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Preparing yourself mentally for University

As the start of your first (and second, third!) years at university quickly approach, it can be so easy to get completely swept up in all the practical preparations, to-do lists and general chaos of organising all your belongings into piles ‘to take’, ‘to charity shop’, or to put in the vague ‘undecided’ category that you convince yourself you’ll come back to later… It’s no surprise then that people often forget to take a moment to think about how to prepare themselves mentally for the transition from A Levels or gap years to the academic and social life of university. Here’s where I’ll do half the work for you by prompting you to think about some ways you can prepare before even arriving on campus and generally just make the most of your time studying for a degree. (more…)

   April 12th, 2021    Higher Education, Lifestyle, Preparing for University, Studying, Undergraduate

5 most common worries about going to university… and why you don’t need to be

Coming to university can often be a scary and unfamiliar journey…but fear not you have nothing to worry about – you’ll absolutely love it! Here are 5 common worries that you need not fret about: (more…)

   March 1st, 2021    Careers, Food and eating, Higher Education, Lifestyle, Miscellaneous, Studying, Undergraduate

5 tips to get involved in Freshers Week

 

1. Online Freshers Fair
It’s inevitable Freshers Fair has to be moved online due the pandemic. With the accessibility of social media platforms, engage with other students on Facebook and Instagram, where you can find support in the big Exeter community. There would be online events, such as live Q&A, Instagram takeovers and society socials! As a committee member of Body Society, I would also be participating in the online cocktail and cooking class socials.

(more…)

   September 4th, 2020    Freshers Week, International, Lifestyle, Preparing for University, Undergraduate

5 things I wish I knew before coming to university

Studying

Contact Hours
Despite being a university student, and told that you should become more independent and not rely on your lecturers and tutors to spoon feed you your learning materials, don’t forget that you can always seek help from your tutors during contact hours.

If I had a chance to repeat year one, I would better utilise contact hours because tutors are so helpful to answer any of your questions to prepare you for your assignments and exams. I had a few assignments which I thought I did not do well enough, and after approaching academics during contact hours for feedback, I actually made significant improvements in my next assignment because I had a very clear understanding of what I had to improve on.

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   August 24th, 2020    Freshers Week, Higher Education, International, Lifestyle, Miscellaneous, Preparing for University, Undergraduate

Typical Week as a 2nd Year Medical Sciences Student

Welcome to my blog! I’ll be sharing my typical week as a 2nd year Medical Sciences student.

The timetable varies quite significantly in 2nd year depending on the modules you take. Some have fewer contact hours compared to others. For my second term, I chose the ‘Introduction to Neuroscience’ and the ‘Medical Genetics’ modules (I enjoyed the content of both modules to its entirety so I highly rate them). Of course, these were integrated onto my timetable alongside the core modules (Disease, Diagnostics and Therapeutics (DDT) and Principles of Medical Research (PMR)). (more…)

   June 26th, 2020    Lectures and Seminars, Life on Campus, Lifestyle, Preparing for University, Studying, Undergraduate

A Typical Week at the University of Exeter as a 2nd Year BA English Student

Hi, my name is Isla and if you haven’t read any of my blog posts before, lovely to virtually meet you, otherwise, welcome back. I’m going to break down my usual week at Exeter uni as a 2nd year English student… (more…)

   June 12th, 2020    Freshers Week, Health and wellbeing, Lectures and Seminars, Life on Campus, Lifestyle, Preparing for University, Studying, Undergraduate

How to study productively and efficiently at home

Hi, my name is Isla and I am currently studying for my BA English degree at Exeter University. With the current pandemic and studies disrupted, tackling that pile of coursework you’d rather avoid, combined with health concerns and a distracting home environment is daunting. It’s easy to say ‘I just study better in the library’ but there are methods and tools out there to help you create the best study space you can at home.

Managing my studies around a busy timetable (I am part of three society committees, a subject representative and have a job alongside my studies) has encouraged me to find any resources I can to help with working at home productively and efficiently. I’m going to share with you some of the tools and study methods I use to keep up with work and still have time for Netflix and a social life (well more of a Zoom/Facetime life now). (more…)

   June 9th, 2020    Distance Learning, Exams and Assessment, Health and wellbeing, Lifestyle, Preparing for University, Studying, Undergraduate

7 things lockdown makes me miss about Exeter: Thoughts from a 2nd Year

Hi, I’m Prutha! I’m a second year Economics and Finance student from Dubai, and this quarantine really got me reflecting on the many plans my friends and I had once term ended, exams were over and the good times began. Instead , I’m 7 seas away from them and the only thing on my mind is how much I miss my time at university. So whether you’re enjoying quarantine, just graduated, or a fresher looking to study here, here’s 7 things I miss about Exeter.

