Hobbling my way to the end of term

Hi again! I’ve been pretty quiet with these blogs recently, but there’s been a lot going on!

Uni life has taken a bit of an unexpected turn recently. I landed a dodgy somersault in training at the end of February which has resulted in a dislocated and seriously fractured ankle, 9 pins to hold it together and 6-8 weeks in a cast. I’m nearly three weeks into the healing period and it’s getting much easier, although there is a lot more to an injury like this than I initially planned for! Everyday activities such as making food and general household chores, showering and even going up and down the stairs to the bathroom has required more planning, so I’ve been very lucky to return home until I’m allowed to put weight on my ankle again, and until I get better at using crutches.

At the minute, progress on essays has been painfully slow with the setbacks this injury has given me. I can no longer access the library, where I am at my most productive, and the concoction of painkillers I have been given aren’t exactly great for maintaining concentration! However, the department has been really supportive – I’ve been given extensions on my deadlines to make up for time that has been lost, and lecturers have been in contact over email so I’ve still been able to get the support I need, despite being away from Lancaster.

In terms of going back to the Trampolining Club, I’m still very uncertain at the minute. I’m aiming to be back in Lancaster full time by the end of April, so I’ll still be able to support them at Roses despite not being able to compete. If I stay for the MA Religious Studies then I might try getting back into it next year once I’m fully healed, although this might be an opportunity to expand my society horizons and see what else is out there!

That’s all from me for now, stay tuned for incredibly exciting recovery updates and hopefully the next part of this blog will have more to talk about!

New Modules, Essay Results And More!

Since my last post things in Lancaster have changed quite a lot, which is unsurprising given that it is now a new term and so I now have different modules. This term I only have two so that I can also focus on job applications (more on that below). Specifically, I am currently studying a module on the Middle East, which is really interesting as it is being taught by a lecturer whose previous job involved him serving as a diplomat to Saudi Arabia, meaning he is able to offer a different insight to most others. In addition to this, I am also covering a module on the practical element of foreign policy and diplomacy, which has so far involved me learning more about both nuclear weapons and climate change and the international politics surrounding both of these. The modules themselves have been really interesting and I am looking forwards to writing my essays for them, which I am now beginning to draft.

Speaking of essays, I have also recently received my essays from last term, and am pleased to report that I am currently on 68%, which is close to the 70% that I need for a distinction (the highest grade at Master’s level) overall. The feedback I got on the essays has also been really helpful and allowed me to understand what else I will need to do to improve with my next few essays, which should hopefully mean that my grade goes up this time as well.

On the job front, I have also been using the fact that I have one less module this term to focus more on my job hunt, and I have so far identified several jobs that I am interested in and am set to apply for once I have a few details clarified. I have also used this time to improve my CV with the help of the careers team, which I am optimistic will help me significantly.

Finally, things are also going on very well with my flat as well. We are actually planning a trip to the Lake District soon, which is something that has been on my list of things to do since I have come to Lancaster but which I have never really gotten around to until recently.

Woahh, we’re halfway there…..

Hello again,

We’re halfway through the term already, and life is certainly getting busier!

On the academic side, I’ve been narrowing down topics for my essays and meeting with lecturers to try and formulate a question. I have two 3000 word essays in week 10 and then a 5000 word essay (and of course my dissertation) due in after Easter at the end of April, so I won’t be short of things to do in the next few weeks! After that, I’ll “only” have five exams and then it’ll be the end of my undergraduate degree, which is a scary thought – I remember moving onto campus in my first year as if it was only yesterday…

It’s not all been coursework though! At the end of week four, I travelled to Nottingham for the weekend for a competition with the Trampolining Club. It was a little bit stressful and really tiring, but still so much fun! We stayed overnight and took part in the social with the other universities, which was really lovely as everyone gets along so well at competitions. However, as social sec, it was interesting to see how well I could herd twenty three people around a new city without losing them!

Valentine’s day has been and gone, and this year my boyfriend and I actually celebrated (albeit a bit late). Lancaster has plenty of opportunity for romantic clichés. Instead, we ate far too much tapas and threw shapes down the ‘Gaunt with a few pints of plum porter to the best funk band this side of South Carolina.

