UNSW Foundations of University Learning and Teaching Program (FULT)

The FULT program is designed to support your learning and the assessment tasks have been constructively aligned to the modules, learning activities, and program learning outcomes (which are below): 

1. Reflect on student learning in face-to-face, online and hybrid teaching contexts in higher education, drawing on pedagogical literature. 

2. Analyse problems and educational-design challenges related to learning and teaching, to generate and implement effective and inclusive solutions. 

3. Critically evaluate learning and teaching practices using evidence from a range of sources to enhance and inform inclusive practice. 

4. Apply knowledge, skills, and reflective practice to develop professional judgement, adaptability, and responsibility as a scholarly practitioner in higher education. 

The FULT handbook can be accessed here.

To enrol in the program, you must be employed by UNSW or an approved collaborative partner and have one year of recent teaching experience, or experience in supporting education design and development, within a formal university course and/or workshops and/or seminars for students or staff.  The FULT program focuses on continued teaching development and is not an induction program.

The program builds on prior teaching experience; therefore, it is a requirement that participants have taught/worked in a learning and teaching support role at a university for at least one year before attending FULT. For academic staff appointments, one year is equivalent to teaching 3 terms, 2 semesters or 5 hexamesters. For professional staff appointments we require accumulative one year experience in learning design/development support roles. All experience must be recent (in the past 3 years), and you must be teaching/working in a learning and teaching support role in the year you undertake FULT. It is recommended that during the course of the FULT program you engage in 30 hours of practice. Reflecting on your current practice will enable you to get the most out of the program. 

2024 Dates

UNSW Canberra

In 2024, UNSW Canberra staff will continue to be required to complete FULT as a condition of employment. Please note FULT will run in Sydney only in 2024.

Canberra staff are welcome to join the Sydney iteration through hybrid mode in Term 3 2024. Please register your interest in the Sydney FULT EOI form below.

UNSW Kensington

In 2024, FULT will be running in Term 3 only. If you are required to complete FULT as a condition of employment and started teaching at UNSW from 2021, please register for the Teaching Accelerator Program, which is a recognised alternative to FULT.

Term 3, 2024: FULT2402

The four sessions are not mandatory but highly recommended in order to provide participants with as much information and assistance to complete the four mandatory assessment tasks for each module.

FULT2402 will run from Monday 26 August- Wednesday 13 November 2024.

• Module 1: Learning and Teaching
  • 26 August - 9 September
  • Session: Tues 3 September, 9.30am - 12pm (Tyree in Scientia Building)
• Module 2: Educational Design
  • 9 September - 23 September
  • Session: Tues 17 September, 10am - 12pm (Tyree in Scientia Building)
• Module 3: Assessment and Feedback
  • 23 September - 8 October
  • Session: Tues 1 October, 10am - 12pm (Tyree in Scientia Building)
• Module 4: Reflection and Evaluation of Teaching Practice
  • 8 October - 21 October 
  • Session: Tues 15 October, 10am - 12pm (Tyree in Scientia Building)

Registration

There are 3 steps in the registration process for FULT:

1. Complete the Expression of Interest survey below
2. Complete the registration form (this is emailed to you once registration opens)
3. Enrol in the FULT modules

The first step in the process is to complete the Expression of Interest survey below so we can ensure that FULT is the right program for you. Once you have completed the survey you will be contacted with registration information closer to the program start date.

Expression of Interest

Expression of interest for the Term 3 2024 Sydney iteration of FULT has closed. 

Please contact [email protected] to be added to a waitlist. 

The program has a combination of online and in-class activities. Both are essential for successfully completing the program.

The time allocation expected for completing the four Moodle Modules in FULT is 10 hours per module across 8 weeks (2 hours face-to-face, 4 hours for assessment tasks, 4 hours for online material) totalling 40 hours for the program. After completing the program you will receive the FULT Certificate of Completion. The FULT certificate can be included in your teaching portfolio, and in applications for promotion and other forms of recognition.

Applying for Associate Fellowship, Higher Education Academy (AFHEA)

The UNSW FULT Program is accredited by Advance HE, with participants who successfully complete the program are eligible to apply for the award of Associate Fellow, Higher Education Academy (AFHEA).

