Acronyms and Terms
Faculties:
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FMS
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HaSS
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SAgE
Faculty of Medical Science
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
Faculty of Science, Agriculture and Engineering
FMS Schools
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BMS
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SDS
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SMED
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PSY
School
School
School
School
FMS Institutes
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IAH
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ICaMB
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ICM
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IHS
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IGM
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IoN
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NICR
Institute for Ageing and Health
Institute for Cell and Molecular Biosciences
Institute of Cellular Medicine
Institute of Health and Society
Institute of Genetic Medicine
Institute of Neuroscience
Northern Institute for Cancer Research
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NUMED
of
of
of
of
Biomedical Sciences
Dental Sciences
Medical Sciences Education Development
Psychology
Newcastle University Medicine Malaysia
HaSS Schools:
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SACS
Studies, Museum,
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SAPL
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CHC
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ECLS
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SELLL
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GPS
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HCA
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LAW
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NUBS
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SML
School of Arts and Cultures (Music, Fine Art, Media & Communication
Gallery and Heritage Studies)
School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape
Combined Honours Centre
School of Education, Communication and Language Sciences
School of English Language, Literature and Linguistics
School of Geography, Politics and Sociology
School of History, Classics & Archaeology
Newcastle University Law School
Newcastle University Business School
School of Modern Languages
HASS Research Units
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CfLAT
CRiLLS
CURDS
GURU
KITE
NIASSH
NICAP
NISR
PEALS
Centre for Learning and Teaching
Centre for Research in Linguistics and Language Sciences
Centre for Urban and Regional Development Studies
Global Urban Research Unit
Knowledge, Innovation, Technology and Enterprise
Newcastle Institute for the Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities
Newcastle Institute for Creative Arts Practice
Newcastle Institute for Social Renewal
Policy, Ethics and Life Science
SAgE Schools:
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AFRD
BIOL
CEAM
CEGS/CIVG
CHEM
COMP
MAST
MATH
MECH or MSE
SEEE
School
School
School
School
School
School
School
School
School
School
of
of
of
of
of
of
of
of
of
of
Agriculture, Food and Rural Development
Biology
Chemical Engineering and Advanced Materials
Civil Engineering and Geosciences
Chemistry
Computing Science
Marine Science and Technology
Mathematics and Statistics
Mechanical and Systems Engineering
Electrical and Electronic Engineering
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NUIS
NIRES
Newcastle University International Singapore
Newcastle Institute for Research on Sustainability
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Acronyms and Terms
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Digital Institute
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SFAC SAgE Faculty Office
SAGE Research Centres
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BBTC
Biopharmaceutical Bioprocessing Technology Centre (BBTC)
Research Centre in Catalysis and Intensified Processing
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CESER
Centre for Earth Systems Engineering Research (CESER)
Joint Quantum Centre Durham / Newcastle
nanoLAB Research Centre
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NewRail
Newcastle Centre for Railway Research
The North East Regional e-Science Centre
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CRE
Centre for Rural Economy
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CSR
Centre for Software Reliability
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SWAN
Sir Joseph Swan Centre for Energy Research
External Bodies:
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AHRC
Arts and Humanities Research Council
BBSRC
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council
EPSRC
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council
HEA
Higher Education Academy – agency responsible for improving teaching in HE
HEFCE
Higher Education Funding Council for England – body which funds and regulates
English HEIs
HESA
Higher Education Statistics Agency
MRC
Medical Research Council
NERC
Natural Environment Research Council
NUS
National Union of Students
OFFA
Office for Fair Access – the agency charged by HEFCE with widening participation
in HE. Each year OFFA has to approve our Access Agreement.
QAA
Quality Assurance Agency – UK regulator of quality and standards
RCUK
Research Councils UK
Russell Group - group of research-intensive universities with medical schools of which
Newcastle is a member
UCAS
University and Colleges Admissions Service – responsible for undergraduate
admissions to UK universities
UKBA
United Kingdom Border Agency – now replaced by a division of the Home Office.
Government body responsible for immigration and visas
Committees
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BoS
Board of Studies – committee responsible for the oversight of one or more degree
programmes
BoE
Board of Examiners – which makes final decisions about degree classes and
progression
EB
Executive Board (of the University); sometimes UEB
eLSG
eLearning Steering Group
eLSI
E-Learning and Student Information Sub-Committee - a sub-committee of ULTSEC
ESRC
Economic and Social Research Council
FEB
Faculty Executive Board – PVC, Deans, Heads of School and Research Units, Heads
of Service at faculty level
FSG
Faculty Steering Group – Faculty PVC , Deans and Service Heads
FLTSEC
Faculty Learning, Teaching and Student Experience Committee which reports to
ULTSEC and is responsible for the oversight of quality, standards and the taught student
experience within a faculty.