Week 12

Hello again,

 

I hope that you have all had a good Christmas break and that 2018 has started well.

 

The term at Lancaster has started well and it is difficult to believe that we are already in the third week of term, where did the time go! Despite it still being early days things are already very busy. One highlight for us all in the department was hosting our first applicant visit day of this year. It was really great to meet so many of you personally and get to answer questions that you had about Lancaster, the courses available and university life in general. Thank you for all of you that could make it, it was great to see you and for those who are coming to our upcoming visit days we all really look forward to welcoming you for the day!

 

This week the Politics Society, in cooperation with the Jewish Society hosted Stephen Breuer, a Hungarian Holocaust survivor. It was a very moving event to attend and it was humbling to hear first-hand of the experiences that Stephen and his family endured during one of the darkest chapters of human history and the chance to hear his message of acceptance and tolerance was a remarkable opportunity. We were also very honoured to be able to ask questions after the talk and it was an exceptionally special evening all-round.

 

My studies are also beginning to pick-up and I am in the process of trying to narrow down ideas for my dissertation. This is stressful to say the least, but it is also a great opportunity to be able to look in detail at topics that interest me, and it is really exciting to get the chance to take full ownership of my degree and decide for myself what I want to dedicate time to studying in detail.

 

Until next time…

 

Michael

 

January is over already?!

So the second week of Lent term is almost over, and it feels like time is flying by so fast! After three deadlines at the end of week 10, I had a lovely Christmas break that consisted of lots of food, wine, being reunited with my dogs, and smashing out some reading for my dissertation!
However, all holidays must come to an end, so I came back to Lancaster a bit earlier to cover some shifts at my part time job. Working at the same time as studying for a degree can be a little hectic sometimes, so I always think it’s a good idea to get some shifts in while you’ve got less on. That way, when I really need the time off, they’ll (hopefully) remember the favour!
The term ahead is looking like quite a busy one. Over the past two weeks I’ve been getting back into the swing of things, nervously awaiting feedback from my Michaelmas term essays (which turned out great, yay!) and working on my MA application for next year. I’m also on the exec of the Trampolining Club, which has been quite busy at the beginning of term as we try to promote the Club to potential new members and run the taster sessions. Since the introductory lectures and seminars for new modules are well underway, now is the time to really get stuck in with reading and planning essays alongside my dissertation. This term I’ve taken the modules Indian Religious and Philosophical Thought, Reading Islam, and a ‘special subject’ called Religions in the Modern World, (which is more focused on discussions/seminars than sitting in lectures) and they’re looking really interesting so far!
For those of you who are coming to the Applicant Visit Day tomorrow (does anyone read these blogs?) I’ll be there to give a little talk on what it’s like to be an RS undergrad at Lancaster, and have a chat about any questions you might have. I’m looking forward to meeting you all!

Back to work!

First off, I hope you all had a fantastic Christmas break and a Happy New Year to you all.

Christmas this year for me featured a few cherished days off from studying, and on the other days, focusing on writing my essays which are due in the first three weeks of Lent term. It’s safe to say though, some time off was definitely well received, and I really enjoyed spending time with my family and catching up with friends (whilst regularly raiding the fridge and cupboards for all that “Christmas Food” you’re not allowed to eat until at least Christmas Eve).


Here’s a picture of me and my friends catching up and having a few drinks over Christmas! (I’m on the right!) 


As for this blog post, the best place to start is probably with my essays. As a Masters student, the essays are slightly longer than those at undergraduate level (so don’t be too alarmed or be put off by this), so I have had to complete 3 x 5,000 word essays, one due each Monday until week three. So far, I have completed two essays, the first in International Law, and the second in Major Approaches to International Relations. I found my first essay somewhat challenging, as I have not studied law before prior to my Masters, so adjusting to this new style of writing was quite difficult! Once the essay was finished, however, it was really rewarding to have a better understanding of a new subject area, even better, knowing I was 1/3 of the way through my deadlines.

