Politics

Starting essays already!?!?

/ Emily Siddall

Introducing me

I’m Emily, I’m 21 years old, and am currently a Masters student studying LLM International Law and International Relations. On this blog I’m going to give you a bit of an insight into what it is like to be a student in the PPR department, and what normal days/weeks look like as a student at Lancaster University. But first, I thought it would be wise to let you know a little bit about me. I studied my undergraduate degree in Politics and International Relations here at Lancaster, and have decided to stay here for my masters as I really enjoyed my time here and didn’t quite want to leave! I’ve played college netball for Bowland throughout at my time at uni, held numerous part time jobs, and also been lucky enough to have three internships during my time here at Lancaster so far. During my spare time, I enjoy going to the  pub with friends, often entailing a few pints and a game of pool, so, this year joining the college pool team was a must (mainly because it’s the perfect excuse for a pub trip).

But now onto the important stuff, a day in the life of a student…

This week I have to say is one of the quieter ones, focusing on starting planning for my essays. For my masters there are no exams, instead 3 x 5,000 word essays are the assignments for my first term. 5,000 sounds a lot right? Well, after a few years of studying your chosen subject, it becomes very easy to reach if not go over a word limit of 5,000, so don’t be put off by that. For my PPR modules, you get to choose my own questions to focus on, which is great as it gives you such flexibility to focus on areas that you have been interested in previously. I have always been interested in social media and its effects on politics, and the Iraq war and the motives behind it have long since been an intrigue of mine. So I have managed to worm these two subjects into each of my essays, the first essay being of the effects of social media on diplomatic practice, and the second being on whether realism can accurately explain the invasion of Iraq. Pretty cool eh? Well, the nerd in me sure thinks so.

Besides essay planning, of course there’s lectures and seminars I have to attend. My current timetable this term I must admit is very quiet, requiring lots of self-study, reading plenty of books and articles, and frequent study trips to the library or computer rooms on campus. Fun right?! Well, 7 hours of lectures/seminars a week isn’t actually all too bad, and I really like this method of study, as it allows me to work at my own pace and use the lectures to clarify my understanding of the weekly readings I have to do. What’s even better, is that I love my subject, so spending time studying for the most part is very rewarding.

Life at Lancaster however, isn’t all about studying, and luckily for Lancaster students there is plenty to do both on and off campus. This week, I have a netball match on Wednesday, a competitive pool game this evening, and plans to go on a night out at the weekend. In between this, I often find myself catching up with friends for coffee (or my preferred drink from costa, a hot chocolate) or watching an episode of two from a good TV show on Netflix to unwind after a long day of studying. Fitting in time to do the things you enjoy in between the time you spend studying is key for providing yourself with a break from your studies, as managing your time effectively is one of the biggest things you’ll learn at university, even though after three years I still haven’t yet mastered this skill!

I hope this provides you with some insight into my life at Lancaster, and please keep your eyes posted on this blog for more updates from myself and other students! If you have any comments or questions, feel free to comment on my post.

 

Our first weeks at Lancaster: by Becky and Katie

/ Becky

Hello!

We just thought we would share some of our initial thoughts and experiences of our first few weeks at Lancaster uni and with the PPR department.

Lancaster university has nine different colleges (a bit like Hogwarts) and you become a member of one of them. Being in different colleges obviously our experiences aren’t exactly the same, however we both lived in the halls of our colleges in first year and so our situations were quite similar.

Becky: I was really excited to start uni but obviously nervous too and the thing I was most nervous about was who I was going to live with. When I first arrived everyone was really nice and I just kept on telling myself that everyone else was in the same position as me. After a few days everyone ‘came out of their shells’ and we started to become more comfortable around one another. Fresher’s week was full of activities and talks and me and my flatmates attending pretty much everything together. Even little things like cooking together in the shared kitchen helped friendships to develop. It was so important that everyone was just themselves and put themselves out there, even though sometimes it was quite daunting I feel that participating in as many things I could with my flatmates made a difference to my overall experience of first year. It was good to know that at the end of the day I could go back to the flat and feel comfortable around people. Obviously not everyone gets on with everyone but, if you are yourself, the chances are you will make friends really easily and click with people who you never thought you would click with.

