StEPs

UoB came up with something new last year: Student Experience Projects (StEPs). An opportunity for students to bid for funding from the university to put toward university student led projects. I went along to one this week as I was presenting an idea (I proudly came in the runnings, cheers!) and found it to be quite exciting and nervewrecking at the same time. I've NEVER volunteered to do a presentation, but somehow got intertwined in this one, which had its perks. As a professional in human services you have to develop some kind of presenting and people skills, so I was glad to be pushed out of my comfort zone, and although I fumbled and threw away my disorganised flash cards halfway through, I was glad to have done it and I know I will get better next time.

There were four other bidders, each with a unique suggestion, but I have to say that each one of us really needed to do our homework better. I realised that as students, I haven't met many that imagine they can step out and do something original in the way of projects and enterprises (unless already on a business degree). We get this idea that we are learning theory and academia to find our place in the employment world...but what if that is not for us? What if we have something bigger and better and new inside of us to develop? Scary no?

As I said we all needed to do more homework in preparation for the Dragon's Den type event last Tuesday, as such I would recommend the B-Innovate Programme (a european course run right here in our UoB) or Prince's Trust Enterprise Programmes. Any avenue to teach you about business plans, projected cash flows, budgeting and logistics. Perhaps in Applied Social Sciences or my own Child and Adolescent Studies, opening your own project is not what you had in mind, but we don't know what the future holds and at best it is good to look behind the scenes what occurs in welfare economics and national budgeting even in a small way.

Note-Taking and Revision Ideas

Writing on the lines


 The old-school way of learning, and to be honest it still works perfectly for some people. You follow the lecturer and write down the things that are important, that stand out to you, or (if you're a visual learner like me) just so you can see it on paper and print it in your mind before filing it away and never looking at it again (okay, do as I say but NOT as I do on that one!).

Bullet Points


 I LOVE my bullet points, and to be fair they get involved with all kind of note taking, but rather than write odd words here and there, or complete sentences or phrases that are often repetitive and unnecessary, incorporate bullet points.

Highlighting and Different Coloured Pens!

 Okay, maybe  this is my OCD side coming out, but I highlight in a colour co-ordinated fashion, purple is references, yellow are key facts, and when it comes to trying to find out that key bit of information from hundreds of notes, it really helps.

Interacting with Printed Slides

 Lecturers will often put up their slides on BREO prior to their talk (and if they don't you can always ask). I did this a lot in my first year AND used it for revision to remember everything I had learnt.

Mind Maps

 I actually picked this one up recently at a training day in my school, and I realised I already used mind maps but perhaps not to its full potential! You start with your main theme, ideologies for example (but it could be childhood perceptions, welfare systems etc.) and create branches on the different stems like Marxism (or Universialism, Feminism, etc.). Marxism would then have branches to define what it stands for, how it is perceived in today's world, or you could even start a new mind map on a new piece of paper. This is great for in class note taking or for revision too.

 Check out this youtube clip on Mind Maps for language learning (we're learning our own academic language remember) and the guy explains how powerful it is for our brain connections.

and don't forget the Recommended Books

Essential

Cottrell, S. (2008) The Study Skills Handbook, 3^rd edn., Houndmills: Palgrave

Moore, S., Neville, C., Murphy, M. & Connolly, C. (2010) The Ultimate Study Skills Handbook, Milton Keynes: The Open University

Background

Greetham, B. (2008) How to write better essays, 2^nd edn., Houndmills: Palgrave

McMillan, K. & Wevers, J. (2006) Smarter Study Skills Companion, Harlow: Pearson

Pears, R. & Shields, G. (2010) Cite them Right: the Essential Referencing Guide, 8^th edn., Houndmills: Palgrave

Stogdon, C. & Kiteley, R. (2010) Study Skills for Social Workers, London: Sage

Term 2 Portfolio Executive Meeting/Student Representative

This week is my second Portfolio Executive Commttee (PEC) where I get to play my part as Student Representative and bring up issues in the course, or conversely, positives that students want more of (i.e. effective teaching styles, support they have received, etc.).

To be honest we usually bring up negatives, but as a mentor of mine used to say: if a place is clean nobody notices, but if it's dirty you'll hear of it! So as Student Reps we usually take the opportunity to mention changes we would like to see, further clarification, issues among students, anything really that has impacted the positive experience of students that they have spoken to myself or other representatives about. Last PEC it was student behaviour, how some students had impacted negatively on others by consistently talking in lectures and we wanted to work unitedly to discourage this kind of behaviour. This PEC one of my current issues is a need our dyslexic student have with getting coloured handouts, handouts are not policy but for those who need extra help or cannot read clearly the information on presentation slides, this was a recognised need. One lecturer is very up to date on policies for the disabled or students with special educational needs backed up my point and we are now addressing it for our students.