Then, came my second essay, on whether realism and liberalism explain the Iraq War for my International Relations module. This, was somewhat easier to write due to my undergraduate degree being in Politics and International Relations. What I did notice quite quickly however, was how I was able to use my newfound understanding of international law in my international relations essay, which enabled me to add a new aspect to my writing, which I was very pleased about! This was something I was fairly used to in my undergraduate degree, as my modules regularly related to each other in subject matter, but was definitely not expecting when studying law AND politics. As for the essay itself, I really enjoyed writing it as it is my preferred subject area and I was able to tailor my essay question to a subject area that really fascinates me. I submitted this essay today, and tonight I shall start writing my final essay (which luckily in the previous term I had already planned and completed the readings for so hopefully will not take too long).


As for the plan for the rest of this term, I can safely say it is going to be fairly busy. Although I only have 4 contact hours a week (as FASS subjects tend to require a lot of independent study guided by lectures each week), there’s lots of other stuff to keep up with! First, is the job hunt. This is probably what I’m going to focus on for much of this term, whilst monitoring other applications made in the previous term. My friends and I are planning to meet up to go through applications with each other and read over our CV’s to make sure there aren’t any silly mistakes, which knowing my luck there always are!

Alongside this, I have my lectures and readings to complete each week, which again takes up quite a lot of time due to the wide variety of readings any Masters student has to complete to keep up with the course. Of course, maintaining some social life is hard with all this going on, but I intend to keep playing netball and pool, whilst sneaking in a cheeky trip to sugar into the schedule every now and then! Plus playing in the bar sports teams holds the perfect excuse for a pint.

Finally, in my role as Admissions Mentor for the PPR department, I will be helping out at the Admissions Day on Saturday 27th, which I believe some of you who read this blog may be coming to. As part of the day, I give a lecture on the student experience and what to expect as a PPR student, and I also talk to prospective students and parents about my experience of Lancaster so far. Part of the role also means regularly posting on this blog too!

So, as you can probably tell, this term is going to be a busy one, but I’ll be sure to update you midway through this term with what else I have been working on, and hopefully give you more of an insight into what it’s like to be a student in the PPR department!

Essays, MA Conference and Christmas!

The last few weeks have been quite hectic, with the end of term fast approaching and deadlines catching up on me. For the last few weeks I have been attempting to get as much work done as possible before the Christmas holidays so that I can take it a bit easier. So far, this has gone quite well, as I have just completed my single hardest essay and can now focus more on getting my remaining two completed during the holidays!

I’ve also been preparing for my Research Proposal conference this week. Basically, as part of the Master’s at Lancaster there is a conference ran for one of the modules in which you choose a topic to do a research proposal on, which you can then expand on in a dissertation. You then have to do a 10 minute presentation on you’re topic and how you want to go about working on it, in front of some of the students and staff in the department. I’ve chosen to do my research proposal on the role of ‘alternative media’ in the UK general election of earlier this year, and based of the work I have already done, this topic sounds really interesting and worthy of further examination.

Christmas is also less then two weeks away now, and it definitely feels like it! The societies that I am in at the moment have been hosting their Christmas meals this week I am now already sick of turkey! My flat has also decided to hold a secret santa, and for once we are actually keeping quiet about who we all have. Thinking of a present has been quite difficult, especially with the work I’ve given myself to do, but I have decided on what my present will be and am waiting to pick it up tomorrow.

Essays, Competitions, Jobs and More!

Term so far has been quite hectic to say the least! Deadlines are approaching me, and I have begun work on my three essays for this term. At the moment, I am currently working on one to do with military alliances, which is turning out to be interesting to say the least. In addition to this, I am also planning both my next essay (on how governments deal with justice and home affairs) and a presentation I am due to present at the end of term on a potential research proposal for my Master’s Dissertation (for some reason, I decided to choose the impact of ‘alt-left’ media on the UK General Election earlier this year). Suffice to say, the next few weeks should be quite busy.

 

This is probably why its a good thing that one of the societies that I am involved in (the Lancaster Debating Union) has just completed one of the annual competitions that we run – the intercollegiate debating contest. This year’s was won by Furness for the first time since 1995, with the victors being rewarded by the college Deans and the head of the Lancaster University Management School. This years was a huge success due to the amount of organisation from all of those involved.

