School Office
The School Office supports all functions of MPS and is formed into three sub-teams - Teaching and Learning, Research and Support and Staff and Student Engagement. Each of the three teams has a Team Lead, detailed in the list below, together with their team members.
Each team reports to Gemma Harman, School Administrator, who has oversight of all administrative support functions within the School.
Gemma Harman is the School Administrator:
- Responsible for ensuring that the School runs smoothly and that the support staff have the resources they need to carry out their work
- Line management for Teaching and Learning team
- Liaises with both departments and have to ensure compliance with University policies
- Allocates office space and work on improvements to facilities across the School
- Member of the School Management group
Lily King is the Deputy School Administrator:
- Deputises for the School Administrator
- Line management for the Student Engagement and Research Support teams
- Responsibilitity for compliance matters: UKVI, GDPR, CMA
- Works with and within the school office to improve all elements of operational administrative processes in MPS
School Office Teams
The three teams operating in the MPS School Office are:
Over 700 students in 2019/20
Studying a BSc, MMath, MPhys or MSc
Up to 1000 submissions each week
With over 750 in a single day!
34 taught UG/PGT courses
Each with syllabuses & specifications to maintain
What does the Teaching and Learning Team do?
The Teaching and Learning Team has a number of key responsibilities, including:
- Exams
- Submissions
- Courses
- Modules
- Teaching Evaluation
Who is in the Teaching and Learning Team?
- Chrystelle Nunan - T&L Team Lead
Chrystelle Nunan is the Curriculum and Assessment Officer:
I provide support on curriculum development, examinations and assessment matters:
- Module changes
- Assessment process
- Student course transfers
- Misconduct panel
- Secretary to School Teaching and Learning Committee
Works with: Director of Teaching and Learning
- Luke Murphy - Undergraduate Physics and Astronomy Course Co-ordinator
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Luke Murphy is the Course Co-ordinator for UG Physics and Astronomy:
I support the faculty teaching and the undergraduate students (including V&Es) studying on Physics and Astronomy courses and modules and am available to deal with enquiries relating to these. As part of this role, and working within the academic year framework, I deal with:
- Arranging and minuting the various departmental meetings including the Teaching Committee, Departmental Meeting and Exam Boards
- Laising with faculty and timetablers to set up the teaching timetable, and then allocate students and tutors to teaching groups. I set up tutors’ payments for their work tutoring on these modules. I help with the options choosing process.
- Assisting with assessment and examination processes - including exam paper preparation and entering marks on the central database
- I am involved in induction activities, graduation activities and other departmental-related events
- Senior Course Co-ordinator - Vacant Post
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The Course Co-ordinator for Mathematics:
I support the faculty teaching and the undergraduate students (including V&Es) studying on Mathematics courses and modules and am available to deal with enquiries relating to these. As part of this role, and working within the academic year framework, I deal with:
- Arranging and minuting the various departmental meetings, including the Teaching Committee, Departmental Meeting and Exam Boards
- Liaising with faculty and timetablers to set up the teaching timetable, and then allocate students and tutors to teaching groups. I set up tutors’ payments for their work tutoring on these modules. I help with the options choosing process.
- Assisting with assessment and examination processes - including exam paper preparation and entering marks on the central database,
- I am involved in induction activities, graduation activities and other departmental-related events
- Hannah Le Fevre - Postgraduate Course Co-ordinator
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Hannah Le Fevre is the Course Co-ordinator for MSc students:
I am the Course Coordinator for postgraduate students for both the Mathematics and Physics departments.
- Provides administrative support for taught masters students, such as managing student records, arranging events and handling course queries, options, module changes and dissertation hand-ins, and support the exam board process
- Responsibility for Engagement Monitoring for the School, providing reports on attendance and submissions and am the Secretary for the School Student Progress Committee
- Secretary to the MPS Health & Safety Committee
127 Research students in 2020/21
1,500 PhD applications received
£3m of research funding
10 new positions advertised in 2014/15
10 conferences in 2017/18
300 visitors and guests to our events
What does the Research Support Team do?
The Research Support Team has a number of key responsibilities, including:
- Research Students
- Research Grants
- REF
- Conferences
- Seminars
Who is in the Research Support Team?
- Richard Chambers - Research Support Team Lead
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Richard Chambers is the Research and Enterprise Co-ordinator:
I provide administrative support in financial matters for the research students in MPS.
