evidence-based knowledge and skills from the relevant specialist subject area
• Apply critical analysis of theory and research findings to own practice and development of service
• Demonstrate critically reflexive approaches to practice
• Identify and evaluate improvements for practice and service provision

Format

All written assignments will normally be in Arial 12-point font size with 1½ line spacing, and any indented quotes should be single-spaced.

Guidance for Submitting the Summative Assessment

• Include your individual learning objectives in the assessment- this can be a table.
• Always include a front sheet (example in Appendix 3) that has your student number (NO NAME), the module code, and the word count
• Any words in tables or boxes are not included in the word count
• Do not include too many tables or boxes as a way of increasing the word count
• Ensure pages are numbered
• Ideally, add your candidate number as a footer
• You must ONLY use your student reference number to identify your work. Your name MUST NOT appear anywhere on your work, including headers/footers and appendices; this is crucial to enable blind/anonymous marking, which is a University policy.

Word Count: 3000 +/- 10%

Submission

The submission for the coursework via electronic submission is due by 16:00 on the module site held on Moodle / DLE. Dates are outlined in the table.

Normal assessment regulations apply – please refer to the programme handbook and also University regulations, which can be found at
https://www.plymouth.ac.uk/student-life/your-studies/essential-information/regulations

Where a module assessment has more than one element, you are required to pass both elements to achieve a pass mark for that module.

Further information about electronic submission will be made available during assignment webinars/ briefings.
Late submissions received within 24 hours can gain a 50% capped mark. Later submissions will be given a 0% mark.

• PLEASE NOTE: submissions on Moodle must under no circumstances be accessed
  after the deadline, i.e. 4 pm

Any attempt to view a submission after the deadline can result in the DLE recording the submission as ‘late’. If an error or problem is suspected, a student must email the module lead with the query or to flag up a problem, and under no circumstances access their work via the module submission site after the deadline

Academic/Learning Support

Support from academic staff for the preparation of assignments will normally be available up to 5 working days before the identified submission date.

The Moodle metasite ADV712_X will contain information to support your learning, including a questions and answers section.

You can also contact Learning Development for support to improve your skills in areas such as:

• essay writing
• presentations
• revision and exams
• time management
• reading and note making

To access resources, please go to http://www.plymouth.ac.uk/learn

Feedback

Feedback will normally be made available 4 weeks after submission in line with university protocol. You will be notified of any circumstances that result in a delay/ later release date.

The staff team appreciate that students really want a speedy response and are eager to have their marks. Marking is a thorough, fair and structured process that involves first marking of all work, second marking of a sample of work and moderation, both internal and external. This is not a process that can be hurried and requires due care and attention to some 60 submissions, so students should appreciate that 4 weeks is a very quick response rate.

Following the release of marks, students may make an appointment by email to further discuss their feedback with module tutors. This support is available to all students; however, any student who does not achieve a pass grade MUST make an appointment to see the module tutor who was the first marker of their work. Students who achieve a grade between 50% - 60% are strongly advised to also seek tutor support.

Module Evaluation

Student evaluation forms a key part of maintaining and improving the quality of modules. We intend to seek informal feedback periodically throughout the module, but we are also required to obtain formal feedback on completion of the module.

Completion of evaluations will enable us to obtain the necessary quality and quantity of information to identify what went well and any issues of concern. Module evaluation is a professional requirement, and you are asked to offer honest and constructive feedback.

Appendix 1: Marking Rubric