FMBSG
Financial Monitoring and Budget Scrutiny Group - a sub-committee of UEB
FRSG
Faculty Research Strategy Group
GSC
Graduate School Committee – responsible for PGR and PGT provision in a faculty
MMB
Module Moderation Board – informal meeting of members of the BoE prior to the
Board to review standards across modules and identify issues needing attention
PAC
Programme approval committee – considers new programme proposals
SISG
Strategic Information Systems Group
SLTC
School Learning and Teaching Committee
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Acronyms and Terms
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SSC
Staff Student Committee – committee where student representatives can give their
opinions on their experience
SSSG
Student Systems Governance Group
SQuAD
Standards and Quality Advisory Group – responsible for reviewing quality
assurance returns on behalf of ULTSEC
ULTSEC
University Learning, Teaching and Student Experience Committee – University
committee responsible for the overview of quality, standards and the student experience
XFLTSEC Cross Faculty Learning, Teaching and Student Experience Committee – responsible
for provision which falls outside the three faculties e.g. INTO, Career Development modules,
CASAP and PARTNERS
Roles
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DPD
Degree Programme Director
DELT
Director of Excellence in Learning and Teaching – responsible for all teaching in an
academic unit
DVC
Deputy Vice-Chancellor
HoAU
Head of Academic Unit
HoS
Head of School (see above)
PGR Director
Director of Postgraduate Research in a School or Academic Unit
PVC
Pro-Vice-Chancellor – There are PVCs for each of the three faculties and for crosscutting roles. The PVCs are members of EB.
PVC(HaSS)Pro-Vice-Chancellor for HaSS
PVC(SAgE) Pro-Vice-Chancellor for SAgE
PVC(FMS) Pro-Vice-Chancellor for FMS
PVC(L&T) Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Learning and Teaching)
PVC(R&I) Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research and Innovation)
PVC(P&R) Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Planning and Resources)
VC
Vice-Chancellor – Head of the institution
Procedures
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AMR
Annual Monitoring and Review – annual review process for all taught degree
programmes
ISR
Internal Subject Review – periodic review of the programmes in a subject area
QAEF
Quality Assurance and Enhancement Framework for Research Degree Programmes
– annual review system for postgraduate research programmes
University Services
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AVC
Audio Visual Centre
HR
Human Resources
ISS
Information Systems and Services – responsible for University computing and
related services
LRC
Language Resource Centre
MSRD
Marketing and Student Recruitment Directorate
QuILT
Quality in Learning and Teaching – central service responsible for quality
assurance and enhancement
RES
Research and Enterprise Services – central service to support research projects
SDU
Staff Development Unit
SPS
Student Progress Service – responsible for registration, discipline, examinations
etc.
SWS
Student Wellbeing Service
Others:
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APL
Accreditation of Prior Learning – recognition of prior learning, both accredited and
experiential, on entry to a programme
BGP
Block Grant Partnership - AHRC’s doctoral support scheme
Blackboard Newcastle’s VLE
BW
Business Warehouse – system which provides read only access to a number of SAP
systems, principally used to extract data.
CAS
Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies – confirmation by the University of a place
for visa purposes
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Acronyms and Terms
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CASAP
Certificate in Advanced Studies in Academic Practice – UKPSF D2 qualification for
new teaching staff at Newcastle
CATS
Credit Accumulation and Transfer Scheme – a scheme under which students can
acquire credits and accumulate them so as to eventually gain a qualification or get their credits
recognised elsewhere
CAV
Campus for Ageing and Vitality
CBC
Comparative Biology Centre
CBE
Centre for Behaviour and Evolution
CDT
Centre for Doctoral Training – EPSRC equivalent of DTC
CELCAT
Commercial software package for timetabling used in FMS
CGWS
Centre for Gender and Women's Studies
CPD
Continuing Professional Development – personal updating by professionals in any
field
CRM
Customer relations management, usually used in connection with systems for
keeping in touch with applicants
CRS
Contract Research Staff
CSBI
Centre for Social and Business Informatics
CSCBDG Centre for Stem Cell Biology and Developmental Genetics
CTA
Collaborative Training Account
CVI
Corporate Visual Identity
DCSG
Digital Campus Steering Group
DLHE
Destination of Leavers from Higher Education – survey of graduates employment
situation 6 months after graduation carried out by the Careers Service under HEFCE guidelines
DTC
Doctoral Training Centre – ESRC supported centre for training PhD students
ECR
Early career researcher
ELMO
English Language Materials Online
EPortfolio The University tool for supporting personal development planning (PDP) and
personal tutoring
ERASMUS European Union Scheme for supporting staff and student mobility and in particular
student exchanges within Europe
Evasys
system for running module and stage evaluation questionnaires
FE
further education
FHEQ
Framework for Higher Education Qualifications – QAA Framework for UK
qualifications which sets out the categories and the requirements in terms of level of
achievement
Grademark System within Turnitin for providing feedback in the form of annotations on the
electronic script
GSF
Graduate Skills Framework – Newcastle’s set of skills which all taught students
should have the opportunity to develop
GTA
Graduate teaching assistants – PG students who do some teaching
HE
higher education
HEAR
Higher Education Achievement Record - a transcript of marks and other
achievements recognised by the University
HEI
higher education institution
IELTS
principal English language test recognised by the Home Office
ILTHE
Introduction to Learning and Teaching in Higher Education – short teaching course
for graduate teaching assistants
INSAT
Institute for Nanoscale Science and Technology
IPP
Institute for Policy and Practice
IRI
Informatics Research Institute
ISB
International Student Barometer – international survey of the experience of
international students
INTO NU INTO Newcastle University
KIS
Key Information Set – government required set of information on every
undergraduate programme
LSE
Learning Support environment (VLE in FMS)
LTSES
Learning, Teaching and Student Experience Strategy
MAF
Module amendment form – form to accompany a new, changed or withdrawn
module.