I was terrified when I first was nominated for this role, public speaking it not my forte and I hated the idea of having to speak for a whole class. But I was flattered that I'd been nominated, and figured you can only try and learn from the experience. I'm really glad I have now, as it has boosted my confidence levels amazingly, on a personal level but also in my relationship with my lecturers, naturally we don't always see eye-to-eye, but I've come to respect them as individuals each with a professional history, with great ethics and wanting the best us and our dreams. I feel my levels of diplomacy and tact have developed also, and I've learnt to present my own ideas, refer to others and to come up with some solutions! Which is the whole point of a PEC meeting, not just to criticise but to find solutions and keep improving on what we have.

I would definitely recommend give Student Rep a shot, or utilising the one on your course for support.

#100HappyDays 1-9

If you're a social network surfer then you've probably seen the current trend of #100HappyDays; one of the more inspiring and meaningful trends drifting on and off our cyber-walls (check out nicknomination and neknomination if you don't believe me). 

Using a photo or just a simple sentence, document your life for 100 days in 100 things that has made you smile (one for each day). I've too many friends saying their life sucks, or they are unhappy, but in my opinion (and painful experience) it's due to not taking the time to appreciate, relax and enjoy your life! It's hard and terribly sad that we can't take two minutes to appreciate the sun shining after you've left a demanding day at work, or a precious moment with a friend, but it's not impossible.

By the time I am finished, 100 days later, I will have 100 photos captured (come rain or shine) that depict what has made me happy, made my day, and a little reminder of why my life is worth living. I definitely recommend signing up here and sharing it with your friends to enjoy this life that only comes once and is too short to be spent without happiness.

A Reflective Moment on a Wet and Gloomy Day

Wet, wet, wet week this week. Amidst the perks and excitement of student life, lies the plain old hard work of assignments, lectures and seminars that sometimes I just wish I could miss. But here is the moment when a professional is born - at least that's what I keep telling myself.

University and the professional world isn't always going to be a walk in the park, sure there will be days when you wake up and you can't wait to get started, but then there are the other days when you make yourself get up. Sometimes you'll love your assignment/work and enjoy the exploration and new learning that goes with it, other times you'll just want to quit, and wish it was all over. You'll go into university/work and hi-five your mates and roll with the day, and others you'll just want to go back to bed.

But it's in these moments that you keep going that greatness becomes you. Just don't give up, keep going and keep climbing, and through the pressure and stress and hard work, a diamond will form and believe me when I say you will be glad you kept going. When you look back on your life/university years, you will see the person you wanted to be, who didn't give up, who believed in his/her cause and ability, and achieved great things.

Good luck!

Go Global!

As previously mentioned, I had the great honour of participating in Go Global, a student exchange program with the university last July where I visited Beijing, China for two weeks. Definitely one of the most exhilarating experiences of my life, with some wonderful friends made because of it. So go! I say go! Yes you may find it a weird and out of your comfort zone, definitely a world away from our western European culture here in Bedfordshire, but you will learn so much seeing things from the other side of the world, and definitely have a story or two to tell the grand children - for example the time you tripped and fell while strolling along the Great Wall of China! Now that's got a punch to it!

A lot of our days were taken up in the classroom, so prepare yourself for that, learning about Chinese literature, history and language, and then out and about to practice that Mandarin! We visited the great Wall of China, the forbidden City, Summer Palace and more beautiful places with the individual flavour of China's rich historical culture. Alongside this we dined every day in a Chinese university and met with the students, thus getting the tourist as well as the real world of Beijing.

The application is straightforward until you come to the personal statement, and once again you must sell yourself! Think of every deep, intelligent reason why going abroad would be a great experience for your personally and career-wise, how you appreciate and want to learn about other cultures, and can apply this stepping out, exclusive experience to your psyche. And…here's a suggestion, even if you don't get on the trip, keep applying, or perhaps push yourself into taking your own trip abroad, doing some volunteering or staying in a hostel with some friends; university is unlike any other time of your life so I recommend making the most of it.

As my shot above represents, this year they are having two trips, one to China and the other to Vietnam, as well as the opportunity to report on your trip and achieve a Global Leadership Award, a fabulous plus.

Pictures speak louder than words so here are a few shots I took during our fantastic trip - thanks UoB!

