All students in the University are encouraged to engage in personal development planning. The Astrophysics courses are designed to provide all students with opportunities to develop a wide range of transferable skills. The University also offers plenty of opportunities to acquire skills outside the curriculum, particularly in College-based activities and in numerous specialist interest clubs and societies.
Students also have access to the University of Cambridge Training system, which hosts a wide range of courses run by participating University training providers.
The Institute of Astronomy has identified the following set of skills and attributes which all undergraduates can reasonably expect to acquire during their university career. These skills enhance students’ academic performance, can be used beyond university, and are valued by employers.
The following sets out the ways in which transferable skills are acquired through the teaching programme offered by the Institute. The Part II and Part III Astrophysics courses overlap with courses provided by the Departments of Physics and Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics and so the transferable skills policy statements of those departments are also relevant.
We always recommend discussing any additional training you are considering with your Course Coordinator, who will be able to advise on how the additional work will fit around the compulsory elements of your course.
Intellectual Skills
The most important intellectual skills which our students learn are abilities at quantitative and qualitative reasoning in the exact physical sciences and the application of this understanding to problem-solving. Examples include development of models of phenomena, mathematical analysis of models, appropriate approximation, and statistical analysis. These skills are developed both with the IoA through lectures, examples classes, seminars, projects and examinations and your College through supervisions involving discussion, reasoning, problem solving, and critical analysis.
Communication Skills
All students develop their communication skills as part of the teaching and assessment programme. In Part II essays and Part III projects credit is given for the quality of the student's communication skills. The principal elements of the training involve the following:
Writing
Oral
- Department: Oral presentations of project work in Part III (also including software presentation packages and visual aids).
- College: Supervisions involving oral explanations and discussion with supervisors and other students.
Non-Verbal
Development of an argument using mathematical concepts or symbolic language
- Department: Computational projects, essays, and examples sheets.
- College: Supervisions involving problem solving.
Organisational and Interpersonal Skills
Interpersonal skills and self-expression are developed through constant interaction with peers, supervisors, lecturers and working within a research group as part of a Part III project.
- Department: Provision of a framework within which the students carry out their work programme with clear deadlines. Advice on organising the programme of work in the Course Guide.
- College and University societies: Oversight of the students' programmes is maintained by Directors of Study and Tutors. Advice on organisation of the work programme is given through supervisions. Living, working, and socialising in a diverse community and taking positions of responsibility are important contributors.
Research Skills
- Department: Development of all aspects of research skills involving the application of understanding of concepts to new problems by use of the library, electronic and Internet resources to supplement information given in lectures and supervisions, critical analysis of published papers in preparation for a Part II essay and the Part III research project, appreciating how to access the experience and knowledge of expert scientists.
Numeracy and Computing
- Department: In earlier years of the Natural Sciences Tripos, students will have followed courses in mathematics. All Astrophysics courses contain mathematical elements. Lectures and examples classes are provided in mathematical methods and statistical Astrophysics, daily use of mathematics and computational methods for study and problem solving and data analysis in essays and projects. CATAM courses are specifically focussed on programming skills, many at a very advanced level.
- College: Supervisions in all courses. Computing resources for the above such as e-mail and Internet access. Word processing is used for all aspects of written communication.