Welcome
Dear all,
On behalf of Education for Health, we’re delighted to welcome you to your short course. At Education for Health, our goal is to provide you with a top-quality online learning experience that supports your academic development and helps you meet your professional goals.
Please take some time to review this Welcome Pack. It contains information that will be of help to you as you get ready for your course. If you have any questions that haven’t been answered, we encourage you attend a student onboarding session, which will run shortly before your course starts; keep an eye on your email for more information. You can also contact our Learner Support team with any questions; see the ‘Key Contacts’ section of this document for their details.
Best wishes for your studies!
Vanessa Williams Director of Learning Design and Quality
How your module will work
You’ve registered for a short course that is fully online and selfpaced. This gives you the flexibility to fit your learning around your professional and personal commitments.
Self-paced learning
Once the course starts, you’ll have access to the course materials via a platform called Canvas. You’ll be able to work through the online course materials, which combine written content, pre-recorded presentations, and activities that will require you to do further reading, research, and reflection.
To help you stay on track with the self-paced content, every course has a study planner. This gives you a general timetable for the module that you can then personalise to suit your own schedule.
Module support sessions
You’ll be assigned a module support tutor who will support your learning throughout the course. Your tutor will run group tutorials on a regular basis throughout the module; the dates for these will be available soon after your module starts. These tutorials will be held online and will provide you with opportunities to discuss the course content, consider how to approach your assignments, and build your academic skills. These sessions are optional, but highly recommended. If you can’t make a session, don’t worry they’re all recorded for you to watch back at any time.
Accessing your course
Approximately two weeks before your module start date, we’ll send you a link to register with the University of Hertfordshire.
It’s really important that you complete this registration as soon as possible after we send it to you. If you don’t register with the University, you won’t be able to access your course.
Once you’ve completed the registration process, the University will email you with your student number, username, and password. If you register but don’t receive this information, please check your junk mail to make sure they haven’t been filtered.
If you still don’t have this information, please contact the University’s Helpdesk on 01707 284678 (open 24/7) or by email at helpdesk@herts.ac.uk. (For any other questions, you should continue to contact us directly, rather than the University.)
Logging into Canvas
You can log into Canvas by going to herts.instructure.com and logging in with your University of Hertfordshire username and password. Once you’ve logged in, you should see your course listed on your Canvas dashboard. Click the course title, and the course website will open.
Students with a disability
We are committed to making our educational experiences as inclusive as possible for students with disabilities. Per our Support for Students with a Disability Policy, which you’ll be able to access through Canvas, we adopt a flexible and supportive approach and work with learners on an individual basis to make reasonable adjustments to address obstacles and enhance the learning experience. If you have a disability or additional learning needs, please contact Vanessa Williams (v.williams@educationforhealth.org) to set up an appointment to discuss additional support.
Onboarding sessions
We know that learning online is a new experience for many of our students, and we want to make sure you’re set up for success. We run optional student onboarding sessions every couple of months. In this session, a member of Education for Health staff will give you a guided tour of your course website and show where to access key pieces of information.
Keep an eye on your email for more information about these sessions and to sign up for them.
If you’re not able to attend an onboarding session, don’t worry! All of the information is also covered in other places, including the Student Handbook and a short video tour, which you’ll get access to once your module starts.
Key contacts
We want to make sure you have all the information you need about your module with Education for Health. Please use the contact information below to reach out.
For questions about administrative information, please contact:
Learner Support
01926 493313 (Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. 4 p.m.)
learnersupport@educationforhealth.org
For questions about your University of Hertfordshire username and password only, please contact:
University of Hertfordshire Helpdesk
01707 284789
helpdesk@herts.ac.uk
Please make sure that you wait until one week before your course starts to contact them; if you contact them earlier, you may not yet have had your account created!
For questions or comments about your online learning experience, or about how we support students with additional needs, please contact:
Vanessa Williams v.williams@educationforhealth.org
Once your module starts, if you have questions about the module content, you’ll be able to contact your module support tutor directly through Canvas.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to be online at a certain time on my course start date?
No. The course start date is the date that you’ll officially get access to the course website and your learning materials, but there’s no course meeting that day. Once your module starts, your module support tutor will be in touch with information about your module support sessions.
I haven’t had my username and password to access Canvas (the module website). What should I do?
Two weeks before your course starts, we’ll send you a link to register with the University of Hertfordshire. You need to complete this registration in order to get access to your course materials. Once you’ve registered, the University will email you with your username and password.
If you’ve completed the registration form but haven’t received your login information, check your junk email folder to make sure the information hasn’t been filtered there.
If you still haven’t received the information, please contact the University’s Helpdesk. Their contact information is in the Key Contacts section of this booklet.
What classes do I have to attend?
You’ve registered for a self-paced module, so you’ll work through the material on your own schedule. There will be optional module support sessions throughout the module, and the schedule for these will be announced once the module starts.
How will I know when the module support sessions are?
Once the module starts, your tutor will be in touch to let you know the schedule for module support sessions. If you can’t make some
of the sessions, don’t worry they’ll be recorded for you to watch at a later date.
I haven’t studied for a long time. How can I prepare?
We know that returning to academic study can be daunting! Your module support tutor will provide support and guidance both in terms of the content of your course and the academic skills that you’ll need to complete your assignments.
We also have material available via your course website on academic and writing skills.
Keep an eye out for information about additional workshops on academic skills; we’ll be providing more information in due course.
When will my assignments be due?
Once you have access to your module website, you’ll find all of the information about your assignments, including their due dates. We recommend checking this information as soon as your module starts so that you can plan your workload.
Where can I find my student number?
Your student number will be emailed to you by the University of Hertfordshire once you’ve registered on your course, two weeks before it starts. After that, you can check it by logging into StudyNet (studynet.herts.ac.uk) with your University username and password.
You’ll need your student number if you contact the University’s Helpdesk, and also to put on your cover sheet when you submit your assignment.
If you’re unable to find it, contact Learner Support, who will be able to look it up for you.
I have a question—should I contact Education for Health or the University?
Always start by contacting Education for Health; we can help with most queries. The only exception is if you need your University username or password; that’s when you should contact the University Helpdesk.
1 Lowes Lane Business Park, Lowes Lane, Wellesbourne, Warwickshire
CB35 9RB
T: +44 (0)1926 493313
E: contact@educationforhealth.org
W: educationforhealth.org
Chief Executive: Richard Brown
Registered Office: 1 Lowes Lane Business Park, Lowes Lane, Wellesbourne, Warwickshire CV35 9RB
Registered in England and Wales.
Charity Registration Number: 1048816
Company Registration Number: 03090774
Education for Health is a company limited by guarantee.