Applying, Step 2: Applications

Although I usually post on a Friday I thought my wee words of wisdom might be useful to anyone out there who is at this moment struggling with sending in their applications for university next academic term - and who may just be sending it off for a social science's degree. The deadline is Wednesday, 15th January at 6pm - London time! Go to this link for any last minute decision makers or breakers!

*

Writing my application was a lot harder than I thought it would be, a lot of question answering, online forms, and general digging for evidence. I originally considered it to be my grades that would be my downfall, however with encouragement from the lecturers and staff I had met at the Open Days, I applied first, rather than wait to get a chance through clearing. While time-consuming, most of it is straightforward clicking and personal details, but as I said, I just had to dig out all my old school days certificates, GCSE's, NVQ's, even things like ICT, or Child Safeguarding. I searched high and low for all the evidence I could find to show that I had worked hard academically and made as much use of my time as possible through experience and worthwhile projects. I also contacted my former NVQ Assessor, a wonderful, relaxed and experienced woman, who straight away agreed to be a reference for my application, as she knew my work ethic as well as the studious side of me in my written work. Someone like that is probably your best bet because you want the university to know you're a worthwhile person as well as can hold a pen and formulate some ideas on paper.

Finally, I needed to write my statement. Never ever written anything like it before! I decided to go for the straightforward approach, and just tell my life story from beginning to end, trying to join the dots to show that this degree was perfect for me. Perfect because I had done volunteering for a community centre who supported young people; perfect because I had worked in nurseries for two years and knew the foundations to childhood that could be built upon within the degree; perfect because although I've tried out different career paths, I have always been drawn to supporting others, especially children and families. Perfect because I didn't know what I wanted to do with my life! - but this degree could open up so many ideas and pathways to my future.

Your life story may not be as long as mine was, you may have nothing in the way of experience, but somewhere, inside, you have something that wants to give to and help others, whether behind the scenes or on the frontline. And it's that something that you need to put in your statement.

Good luck!

Applying, Step 1: Open Days/which Degree?

Thinking back to this time of year before I began uni: I didn't really have a clue to go about it. I knew I wanted to learn a new skill and have something more to contribute to my career, so I decided to take the time to find out about uni and if it would be what I needed (I had done an advanced National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) and enjoyed it thoroughly, but uni is quite a different ball game).

First I found out about Open Days. I can't emphasis enough how important this is, if you are applying to universities away from home then it's equally important. Giving you a chance to walk about, meet students (ask them the questions you may be too embarrassed to ask the lecturers, you'll be surprised with their frank and insightful responses), and find out more about the courses you may be interested in. Keep your mind open to the other degrees under the umbrella of the area you are interested in, even if you think you already know what you want. Tell student ambassadors and lecturers that you are to meet what you enjoy and want to learn, maybe your idea of what you want to become once you graduate, and they will be able to direct you to some good choices.

I remember at the time I applied I was convinced I wanted to teach, so I asked for a degree that might prepare me for a PGCE but still explore other avenues within the care an education world - due to the fact three years is a long time, anything can happen and you can change as a person in your desired and decisions.

During the open day, in saying I wasn't sure on what degree to take, I was recommended a few, however I was also recommended to meet with the head lecturer of the degree. I remember being mortified! Meeting someone I didn't know with no idea of what to talk or what questions to ask, but I tried to come up with a few and I found the lecturers I spoke to very helpful and giving me confidence in the degree that I eventually chose (this also helped with my applying statement which I will cover in a following post).

Personally speaking I chose the University of Bedfordshire (UoB) because it was close and convenient to home and friends, but that's not to say I would have gone if I was not impressed with the staff and environment of learning. Someone else might find that in going to a few universities that they find one that fits them like a glove, and kudos to you, but two years on and I am still happy with the UoB as I find it gives me what I need.

Happy New Year!

In tradition of a New Year countdown, in order of awesomeness are 13 firsts from 2013. You’ll probably have a few questions that I will expand on these in the coming year.

Number 13: Finished academic year of university, something I doubted I could ever do – many thanks to my lecturers and partner for believing in me.

12: Wrote my first essay plan that I then wrote from in class.

11. Wrote my first 2,000-word report.

10: And my first 2,500 word essay.

9: Took part in my first mock case conference in the human services – terrifying but liberating.

8: Attended my first Portfolio Executive Committee (PEC) Meeting as Course Representative for my year group (more on this coming soon).

7: My first research project from secondary research - the research was already done and I applied my own research questions and reported on the findings. Lots of fun!