Katie: For me, I had felt ready to move to university for a long time. However, it was only when my parents pulled onto campus that the nerves hit. Who would my flat mates be? What if my flatmates don’t like me? Will it be awkward? But as soon as I started meeting everyone I was going to be living with for the next year, I soon relaxed. Everyone there was as apprehensive as I was, and also as keen to make friends, so instantly we all had something in common. Plus, I don’t know why I was worried about it being awkward because there’s so much to talk about! The first few hours of conversation in the flat was about whee everyone was from, what they’re studying, what they did that summer, etc. It’s natural to be nervous, but rest assured that once you get to your new flat, it will soon feel like home. Your college will also play a major role in getting you settled in. Each college will hold events throughout Freshers’ week, and during the whole year, which are great opportunities to get to know other people in your house and college. In my Freshers’ week, we had several fancy dress nights including animal safari (I was an elephant) as well as events during the day.

Both of us settled in well, despite initial worries and it seems as if this is the case for nearly everyone we have met.

As well as settling into our accommodation, we also had to settle into our courses too. After having initial talks from the department and meeting the lecturers some faces became familiar. At Lancaster, in the PPR department, you have to do three subjects in your first year (1 major and 2 minors). This seems like a lot but it really is very manageable. The subjects don’t have to be directly related to your Major which leaves you the option to explore other avenues if you wish.

As faces became more familiar we gradually began to feel a part of our subjects and the department. Whenever we were struggling everyone was willing to help whether it was other students, our lecturers or our academic tutors. Facebook groups were made so that people in our subjects could talk to each other and ask each other questions – neither of us ever felt like we were stuck and alone. As we started to get used to the style of teaching in the PPR department, everything seemed less daunting as it was a big transition from sixth form. Everyone in the department was so friendly and you could ask anyone anything, and if they didn’t know the answer they would direct you to someone who would.

This week’s little piece of advice: be yourself. Uni is such a great opportunity, both academically and socially so don’t waste time hiding who you are: put yourself out there and you will make friends and meet some of the most amazing people. It is okay to be nervous of course but, after a while these nerves will shrink and you will look back and wonder what you were ever even nervous about.

Just don’t worry!

Becky and Katie x

An Introduction…

/ Katie Work

Hello!

Before we start writing about our experiences, let us introduce ourselves.

We are Becky and Katie, both third year students in the PPR department. I, Katie, am doing a BA hons in Religious Studies and I, Becky, am doing a joint BA hons in Religious Studies and Politics. We have taken many modules together over the past three years and now have a close friendship within university, as well as outside.

We are writing this blog with the aim of informing you about what the ‘real’ university experience is like. We will cover topics both academic and social, including things such as life within the PPR department as well as life in Lancaster as a city.

Each week we will write about a specific topic, covering various aspects of our time at Lancaster University. We will cover most things, from our first day of moving to uni, to essay deadlines, picking our modules and friendship gains and losses.

A big part of life at uni is all the opportunities Lancaster and the PPR department have to offer. This summer, through taking the ‘PPR in India’ module, we were able to spend two months together studying in, and travelling through, India. This experience was literally life-changing and we will be sharing many of our stories (both good and bad) which will show that anything is possible when you’re thrown in at the deep-end!

University has definitely expanded our horizons, both socially and in terms of our plans for the future. We both feel we have made a friend for life in one another, as well in others from our colleges and from our courses.

We will be writing this blog together with the aim of giving an informative and well-rounded view of student life in Lancaster.

Each week we will share one small piece of advice that we wish someone would have told us when we were new to student life. This week’s little piece of encouragement is – simply do not worry. You may feel out of your depth and like you’re not ready to live away from home or to start student life, but firstly, you’re not alone. We guarantee everyone else is in the same boat as you. And secondly, as long as you keep an open-mind and always be yourself, you’ll soon find you fit in very well and will wonder why you ever even worried! Basically, don’t worry – everything is always fine in the end.

Next week’s blog will be about our experiences within the first few weeks of university when we started in first year and how we dealt with all the new things which we had to adapt to and understand.

We hope our posts will be helpful and informative, and that you find some of our stories as funny as we do…

Catch you soon,

Becky and Katie x