Hello!
Was it really two weeks ago that I blogged! Yikes!
So Saturday just past (4th) was one of the universities open days and I'd been asked to help out again this year for the Faculty of Business and Law - Which im genuinely proud to have been asked to do. As anyone who has been to an open day or worked an open day they can be rather busy events! It was a dreary rainy day in Sunderland though so although it wasn't heaving, there were still a fair amount of people milling about! With the subject talks taking place, things calmed down and I spoke to a few students wishing to study law. It is lovely to speak to people who share the same interests as you do and I end up getting lost in the discussion if law, student life and most often parental worries!
Based on my experience at university I try my best to answer all questions posed to me and pass on any "hints and tips" (im not quite sure how else to term this?) I found through-out my three years, whether it be about the best accommodation or the best bars to go to! This Saturday I also helped take students and parents on a tour of the university campus again helping to answer any questions raised and making sure nobody got lost!
All in all it was a great day, busy and good fun :)
I also started my Masters induction this week! I've been super excited to get back to university and get back into writing and researching again! The summer has been too long but a great break at the same time. It was a two day induction which was just right for the information we were being given, not too fast and not to labouring or boring. I was really worried that I wouldn't know anyone as well on the course and that i would be the lonely kid in the corner....this was dispelled before we had even entered the room for induction! Me and another lady on the course got chatting straight away and we both have similar interests and similar worries! FANTASTIC!
I'm very excited to get started on my first two modules and to explore other areas of law that I haven't previously and to also go back to modules I've already covered but what I am EXTREMELY excited for is in choosing my option modules for my second semester and to start tailoring my masters to my research interests and to what I would like to base my dissertation on, but that doesn't come until around Christmas time ;)
Something that I didn't think about with regards to the masters, but was mentioned, was the "loneliness" of the course due to the differences in each others research areas and the little contact time with lecturers and classmates. I really hadn't thought about that side of the course and it doesn't worry me per se (I'm someone who will speak to anyone really and still have very good friends at the university) but im glad that there will be some social aspect to the course in that we can still go for drinks and meet up to discuss work etc. both as students and with the lecturers.
In all honesty im just wanting to get started and sink my teeth into working again - I'm sure I will be welcoming the breaks in a few weeks time, I'm sure the blogs will tell that story ;)
Oh and just a quick end note to this post - I passed the first stage in applying to be a Student Ambassador and have an assessment center and interview on Tuesday! Keep your fingers crossed for me? Ta!
K
Thursday 9 October 2014
Thursday 25 September 2014
Okay...so we've established im not good at this blogging stuff...
Right,
So its been over 8 month since I last wrote a blog post, and before that it was October, so yeah I'm not so good at keeping up with blogging - I think its rather difficult to keep going with, much harder than I thought it would be! I see other academic's who are able to find time to blog and think "why cant I find the time?!?" Well I'm going to make a concious effort to now blog more often, hopefully once a week.
Okay so a quick update to bring you up to speed on things from January onwards - to be blunt things went very hectic! So I handed in all of my January assignments, and they came back great! I got 1st's and 2:1's which i was very proud of and it helped kick start the new term in a positive way. Things were very busy and it was a case of getting through everyday as best as you can. The work load is really intense and you have to keep your eye on the ball so you don't fall behind as its easily done - I recommend working on things little and often, my method was to spend AT LEAST 30 minutes on each module an evening, which sounds a lot but really isnt! Days off were spent doing all my prep for the week ahead which allowed for me to spend only 30 minutes each night on my subjects. With 6 subjects spending only 30 minutes on each would be 3 hours a night. (easily accommodated for, if you want to, which is usually the problem!). Anyway after all the January assignments were handed in things eased off and it was just the usual hustle and bustle of lectures and seminars for a few weeks.
In February we had the infamous London trip again which for myself and a lot of my friends was something we had been looking forward to for pretty much the whole year (no joke!). Its always a good trip and is a great way to unwind for a few days and get away from all the university stress - this year it didn't disappoint and was a fantastic final London trip for me!
