Well week 8 has come to a close, last year this term seemed like an age, now university life just seems to be going faster and faster. I blinked and two months had shot by. It’s almost like the summer break never happened, once I stepped foot back in the lecture hall it was straight back to the normal routine.
For my first post I thought it’d be a good idea to start with a bit of a comparison between this year and last and some of the changes that stand out.
The most notable change, for me at least, is living off campus, which I have to say is awesome! A trip into town now only takes a fifteen minute riverside walk, and cheaper accommodation means more money to spend on food, so our house has been cooking a roast dinner every Sunday, which I do try to help with despite my limited cooking ability. This is not to say I don’t miss living in Halifax College, my room now is an awful lot smaller and severely lacking in desk space, but on the plus side this means I’m making much more use of the library and the first floor of the Exhibition Centre (where the Electronics Department is based).
My timetable seems as light as a feather compared to this time last year but this does come with the understanding that more independent study is required. If your timetable is light there’s very likely a good reason for it. In terms of the actual content though, it all seems to be a lot more focused. First year was mainly about making sure that everyone was brought up to the same level with all of the core skills required, now we can use those skills we gained to start focusing in on far more specific areas.
With most people doing their year in industry next year career information seems to be everywhere I go. To me the thought of planning a career at this point is still very daunting. But I guess it’s important to start thinking about these things from an early stage and making sure your prepared when it comes to things like interviews and assessment centres, all of which the careers service has tonnes of help and useful information for. Though after having a telephone interview the other day I’m convinced nothing can prepare you for how weird and frustrating it is not having any visual clues, I hung up the phone with no idea how I’d done.
Everywhere I look now the university seems to be constructing a new building. I do like the fact that the university seems to be constantly expanding, it can’t be long now till they open up the newly redone Vanbrugh paradise, or Vanbrugh piazza I think they’re calling it now! From what I’ve seen, I have to say it looks like they’ve done a stunning job.
I went to the poster sale in James College the other week. At some point I am going to have to admit that I really don’t have room for any more but they were all half price so irresistible. So now I am greeted every day by a very menacing picture of the Joker looming over me, probably not the best poster to put by your bed.
I’m writing this after I just got back from seeing an old friend from primary school perform in the pantomime society’s version of ‘A Christmas Carol’, The show was a blast , very funny and they all clearly put a lot of effort into something they love. I strongly recommend going to see any performances they put on in future.
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