PPR

Special Subjects

/ Pietro

Hi everyone!

For this week’s post, I’ve decided to tell you a bit about a distinctive selection of modules offered by the PPR Department at Lancaster: “special subjects”. Whereas a typical module will be centred around lectures delivered by an academic, special subjects run as seminar classes, or reading groups, with the tutor convening the group and moderating discussion. The tutor will generally be an expert in the field, and may be writing or researching on some of the topics covered in the module.

Sometimes, academics make use of special subjects to discuss what they’re working on at the moment with students. For example, of all the modules I’m taking this term, “Philosophy in Progress: Autobiography, Narrative, Self-Knowledge, and Self-Realisation” is a special subject intended as direct engagement with the tutor’s current academic work. Seminars are chaired by Sam Clark, an academic philosopher from the PPR Department, and the module’s aim is to read and engage with the draft of the book he is currently writing, and in doing so discuss the philosophical questions and issues it raises. At the end of the module, you are then asked to write and submit a 5000 word paper, where you focus on a specific topic covered in Sam’s book and critically engage with it.

I think special subjects are a great opportunity because you really get to engage with some contemporary developments in research on a given field, and you also get to discuss the topics with the person who may have written the very work you’re asked to read. This is all quite exciting as it gives interesting insights into what doing research at the professional level is all about. Moreover, special subjects’ peculiar structure allows you to explore a different learning format, where you’re supposed to play an active role by giving presentations and making contributions to the group’s discussions.

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.

 

Planning India: Becky and Katie

/ Katie Work

Hello!

We thought that this week we would talk about the start of our trip to India last summer, and how we planned the whole thing. Our trip to India was part of a third year module in which you go to India during the summer, and then write a dissertation about themes you encounter while out there.

We initially heard about the trip on an open day as prospective students, and so even before we were in Lancaster, or even knew each other, we both knew it was something we wanted to do. We first started planning the trip about 6 months before we left, with a lot of help from members of the department, and students who had been on the trip the year before.

The whole purpose of the trip was to go to Visthar- an NGO for Social Justice and Peace Studies in Bangalore (South India). We would spend 3 weeks here having informal lectures learning about a range of social issues in the context of India. We thought, however, that since we would be in India for 3 weeks anyway, we might as well spend a few more weeks seeing as much of India as we could.

The first thing we did was write a long list of all the places we wanted to see in India. These ranged from the south to the north and where we finally ended up going was pretty close to our original list. Our plan was to travel from Bangalore up to the Himalayas in 5 weeks, stopping at various places on the way. We bought several travel guides and maps to help plan our route and receive inspiration for places to go to. From the start, we knew we wanted to see the more popular places associated with India, such as Mumbai, Goa and Delhi. We also really like the look of Kerala, a southern state, as well as many places we hadn’t even heard of. Even just planning our trip meant that we were learning so much about India already.

Because we knew that this was something we wanted to do, we picked second year modules in sync with our plans, such a Indian Politics and Hinduism modules. Not only did we find these modules very interesting, we found that, once we were in India, we could relate to a lot of what we saw and understand them on a deeper level.

After planning our route, we booked the flights and the countdown officially began. The next few months mostly consisted of excitement and sending each other various relevant links to the places we’d be going to.

We will write many more blogs about our time in India, as we would talk about it forever! We thought we’d talk about this subject because it is such a great opportunity that the department offers!

Becky and Katie x

Settling into the PPR department: Becky and Katie

/ Becky

This week we thought we would talk about what it was like in the PPR department when we first started uni.

Once you get used to your timetable and knowing where your lectures are (which you quickly do) you really get into the swing of things. The first few lectures you have tend to be introductory, outlining the course and what you will be doing over the next term. The way you learn in uni is different to how you learn at college and school and initially finding your feet can be a bit daunting but honestly, after a while you really get used to it. You’ll find a style of note taking for lectures which best suits you.

Explaining seminars: Along side lectures you will have seminars for all your subjects. These can be quite different to what you have experienced before. Depending on the size of your module, seminars can have from around 9-20 people in them, lead by a tutor from the department (in second and third year seminars are usually lead by your lecturers). They are usually discussion based, going over topics which you will have studied in that week’s lecture, as well as going over the weeks reading for that topic. Even though it can seem like a bit of a drag sometimes, it is so important to do the readings as they really do make a difference to your learning and understanding. Everyone is usually quite quiet as it can be quite intimidating talking in front of everyone, especially when you might be with people who you have never seen before. However, you should bite the bullet and if you have something to say then just say it because 1) someone else will be thinking what you’re saying and 2) usually if one person speaks, it gets the ball rolling and other people start to contribute too which makes for a good and more interesting discussion. Tutors will be willing to help where they can, especially around the time of your essays and exams however, just worry about that when it comes to it.

As well as seminar tutors you will have an academic tutor in the department and student reps. You will meet up with your academic tutor once a term and discuss how you are finding the course / any issues or questions you have and how you are in general – they are usually quite informal meetings and academic tutors really will help you all that they can (they also are the ones who will write your reference so it is worth keeping in touch with them). Also in the department there are student reps who nominate themselves, from your course, in your year (it could be you!), to represent all the students on that course – if you have any problems but don’t feel your academic tutor / seminar tutor is the right person to talk to about it then your student reps will be the best people to talk to and they can give advice and pass on information to higher authorities if necessary.

As well as getting used to your new home, social life etc, you have to get used to the work load and managing your time. Doing three subjects in your first year really is not as daunting as it sounds – as long as you manage your time correctly then you really will be fine. Generally: for each subject you will get one reading per module per week as well as a essay at the end of term. Balance is key here but, it really is possible. Everyone is in the same position as you and so many people will be willing to help if you are struggling, so don’t panic at all.

If you have any problems at all, in regards to your course, changing modules or anything else, there are so many people who you can go to so don’t be afraid to speak up. Your lecturers, tutors and everyone in the department wants you to do well but most of all, want you to enjoy your time at uni – so they will do all they can to make this happen.

Becky and Katie x

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