Fellowships are a means of acknowledging commitment to professionalism in learning and teaching in higher education. They are based on the Professional Standards Framework (PSF), which sets out the knowledge, skills and values demonstrated by those teaching and/or supporting learning in higher education. This is a globally recognised framework for benchmarking success within higher education teaching and learning support. HEA Fellowship is a new pathway that recognises UNSW staff commitment to learning and teaching.

The following requirements must be met in order to be awarded AFHEA:

• recent experience in teaching, or supporting educational design and development, either, while you are completing FULT or in the term preceding or following FULT
• successfully completion of all four FULT assessment tasks
• submission of a supporting statement (from a referee)

Visit this page to learn about other Fellowship categories and pathways at UNSW.

For academics who have significant teaching experience and formal teaching qualifications, an exemption may be granted on the grounds of one or more of the following:

• successful completion of a tertiary education-focused award qualification (AQF 7 or above) at UNSW or another university
• successful completion of a higher education teaching preparation course equivalent to UNSW's Foundations of University Learning and Teaching (FULT) program
• demonstrated evidence of sustained high quality university teaching and evidence of proficiency

Evidence of proficiency in university teaching includes:

• teaching awards, citations and grants (UNSW, AAUT or equivalent)
• demonstrated contribution to the improvement of learning and teaching (e.g. invited presentations, published physical/digital teaching materials, textbooks, e-games)
• recognised leadership in teaching with evidence of influencing and supporting peers to innovate or change their educational practice and/or policy at course/program/school/faculty/UNSW/external level (e.g. Chair of Learning and Teaching Committee, leadership/invited role in academic development activities and workshops, peer mentoring, pivotal role implementing improvements to learning and teaching in relation to Assurance of Learning or other strategic initiatives, leadership role in collaborative course/program design 
• a portfolio of evidence equivalent to that assembled to develop a teaching case for promotion (this will include MyExperience data but student satisfaction measures along are insufficient.)  Refer to the UNSW Academic Promotions Toolkit for guidance

Please attach evidence of recognition (e.g. award, hard/soft copies or link to publications/teaching materials; presentations/invitations, peer reviews/testimonials/citations; evidence of impact on peers' teaching practice/policy and student learning; documentation of the teaching case for promotion

If you meet these criteria please fill in the Application for Exemption: Foundations of University Learning and Teaching form (PDF) and email the completed form to [email protected]. Applications will be reviewed by the Pro Vice-Chancellor (Education and Student Experience).

After you have completed FULT, you may wish to explore other professional development options such as the Course Design Institute (CDI), please see here.

Frequently reported benefits by previous participants include:

The FULT program aims to help you to develop an understanding of, and skills and confidence in, your teaching practice.

• the opportunity to get feedback on your teaching from colleagues and workshop facilitators in a supportive environment,
• cross-disciplinary sharing of ideas and strategies with colleagues involved in learning and teaching,
• interaction with and support of learning partners and colleagues.

“The FULT course addressed the key challenges younger academics face in different learning contexts. For me, this has been a 180 degree transforming course as to how I prepare, teach and reflect on my teaching practices.” – Krishna Talluru, UNSW Canberra, FULT Alumnus 2023

“The learning lessons from FULT were deeply meaningful to my view of teaching and to be able to see myself comfortably performing tutoring roles, my current practice. I was able to use many of the tools and resources in class already.” - Mariana de Oliveira Yonamine, Casual Academic, Arts, Design and Architecture, FULT Alumnus 2023

“The course confirmed that I've doing things well, but more importantly gave me tools that I could try immediately with the classes I teach. There has been an immediate increase in engagement, a half grade increase in marks, and new skills learned in many areas.” - Rick De Sousa, Casual Academic, UNSW Business School, FULT Alumnus 2023

The aim of the FULT Alumni Network is to provide an opportunity for alumni to get together and explore the latest issues, innovations and future directions in higher education learning and teaching.

The network will meet 2 times a year and supports the leadership potential of alumni as champions of learning and teaching.

Anyone who is a current UNSW staff member that has completed the FULT program in the past, is invited to be a part of the network.

Find out more about the FULT Alumni Network and its activities.

Following the June 2020 meeting, the FULT Alumni Network was invited to submit a Good Practice Case Study for Educational Excellence. Several case studies were selected to be featured on the Teaching Gateway website.