Latest blog posts from students

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 make your personal statement stand out

Are you struggling with your personal statement at the moment? Want to stand out of the crowd?

You are not alone, I have gone through the whole process as well. My name is He, a marketing student at the Streatham Campus in Exeter. I am here to share my experience in terms of personal statement when I applied for my Master degree. (more…)

   June 11th, 2020    Applying, Higher Education, Postgraduate, Preparing for University

My Penryn Experience (so far…)

Hey there everyone! My name is Matt and I’m a second year History student lucky enough to be studying at Exeter’s Penryn Campus in Cornwall. There’s a lot to say when it comes to Penryn – and what I’ve included here is really only the surface of it.

On my first visit to campus back in year 12 (4 years ago, what!?) I got completely drenched, it was quite the first impression and cost me a brand-new set of clothes! What struck me immediately though was how I could see myself running from building to building in the Cornish downpours, unfortunately I’ve since realised it’s not as romantic as it sounds – but still a great laugh. I like to think what really sold it to me was hearing about summertime when a huge inflatable waterslide is installed randomly for a day on the hill outside Tremough House, but truthfully the place just clicked with me. So, contrary to the advice of my history teacher and sixth form leader, I put Penryn as my first choice, and can say confidently that I’ve spent the two best years of my life here. (more…)

   June 9th, 2020    Cornwall, Exploring Devon and Cornwall, Higher Education, Life in the South West, Penryn Campus, 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

The Postgraduate life: Managing study and managing your routine

When I made the choice to carry on with my studies by taking on a postgraduate degree, I was left contemplating how an MA schedule would affect by routine. I also questioned how it would fit in around my current job. Funding for an MA can be covered by a government loan, but maintenance loans were scraped for postgraduate students about a year ago. I decided to work part-time and study part-time to remedy this. This way I could ensure that I would have the time to do my MA justice. However, many of my friends have managed to work part-time and study an MA full-time under more stressful time restraints. Still, I was pleased with the choice I made to go part-time while studying an MA in Creativity. An MA offers so many routes for growth and expansion that are not part of the required reading list or contact hours. In this blog, I hope to explain what life is like for a part-time MA student so that others might better be able to decide what pace they want to work at during further study. (more…)

   May 18th, 2020    Miscellaneous, Postgraduate, Studying, The city of Exeter

Staying positive and productive during COVID-19

For many of us, we have never experienced a time quite like the present. We are unable to leave our homes other than for essential shopping or one exercise per day, leaving many unable to see family and friends for long periods of time.

Despite the lockdown presenting us with many physical barriers that have to be followed to ensure everyone’s safety, we should not let the current climate create barriers to positivity and productivity in our minds. It is important to be positive and productive in order to remain on track to achieving all our hopes and dreams in a world post COVID-19, as one day we really will overcome this. (more…)

   May 15th, 2020    Health and wellbeing, Miscellaneous

Freshers’ Week and Term One: What NOT To Worry About

The days leading up to your first week of university can be emotional. I remember feeling a bizarre mixture of excitement and anxiety. My mum grew tearful over nearly everything I did, and I was permanently torn over how much I should take with me. I’m now a postgraduate student at the University of Exeter and I’ve moved five times since moving into halls nearly four academic years ago. I found that adapting to change became easier with that first step of attending Freshers’ week. To remedy those Freshers’ fears, I’ve compiled this list of things NOT to worry about as a new undergraduate. (more…)

   May 4th, 2020    Freshers Week, Higher Education, Life on Campus, Miscellaneous, Preparing for University, Undergraduate

My first year at the University of Exeter

Hi, my name is Cherry Wong and I am a first year LLB Law student. For the past 12 years of my student life, I studied in a local English girls school. Therefore, this is my first year studying in the UK. Studying law has always been my dream and I still remember how excited I was when I first came to Exeter.

(more…)

   May 1st, 2020    accommodation, Higher Education, International, Lectures and Seminars, Preparing for University, Studying, Undergraduate

My lockdown experience

 My name is Maddy and I am a third year BSc Biological Sciences student. I recently saw the University of Exeter International Facebook page post about international students and their experiences in lockdown, and I would love to share mine with you.

I am from Seattle in the United States and I had planned to fly home at the end of March to revise over the break. As the situation worsened at the beginning of March, I wasn’t sure if I would be able to fly home or not. I didn’t know if it was the best idea to fly home if the borders were shut while I was home and I wouldn’t be able to get back for my final year exams. In the end, I decided that I would move my flight home to the beginning of June and that I would stay in England while I assessed how the outbreak would play out.  (more…)

   April 30th, 2020    Miscellaneous, Undergraduate

The difference between studying History at School vs University

Hi everyone! My name is Emily and I’m a 2nd year History student at the University of Exeter. I’m based down at the Penryn campus in Cornwall which I love because it is such a different experience and atmosphere compared to Liverpool which is where I’m from.

I love the independent that university brings, and this doesn’t just mean living alone and things like that but also in my course. When it comes to how you study and quite often what you study, you get to decide what to do which is very different from school. It is exciting, but admittedly a little daunting at first!

(more…)

   April 23rd, 2020    Cornwall, Exams and Assessment, Lectures and Seminars, Penryn Campus, Preparing for University, Studying, Undergraduate

The difference between studying Social Sciences at School vs University: Sociology and Criminology

In my experience studying humanities at university and school is incredibly different. I study Sociology and Criminology at university however neither of these were an option for me at school. I remember finding it so difficult to know what to study at university. I went through a list of degrees and came across Sociology, I had no idea what that word even meant and so I googled it. I then discovered that it was everything that I loved doing in Geography at school and more. It seems crazy that in such a short space of time I went from never having heard of Sociology to choosing it as my degree for the next three years. The main differences that I noticed between school and university were independence, developing a critical mindset and also choice.

(more…)

   April 21st, 2020    Exams and Assessment, Higher Education, Lectures and Seminars, Preparing for University, Studying, Undergraduate

The difference between studying a Humanities subject at School vs University: English and Drama

Hello! My name is Ferdia and I am in my second year studying English and Drama at Exeter. I am originally from Manchester but I love going to a university far away from home as it has given me an increased sense of independence and responsibility. My favourite thing about studying at Exeter is the size of the university and the fact that it is campus based. I think that as a campus there is an increased sense of community and everyone is really friendly so getting to know people and making new friends couldn’t be easier. (more…)

   April 21st, 2020    Exams and Assessment, Higher Education, Lectures and Seminars, Preparing for University, Studying, Undergraduate

The difference between studying Science at School vs University

 

  1. We’re not in the classroom anymore: During school, most people are in a class of about 30 students being taught by the same teacher several times a week. This changes drastically when you are at university. Studying a science degree, your time will most likely be split between lectures, seminars, and labs. Here’s a quick explanation of each.

(more…)

   April 16th, 2020    Exams and Assessment, Higher Education, Lectures and Seminars, Preparing for University, Studying, Undergraduate

Fieldtrip series, Part 2: A coastal walk from Poldhu to Mullion

As the second instalment of my fieldtrip series, we’ve got a fieldtrip which I went on as a fundamental part of my Heritage and Environmental Change module. As one of our assessments focused around the coastal harbour of Mullion, which is situated on the Lizard Peninsula, our first fieldtrip for this module was a coastal walk from Poldhu Cove to Mullion itself. (more…)

   April 9th, 2020    Cornwall, Exploring Devon and Cornwall, Postgraduate, Studying

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