  1. The good times with all my pals:

Late night talks, nights out, trying to keep up with the British drinking games, 8:30 AM lectures, board games, disastrous cooking sessions and all the other everyday adventures I had with my friends and all the hours I spent laughing with them (or at them).

(more…)

   May 29th, 2020    Exploring Devon and Cornwall, Health and wellbeing, Higher Education, International, Life in the South West, Life on Campus, Lifestyle, Miscellaneous, Studying, The city of Exeter, Undergraduate

Musings of a mature student – Eating well and staying healthy

Musings of a mature student

I have to budget (like all of us do!) as a student, so I have been looking at ways to eat well and save pounds….and lose pounds too! My food bill is around £25-£30 per week, although a lot of that is on things that take a long time to use up, like oil, salt, mayo… store cupboard essentials. Although there are many great (and heavily discounted) eateries around campus, and it’s great to eat out with friends, there is something satisfying about cooking and having friends round to dinner. Even better if you club together to buy the ingredients or have different hosts even once a week.

The important thing is to strike a balance – it would be great to have dedicated ‘eat out together’ nights and some eat-in dinner parties too and think what you could do with the money you save! (more…)

   March 20th, 2020    Food and eating, Lifestyle, Miscellaneous

Let me Introduce Myself…

So this is my first post for the University of Exeter! It’s my hope to connect with some students, who, perhaps like me are older than the average student age group, or for other reasons find it a little daunting integrating into Uni life. Over forty (but not over the hill) – suddenly life seems very short, but the crazy idea to go back into studying was the best idea I had heading towards fifty! Also, I think as you mellow into your mature years you realise your options are not something that you have masses of time to mull over, and you really value this chance. (more…)

   February 24th, 2020    Higher Education, Lifestyle, Miscellaneous, Postgraduate     , , , ,

Tips for the First Term

It still seems hard to believe that I have already completed a term in college. With a masters degree, I seem to always be on my feet trying to finish one reading list after the other. Before I could even feel settled, I had to start writing assignments, finding a work placement and acclimating to the weather. Here are the few things that really helped in sailing through the term: (more…)

   February 19th, 2020    Cornwall, International, Lifestyle, Miscellaneous, Postgraduate, Studying

Mind Over Natter: lunchtime wellbeing sessions

Mind Over Natter

The ‘Mind Over Natter’ talks are a series of lunchtime wellbeing sessions, taking place on regular Wednesdays at 12.45pm. Each session will address a different topic with a different speaker, providing advice and understanding for how students and staff can manage their own wellbeing. Please contact us if you have an idea for one of the sessions or know someone who would keen to run a talk themselves. Wellbeing counsellor, Kathy O’Connor, led the way as our first speaker.

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   February 13th, 2020    Life on Campus, Lifestyle, Miscellaneous

UK bucket list

If you made the wonderful decision to move to the UK to pursue your undergraduate studies or as part of an exchange student, I assume it’s partly because you want to experience part of the culture this country has to offer. With that in mind, allow me to suggest to you my top ten things to do while here to make the most, not only of the country but of the perks of living in this beautiful corner! (more…)

   May 22nd, 2019    Cornwall, Exploring Devon and Cornwall, Food and eating, Lifestyle, Studying abroad, The city of Exeter, Year Abroad

Things that surprised me about the UK

When moving to England there are certain things everybody comments about, a little bit about the weather, a subtle comment about Netflix’s The Crown, perhaps even a nod towards the imaginary that they really love their tea. Additionally, you will most likely know a lot of things from the culture that undoubtedly moved you towards considering and eventually choosing a university on this lovely little island. For me, I knew quite a bit about the culture, my school was a ‘British School’, I had visited quite a few times, and some of my closest friends had done their undergrad in different British universities. So over-all, I felt I had a decent picture or understanding of how my time there would go.

Nonetheless, the theory of living in England and the practice of living in England are quite different things and within the reality of it, there were a few things that actually took me by surprise. These are things that are probably no secret to anyone, I even knew about some of them coming here, but, again, the way they played out made them come as a surprise. (more…)

   May 22nd, 2019    Life on Campus, Lifestyle

5 quick breakfast ideas for students

Even though I am somewhat of an early bird, I still have my mornings and days when I truly don’t want to get out of bed, much less get out of bed just to go to the kitchen to make myself some breakfast. However, even when I’m tired or just not feeling it, skipping breakfast is a no-go for me. Breakfast is an essential part of my morning routine and having a good one helps me feel like I’m off to the right start.

To this end I love finding the balance between something easy and quick, while also being wholesome. Thankfully this is not hard to achieve. It just requires a bit of preparation, but nothing too extreme, I promise. So here are my five to go breakfasts for when I rather spend some extra time in my bed. (more…)

   April 30th, 2019    Food and eating, Lifestyle, Miscellaneous

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