March and April are a bit of a blur for me as it was just pure stress and panic to make sure all my assignments were completed and also to make sure that my dissertation was complete! These months were a mixture of panic dissertation meetings with my supervisor, copious amounts of tea and very very late nights/earl mornings. I think I'm someone who is always very prepared and usually ahead of the game but it all crumbled as the deadlines hit, as the last set of assignments for your final year and knowing that these modules make up 80% of your final degree it adds a HUGE amount of pressure to you and you become far more critical of your work (or I did at least) and virtually all of my assignments were handed in on the days of the deadlines which I've never done for any previous set of assignments.HOWEVER I've never felt such relief in handing in assignments and its something I will never forget!
May was a mixture of happiness and sadness, we all finished university and no longer had to attend lectures or seminars and had our final Exam, we all decided to hit the local bar after the exam (well we did deserve it!) and celebrate our success over the past three years and chat about what we were all doing next! We also had our graduation ball which again was a fantastic end to the three years, and was a great night of food and drinks with a few tears here and there thrown in. It was lovely seeing everyone dressed up and having a good time and lovely to celebrate with the lecturers also.
July was all about one thing.... GRADUATION!!! What an amazing day it was too! Celebrating all my friends success and my own and have my 3 seconds on the stage (my dad recorded it and it literally was 3 seconds!) but regardless of the time on stage it was just such a fantastic day and im so proud of all my friends for their achievements. Quite a lot of people i spoke to at graduation were all so happy and quite a lot of us were even a tad emotional - Its definitely that sort of day! The ceremony side of the day flew by and very quickly it was time to head home - Or my parents for head home ;) Quite a few of my friends were going out for drinks afterwards so i decided that i would join them and just get the train home, some of the lecturers came out later on as well and we all had a fantastic evening :)
Through my three years at university there have been a handful of people that have supported me no end. friends and family helped me through the tough times and kept me going and my degree is not just for myself but also for them. With the right friends and family you can do anything.
So its been over 8 month since I last wrote a blog post, and before that it was October, so yeah I'm not so good at keeping up with blogging - I think its rather difficult to keep going with, much harder than I thought it would be! I see other academic's who are able to find time to blog and think "why cant I find the time?!?" Well I'm going to make a concious effort to now blog more often, hopefully once a week.
Okay so a quick update to bring you up to speed on things from January onwards - to be blunt things went very hectic! So I handed in all of my January assignments, and they came back great! I got 1st's and 2:1's which i was very proud of and it helped kick start the new term in a positive way. Things were very busy and it was a case of getting through everyday as best as you can. The work load is really intense and you have to keep your eye on the ball so you don't fall behind as its easily done - I recommend working on things little and often, my method was to spend AT LEAST 30 minutes on each module an evening, which sounds a lot but really isnt! Days off were spent doing all my prep for the week ahead which allowed for me to spend only 30 minutes each night on my subjects. With 6 subjects spending only 30 minutes on each would be 3 hours a night. (easily accommodated for, if you want to, which is usually the problem!). Anyway after all the January assignments were handed in things eased off and it was just the usual hustle and bustle of lectures and seminars for a few weeks.
In February we had the infamous London trip again which for myself and a lot of my friends was something we had been looking forward to for pretty much the whole year (no joke!). Its always a good trip and is a great way to unwind for a few days and get away from all the university stress - this year it didn't disappoint and was a fantastic final London trip for me!
March and April are a bit of a blur for me as it was just pure stress and panic to make sure all my assignments were completed and also to make sure that my dissertation was complete! These months were a mixture of panic dissertation meetings with my supervisor, copious amounts of tea and very very late nights/earl mornings. I think I'm someone who is always very prepared and usually ahead of the game but it all crumbled as the deadlines hit, as the last set of assignments for your final year and knowing that these modules make up 80% of your final degree it adds a HUGE amount of pressure to you and you become far more critical of your work (or I did at least) and virtually all of my assignments were handed in on the days of the deadlines which I've never done for any previous set of assignments.HOWEVER I've never felt such relief in handing in assignments and its something I will never forget!
May was a mixture of happiness and sadness, we all finished university and no longer had to attend lectures or seminars and had our final Exam, we all decided to hit the local bar after the exam (well we did deserve it!) and celebrate our success over the past three years and chat about what we were all doing next! We also had our graduation ball which again was a fantastic end to the three years, and was a great night of food and drinks with a few tears here and there thrown in. It was lovely seeing everyone dressed up and having a good time and lovely to celebrate with the lecturers also.