PhD Studentships
- Nomination, Offer letter, recording the award, transfer data to Accounts offices and Student Accounts
- PhD Studentships – maintenance & changes to awards
- Management of student RTSG accounts
- Long Term Attachment awards for STFC PhD students
- Reporting back on PhD research activity
- Problem solving for issues with fees, bursaries or RTSG.
- Attendance of School Research Degrees Committee and Cross-School REC meeting
Works with: Director of Doctoral Studies
- Sinead Rance - Research Support Team Lead
- Sinead Rance is the Research and Enterprise Co-ordinator and Research Support Assistant:
- REF support / Sussex Research Online
- Support Mathematics Research Committee, Research Strategy Group, Outputs & Impact Subcommittees, HPC User Group
- Reporting back on Research Activity
- Postdoc appointments
- Faculty Appraisal
- Postdoc Annual Appraisals & Training
- Supports the School with the research activity, especially with external visitors
- Manages the conference web pages, updating them with the necessary information
- Unit 4 expert within MPS, therefore I help with expenses queries and ordering of goods, producing invoices
- Organises research meetings, conferences and workshops, managing bookings, catering required and the seminar room bookings
- Inputs publications to SRO (Sussex Research Online)
Works with: Director of Research and Knowledge Exchange
- Emma Ransley - Postgraduate Research Co-ordinator
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Emma Ransley is the Postgraduate Research Co-ordinator:
- Assists with any enquiries from research students, such as admissions, annual review and travel
- Helps to plan and deliver induction events for new research students
- GRadNet co-ordinator for SEPNet
- Liaises with the Doctoral School, Student Progress Office, Admission Office
- Secretary for the School Research Degrees Committee and maintains research student webpages
Works with: Director of Doctoral Studies
- Amelia Redman - Clerical Support for Research Team
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Amelia Redman is the Clerical Assistant (Research)
- Clerical support for the research team
- Enters research details into Sussex Research Online
- Updates research webpages on Sussex website
- Supports the Research Support Assistant with PGR admissions
- Counter enquiries
- Research grant applications - Process, Acceptance, Rejection, statistical summaries.
- Interim DRA for Outreach
I also assist with general administrative matters such as room bookings, hotel bookings for visitors, student queries and submission of assessed work.
2,000 attendees at our events
75 current students deliver our outreach
24 student reps and mentors
£2,000 spent via SSEG
12 Open Days and AVDs
NSS response rates at 70%
What does the Staff and Student Engagement Team do?
The Staff and Student Engagement Team have a number of key responsibilities, including:
- New student Induction
- NSS event
- Finalists' party
- School events
- Open Days and Applicant Visit Days
- Student Reps
- Outreach Events
- Marketing
Who is in the Staff and Student Engagement Team?
- Amy Wilkins - Head of Schools Coordinator
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Amy Wilkins is the Head of Schools Coordinator:
- Provides administrative support for the Head of School and the School Management Team
- Liaises with HR on staff matters and organise arrangements for staff recruitment
- Administers probation, promotion and appraisal processes for faculty
- Responsible for internal MPS communications, including the newsletter and website
- Secretary for MPS School Management Team Meetings (SMT) and School Student Experience Group (SSEG)
Works with: Head of School, Director of Student Experience and MPS SMT
- Justine Charles - Information Co-ordinator
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Justine Charles is the Information Co-ordinator:
- Editor of School and Department external web pages
- Main point of contact for School entries for the undergraduate and postgraduate prospectus
- Manages the School social media channels
- Produces and updates leaflets and promotional materials
- Circulates School news and liaise with the Press Office
- Provides support for Open/Admission days
Works with: Director of Recruitment & Admissions
- Sarah Pelling - Outreach Co-ordinator
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Sarah Pelling is the Outreach Co-ordinator:
I assist with general administrative matters such as room bookings, hotel bookings for visitors, student queries and submission of assessed work.
- Administrator for Outreach for both Physics & Astronomy and Mathematics and co-ordinate events and contact with Schools and Colleges
- Maintains the records of casual staff that work on outreach, open days and other events
- Ensures that the School is compliant with UKVI checks for casual workers
- Co-ordinates DBS checks for outreach workers
- Adele Cooper - Student Experience Coordinator
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Adele Cooper is the Student Experience Coordinator:
- Administration of students on temporary withdrawal, including examination boards
- Secretary to and administration of the School Student Progress Committee
- Student attendance and engagement monitoring contact for students
- School student experience events (for example the Finalists' Party)
- Student induction events (Welcome Week)
- Other engagement matters such as NSS promotion in the school
Works with: Director of Student Experience