Facilities
St George’s is the only UK university, which specialises in healthcare education and is based on a hospital site, namely St George’s Hospital, where the Channel 4 television series 24 hours in A&E is filmed. We offer a unique opportunity to study and work alongside the full range of clinical professionals and their patients. Based in the thriving multi-cultural hub of Tooting in South West London, our location has the added advantage of being just a short tube ride from Central London and all the city lifestyle has to offer.
St George’s Hospital has a leading respiratory and sleep service, which provides services for both adult and paediatric placements. In addition to offering placements, members of the clinical team undertake specialist teaching sessions for students on advanced sleep studies (polysomnography) and non-invasive ventilation used to treat respiratory failure.
We also have a range of specialist health and academic facilities to support your learning, listed below.
Anatomy suite
The anatomy suite is where present and future healthcare professionals and scientists in the hospital and University learn or expand on their anatomy knowledge directly from the human body, through access to high quality anatomy resources. These include plastinated (preserved) specimens, osteological materials, anatomical models and digital/imaging resources such as Anatomage tables and Complete Anatomy.
Pathology museum
Our on-site museum houses a collection of over 2,000 pathological specimens, including a number of original specimens donated by Sir Benjamin Collins Brodie in 1843. This space is used for small group tutorials by students across all of our courses as an educational tool to help you understand the mechanisms of disease.
Clinical cubicles
We have a large number of clinical cubicles to help students across many courses build their skills in physical examinations, while getting used to a clinical environment, reflecting our hands-on approach to student development. We have four clinical skills rooms used for teaching communication and clinical skills. Each room is equipped with a ward style set up including beds, skeletons and mannequins for teaching. In the first year, we will use these cubicles to practise routine skills, such as performing ECG, blood pressure, pulse oximetry, spirometry, checking for vital signs, and resuscitation techniques. Using the latest patient manikins, or your fellow students, you can recreate healthcare scenarios and learn to solve problems prior to going out on placement.
Library and learning technology
Our modern health sciences library offers a wide range of books, e-books, academic journals and other resources to support you. You will also have access to online resources, such as the Canvas virtual learning environment
and our Hunter discovery service to help you find the information you need. The library is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and comprises silent, quiet and group learning areas, as well as four group discussion rooms.
IT facilities
We have five computer suites housing 260 workstations. Three of these suites are accessible 24 hours a day. It’s easy to find a free space with our handy real-time computer locator. We also have 75 self-service laptops available. Free Wi-Fi covers the whole campus, including all accommodation. You can use these resources to access your course materials, discussion boards and feedback through Canvas.
Student support
Whether you are heading off to university straight from school or college, or returning to education as a mature student, we want to ensure your experience is positive from the outset. At St George’s, you’ll be welcomed by a multicultural student and staff body of different ages, ethnicities, nationalities and backgrounds, all with one thing in common – an interest and passion in healthcare, science and medicine.
Students frequently tell us they greatly appreciate the diversity of our student and staff body, as well as the patients who access healthcare services in the borough of Tooting. We attract a substantial number – over two-thirds – of ‘mature’ students, aged 21 or over when they start; many have family and caring responsibilities.
We offer a full range of academic support and student services across all institutes, departments and faculties, some of which are listed below. We take pride in offering a transformative educational experience underpinned by cooperation and collaboration between staff and students. Our innovative Student-Staff Partnership Grants (SSPGs), for example, provide funding for small projects led jointly by students and staff.
Academic personal tutor
On arrival, you will be allocated a personal tutor – someone with whom you can have regular contact, who you ask questions and discuss problems with, both academic and personal. The main purpose of a personal tutor is to monitor your progress, pick up and help you resolve any problems, whether academic or welfare related. Even if they don’t have the answer they will point you in the right direction towards the best people to deal or support you with specific problems.
Induction programme
Within your first week at St George’s, you’ll take part in an induction programme to help with your orientation and introduce you to various study skills, including interprofessional learning and use of the Anatomy suite. Additional sessions provide advice and guidance about the Registry, Students’ Union, personal tutor system, safety, occupational health and sexual health awareness.
Academic staff support
You’ll have access to your lecturers, usually by arrangement via email.
Clinical placement support
We have service level agreements with most placement sites and the specialist cardiology and respiratory/sleep lecturers act as clinical placement co-ordinators. They work closely with placement sites to ensure all students receive high quality training and mentoring whilst on clinical placements, and will visit students during placements to support and monitor progress.
Mums and dads scheme
‘Mums and dads’ is a buddy scheme organised by the Students’ Union. Every fresher (first year student) has the choice of being assigned a ‘parent’ from the year above in their respective course. The returning student then acts as a ‘go to’ for advice about courses and university life, providing an additional support system during your first year, both academically and socially. They have been in your position and know the struggles of starting university; they also know all of the best pubs, clubs, restaurants, gyms and will help introduce you to your new St George’s family.
Student Life Centre
Our Student Centre team can help you with every aspect of student life: finances, accommodation, exams and assessment, academic procedures, admissions, international queries, disability and wellbeing, even finding your way around – whatever it takes to make you feel at home. Each course has a designated contact within the student centre to link to and your personal tutor can signpost you to relevant support, including a confidential counselling service.
Careers service
Our careers service works to support current students and recent graduates to find and maintain the career of their dreams. We work with careers tutors from each course area to ensure that careers activities specific to your programmes and future profession come to you.