 

I’m also in the middle of preparing and applying for jobs. So far things are going well on this front, with my CV now being polished and potential job applications chosen. The processes for each vary, as do the time frames, but hopefully I will soon be able to fill you all in on how they are going, along with some good news!

 

Finally, my flat has so far been really fun this year. There are 6 of us in total, with 3 of us studying politics and 3 studying physics. We are all getting on really well so far, and they have even decided to start teaching me how to play guitar (which is going terribly so far). We decided yesterday to organise a Secret Santa, but with a £5 spending limit, it looks like it is going to be a challenge to decide what to get.

 

 

Week 10 – Fast Approaching!

Hello all, it’s been a while!

We have just entered week 9 in term and as such, deadlines loom around the corner…

 

For week 10, I have 3 essays due in, the modules for these are: Middle East, International Business and Continental Philosophy. Naturally, as you approach final week your time tends to be devoted towards essay writing, which is the case as of now.

Since my last post, I have attended a Futsal match in Sheffield against Sheffield Hallam University which, after going 2-0 down, we came back to win 4-2 and attended an International Dinner as courtesy of UNICEF on Campus. The International Dinner certainly had a sentimental value for me given that last year i participated as the General Secretary of the UNICEF on Campus society, to see how the society has grown in prominence around campus certainly emboldens one with a sense of self-certainty in what can be achieved. When discussing the International Dinner, a key thing to remember and hold firmly in mind is the international nature of a university like Lancaster. I highlight this because at events such as this, the diversity held by our campus is certainly illustrated especially when you eat dishes from Bulgaria, China, Nigeria and Turkey (to name a few!).

Just as the food represents, people from different regions of the world so to does this lead on to the people you meet in daily activities. In all of my seminars, I am sure each counts a wide array of different people and backgrounds. I digress!

Choosing to focus heavily on studies this year, my extra-curricular activities extends no further than the University Futsal team. However being in the third and final year necessarily means one must begin to think about life beyond university and formal education. To this end, I have been heavily applying for jobs in a variety of fields. As of the 5th of December, I shall be off to attend a particular job related event.

University offers a plethora of ways to get involved and many opportunities for students to build up their own skills and knowledge. Having been here for 3 years, my experiences and the resulting knowledge acquired lead me to urge all students to get involved as much as possible to learn about where your skills and interests lay, but still maintain a certain pragmatism with other responsibilities you may hold!

Until next time!

Sowenna

 

Deadlines are approaching….

That time of term is coming! With three essays due in week 10, I’ve spent most of the last weeks of term in the library, which means I don’t really have anything that exciting to report. So, welcome to my boring (but hopefully helpful) tips for getting you’re coursework sorted as hassle-free as possible!
1. Plan ahead of time – Writing essays may seem like a daunting task, but if you come up with an idea of how is best to use your time, especially balancing between different subjects, it’s a lot easier! Personally I prefer to do all of my reading first so when it comes to starting to write up my essay, I have a really good idea of exactly what I want to put in it. However, everyone works differently, so don’t stress out if you’re at a different stage to your friends!

2. Find your best work space – This one is more important than you might think! There have been countless times that I’ve tried to convince myself that the best place to smash out a good piece of writing is at home… in bed…with the TV on in the background… and then I’ve not achieved as much as I’d set out to do. Again, everyone works differently, so spending time to find the best location, and even time of day, where you are at your most motivated is really helpful and saves a lot of wasted time!

3. Remember to take time out – You’re not a robot. Everyone needs some downtime to recharge their batteries. Some people will make trips with friends, go home to see family, or use societies and exercise as a way to unwind after a day of working. The great thing about first term is that its coming up to Christmas so there’s always loads of festive stuff to do as a break from the library!

4. Take full advantage of the help offered – In PPR, the lecturers are really supportive with coursework and are always up for a chat about essays to make sure you’re on the right track, or just to sound out your ideas. This is really useful so make the most of your consultations!

5. Try not to let the stress take over – Everyone needs some help now and then. If you find yourself getting worked up over deadlines, see what support you can get. Sometimes, no matter how small it seems, a coffee with a friend is enough to help you realise that you’re not doing as bad as you think!