6: Took part in my first charity event with my society, such a good feeling of spending my time well and for others.

5: Learnt some of my first Mandarin words and phrases – “chigga chigga!”

4: Graduated from the University’s B-Innovate 12 week Business Course.

3: Organised my first social event, thanks to the inspiration of my course society.

2: Although not university orientated, my partner and I founded our own business in July and it has been growing since. This learning curve has boosted my confidence and flexibility in so many ways.

1: Visited Beijing, China, on the Student Exchange Summer Program. Definitely a coolio!

Happy New Year! – Here is to you following your dreams wherever they lead and living and learning to the full in the 365 days to come! x

Merry Christmas!

Whether you are someone who celebrates the Christmas season or not, the holidays are all the more sweet after your assignments in December. In speaking to students from other courses, I believe I am right to say that following Block 1 in Term 1 your tutors love to give you a nice big assignment to hand in…or two…or three! I was almost in tears this end of term, simply because I was so happy to have it all done and dusted and be able to travel home to see my family and take a couple of days to think about something else. If you aren't local to your university, it's precious time to go and see loved ones instead of just texting them every now and then to tell them how stressed you are (that would be me). But then I have a sneaky suspicion that in the third year of university you do not get the luxury as many of my third year friends tell me they will be working hard over the break to be ready for assignments once they return, so make the most of it!

As someone who likes to enjoy Christmas to the full, I was really happy to hear that the TreeHouse Faith and Community Centre were hosting a Carols by Candlelight service this month, in our beautiful St Mary's church which is right next to the Luton Campus. This is the second time I have gone, with mince pies and mulled wine it was a great excuse to go and soak up the essence of Christmas with traditional carols and thoughtful words that warm your heart in this icy, bleak time of the year. And it is bleak, with very little sunlight, heavy winds and dark, cold nights, you need a little pick-me-up to lift your heart and remind you that you are not alone.

The TreeHouse is located on the ground floor of the business centre, and offer  quiet and cosy rooms to pray, relax, meditate, or just make friends whatever your beliefs  With tea and coffee, couches and even their own real tree house, it's a great place to nurture that other part of your mind and heart. Coordinated by Reverend Andrew but run on the ground by other student volunteers, involved with happening events such as the Mandela Tribute earlier this month. I would definitely recommend this place if you need a little boost and friendship from like-minded people. Here are some of their details:

sign up:http://eepurl.com/bcrew

online: www.tree-house.org.uk and: www.beds.ac.uk/treehouse

on facebook: http://on.fb.me/uobtreehouse

on twitter: https://twitter.com/UoBTreehouse

Do forgive me for not wishing some of you a Happy Christmas in time, but I hope you all enjoy a terrific and exhilarating new year!

Group Work/Assignments

So it's official. 2nd year is where it all starts, forget your easy, chilled out 1st year where you pass assignments like a breeze, gaining experience and skill but not really bothering too much about the outcome. The second year is where your grades count towards what standard a degree you are getting, 1st, 2nd or standard, and the pressure is on! I don't even know where the pressure came from, I know I can do my work, and I know I have a decent standard to boot, but when you know you are capable of more, you have to attempt it, and it's a pain and joy at the same time.

This month I managed to complete 3 Assignments across 3 of my 4 units. A 2,000 word essay, an essay plan and consequently an in class writing of that essay, and a group work presentation on a case study.  And yes, a few times I thought to myself I don't know how I'm going to do it up to the standard I want.

Group work has always been a little touch and go on our course, with some people talking about how great it was (I got an A+ last year on my group work) and others hating it. However in the human services that we are studying, you have to learn to work with people - what more can I say except that this is another valuable opportunity.

THE SWOT OF GROUP WORK 

Strengths - Many hands make light work and represent a holistic (well-rounded) approach to the task at hand.
Weaknesses - Lack of mutual respect, one needs to learn to work together and tolerate the differences of style but recognise that the job needs to be done and it's gotta be done together.
Opportunities - You get to see things from different angles, and someone will always end up researching something that you hadn't thought of and just may be the key to getting that extra boost to your grade.
Threats - No matter how hard you try there will always be that possibility that your team mate will let you down. They might get a different message from what was in your planning, may do everything BUT sit down and work, but that's why it's so important to communicate, communicate, communicate, and take the time to bond as a group.

I considered myself lucky this time around as we did some quality work together and enjoyed ourselves too.

A very happy Anna after handing in all assignments before we break up for the holidays - the next one is the day we get back!