Natacha V.

I have a PhD in Organic and Medicinal Chemistry and have over 20 years experience in further education.

I have been a lecturer and taught modules on organic and medicinal chemistry as well as drug discovery at undergraduate and postgraduate levels at several universities including the University of Birmingham, the University of Sheffield and Imperial College London. I have supervised and supported several masters and PhD students in chemistry and biochemistry. I have also assessed and provided feedback both at undergraduate and postgraduate levels.

I have prepared and delivered organic chemistry teaching as well as material on transferable skills e.g maths, computing, presentation skills and successful exam strategies since 2020.

I have tutored many A level students in chemistry and am familiar with both AQA and Pearson exam boards as well as IB.

I have prepared exam questions and can effectively support my students in understanding how to understand and answer questions appropriately for maximum marks.

Having been a pastoral tutor since 2011, I recognise the importance of offering adequate support to students to help them achieve their best. I am proud that attendance at my university tutorials is 100%. That shows that my students value the quality of the academic and pastoral support that I provide.

I believe that as a teacher, my role is to facilitate learning. I strive to foster an inquisitive mind and encourage students to be actively engaged in their education. Importantly, beside learning the subject, I try to instil self confidence and equip students with coping mechanisms to become independent thinkers and learners.

My teaching style is patient, structured and interactive. Each lesson will be specifically designed to the student’s need and relevant syllabus specifications. I develop strategies with individual student to help them develop confidence and problem-solving skills. I employ an “active learning” approach, where the student is totally engaged in their learning as opposed to a `lecturing` style, with the goal of achieving the best grades possible.

I am an empathetic person who can relate to each student and have a strong reputation of being able to bring out the best out of each student without being pushy.