MedSas
Medical Student Administration System
MOFS
Module Outline Forms System
MOF
Module Outline Form
NESS
Newcastle Elearning Support System - computer system for recording marks
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Acronyms and Terms
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NSS
National Students Survey - annual HEFCE survey of undergraduate students
NTA
Newcastle Teaching Award (module 1 of CASAP)
NuContacts System for identifying and contacting students sortable by personal tutor,
module or programme
NUSU
Newcastle University Students’ Union
OWA
Outlook web access – service for remote access to University e-mail
P2P
Procure to Pay – University system for procuring goods and services
PARTNERS Newcastle University scheme for widening access to the University
PDP
Personal Development Planning (see EPortfolio above)
PDR
Performance development and review – the annual appraisal for all university staff
PEC
Personal Extenuating Circumstances – mitigating circumstances put forward by
students seeking an adjustment e.g. extension; additional attempt and reviewed by or on
behalf of the PEC Committee
PG
Postgraduate – Master’s and Doctoral level provision
PGR
Postgraduate Research – PhDs, MPhils.
PGT
Postgraduate Taught – master’s programmes, postgraduate diplomas and
certificates
PP
Personal Plan
PSRB
Professional, Statutory and Regulatory Body (e.g. an accrediting body)
PRES
Postgraduate Research Experience Survey – survey of the experience of research
students
PTES
Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey – survey of the experience of taught
postgraduate students
QA
Quality Assurance
QCF
Qualifications and Credit Framework – set the minimum requirements in terms of
level and number of credits for particular awards
QSH
Quality and Standards Handbook – draws together all University policies,
procedures and guidelines on maintaining quality and standards
RAS
Remote Application Service – service for remote access to University IT
RDF
Researcher Development Framework - Vitae’s (see below) framework for skills
development of PGR students
ReCap
Newcastle’s system for capturing audio and screen images from lectures
REF
Research Excellence Framework - UK system for periodically assessing HEIs’
research performance
RESIN
Research Information at Newcastle
S3P
Student Self Service Portal
SAMS
Student Attendance Monitoring System
SAP
This refers to the University’s business management software. Essentially this is a
corporate database for Student Administration and Finance amongst other applications.
SELT
Secure English Language Test, as required by Immigration rules
SLcM
Student Lifecycle Management (an application in SAP)
STEM
Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
SIT
Singapore Institute of Technology
SAP SLcM SAP Student Lifecycle Management – system for student data.
SIG
Student Information Gateway – Tab in Myworkplace portal, designed for use by
academics to view student information without having to have SAP access.
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STFC
Science & Technology Facilities Council
Syllabus+ Institutional system for timetabling teaching
TEA
Teaching Excellence Awards – NUSU awards for excellence in teaching and
improving the student experience
TOEFL
Test of English as a Foreign Language – an American test of English competency,
sometimes used instead of IELTS
TSE
Teaching Support Environment – medical staff facing version of LSE
Turnitin
Software package for detecting plagiarism
UELA
University English Language Assessment – diagnostic assessment of English
language ability of foreign students on entry
UG
Undergraduate
UKPSF
UK Professional Standards Framework - HEA framework for University teacher
development
Vitae
UK body which champions the personal, professional and career development of
doctoral researchers and research staff
VLE
Virtual learning environment – web based support materials for teaching
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Acronyms and Terms
Suggestions for additions, deletions and amendments can be sent at any time to
simon.pallett@ncl.ac.uk, as the guide will inevitably need regular updating.
Simon Pallett
Dean of Undergraduate Studies
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
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