Graduation Ball 15th May 2014 - Lumley Castle
June was a big month filled with mostly mundane things like moving back home and figuring out how all of my freshers freebies would fit into my smaller room at home alongside changing work and settling back into living at home again and being miles from anything! However June 26th is a day I will not forget for a long time.....RESULTS DAY! *bites finger nails* results were available from 10am however I was at work until 9am (i worked early shifts ;) ) and my dad was at work all day and didnt want him to miss out on me opening my results, so at 11:50 am when my dad was on his work break I opened up my results and cried my eyes out (to the point I couldn't tell my dad on the end of the phone!) at the top of the screen read "FIRST CLASS WITH HONOURS" - I've never felt so proud in all my life, all my stressing , hard work and dedication had paid off and I couldn't believe it. I owe my lecturers a lot for not only teaching me but also for their support through the three years and it wouldn't have been possible without their help. I'm still don't fully believe that I have a first class Law degree but I do!!
July was all about one thing.... GRADUATION!!! What an amazing day it was too! Celebrating all my friends success and my own and have my 3 seconds on the stage (my dad recorded it and it literally was 3 seconds!) but regardless of the time on stage it was just such a fantastic day and im so proud of all my friends for their achievements. Quite a lot of people i spoke to at graduation were all so happy and quite a lot of us were even a tad emotional - Its definitely that sort of day! The ceremony side of the day flew by and very quickly it was time to head home - Or my parents for head home ;) Quite a few of my friends were going out for drinks afterwards so i decided that i would join them and just get the train home, some of the lecturers came out later on as well and we all had a fantastic evening :)  |
| These two are my rocks: My parents, the most supportive and loving people I could ever wish for. |
August was fairly quiet, it was my 21st birthday and we went on a family holiday which was just what we all needed after the hectic few months we'd all had. Which leads us to September :) September has been all about working - since April I've been working towards saving up for my masters degree, saving every penny I can so I don't have to take out another loan to do what I want to do - September was the final push to get the last little bit I needed towards the fees and I've done it :)
Oh by the way did I mention im staying at Sunderland for my masters degree? :D
I'm SO excited to be staying at Sunderland and cant wait to get started back at uni and get into the swing of things again, seeing friends, writing about law and generally being busy! I start my induction on the 7th of October and it cant come sooner!!
This is a very long post and if you've read it all and made it this far then good on you! and have a lolly pop*, but seriously thank you for reading this i really am going to try and update more often to prevent such long posts in the future! If there is anything that you would like me to cover then let me know in the comments below and I will try my hardest to cover it! If you have any questions or are nervous about starting uni then give me a shout im always happy to help ease nerves about university and dispel those myths as much as I can!
Toodle pip!
K
PS. I spent ages trying to sort out the photos and they just wouldn't go right at all :L apologies for that!
*I have no lolly pop's sorry ;)
Tuesday 7 January 2014
Happy new year and the start of a new semester!
Hello all!
Firstly happy new year to you all, i hope you had a fantastic christmas and that you celebrated in style with loved ones :)
My last post was in october which i must apologise for, things at university took off and I have been snowed under with work ever since!
I spent most of my christmas holidays bouncing back and forth between home and my student house as i work in retail so christmas is the busiest time of year for the shop. When i wasnt working in the shop i was at home working on university assignments and making sure i didnt get behind! All in all i hardly spent any time with my family but i guess thats what happens when your in your final year and working alongside university! Although it was really busy and stressful im still greatful for the time i did have :)
I am now back at university for my last full semester and things havent stopped, definitley had to hit the ground running, ive already handed one assignment in and have another two due next week one of which is my dissertation plan and im extremely nervous and excited to start!
We have also been told we only have another 12 weeks of teaching left which is rather scary i must say! To think in 12 weeks i have "finished" university doesnt seem real! Yes i will still have assignments to write and hand in but thats all done at home - i wont need to be in university! The past 4 years (i did A level law too) will all come down to the next 5 months of hard work and perseverance which hardly seems real, it has flown by and i cant believe that in such a small space of time it will all be over! (You may have guessed im not wanting to leave!) however im planning on going out with a bang! We have our university London trip to look forward to and hopefully a graduation ball too :) so despite all the craziness i still have lots to look forward too :)
I am still looking at doing my masters degree at Sunderland so im not really leaving per se but its going to be so different and such a big change, but as they say change is good, its just the unknown that worries me :)
Well best get back to my assignments, seminar prep and lectures!
Hope you all have a lovely day :)
K x
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