Laura:
BA (Hons) Multimedia Design, University of Huddersfield
"If
you go to university and manage to stick at
it, despite how hard it can be, then you will
feel really satisfied that somehow,
you successfully found a way through such a
life changing event!" |
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About the University
About the course |
Name:
Laura Sharples
Duration at BRGS Sixth Form:
2000-2002.
A Levels studied:
Art, Psychology, German,
General Studies, AS History
Previous school before joining BRGS Sixth Form:
BRGS
Date of submitting these answers:
January 2005 |
| University
you are at, why you chose this university, and give
one interesting fact about your university: |
Huddersfield
- I chose Huddersfield as it was not too
far away from home (Rochdale), the town centre
seemed attractive with lots of lovely
buildings, shops and bars.
The University itself also has lots of very modern buildings. They had good
computer facilities for my course. I also like the fact that each
room at the halls of residence had its own en suite shower room. Huddersfield
is not too small, yet not too big (supposedly the largest town
in Europe, so has nearly all the facilities of a city).
Interesting fact: Patrick Stewart is chancellor (you may know
him from Star Trek and X-Men), and Huddersfield is where rugby league was
invented! |
| Best
things about your university town/city: |
| Good
shopping centre, lots of stylish, cosy, quirky
bars and cafes- providing you with everything
from cocktails, to hot chocolates to paninis. Close
to Manchester and Leeds! Lots of supermarkets
to choose from, and the train station is in the town
centre so you can walk to it. Huddersfield is very cheap to
live in, compared to some of the places where my friends
are living! |
| Worst
things about your university town/city: |
| Huddersfield
is about ten degrees colder than anywhere else! It's
freezing! |
| What
is the social scene/nightlife like in your university
town/city?: |
| Something
for everyone, indie nights, live bands, cheesy
pop, R&B, bars that have a relaxed
informal atmosphere. There is something on
every night for students! You could go out every night
of the week! Many new bars have opened in Huddersfield
since I started at uni in 2002. |
| What
activities are popular at your university/ in your
university town/city?: |
It's
a Rugby League town, and the rugby
and football teams are based at the Galpharm
Stadium (previously named McAlpine Stadium).
The university has its own sports teams, but
a very small gym. There's also lots of sports
classes to go to, from martial arts,
to yoga.
Lots of musical things seem to take place in Huddersfield
due to the university's very large music department! There is also the
Lawrence Batley theatre if you're intrested in drama.
In the town centre are two swimming pools, and a cinema (the
cinema and one swimming pool are located at the Glapharm Stadium). |
| Favourite
places to shop in your university town/city: |
| There's
lots of great gift shops, all the
usual high street stores, plus exclusive designer
clothes shops, and the new-ish Kingsgate Centre. |
| How
much on average per week do a) Halls of Residence,
b) Renting a house, cost in your university town/city? |
| Halls
cost about £66-£79 per week,
depending on which ones you choose. Houses cost anywhere
from £35-£60 per week (average
price about £45). |
| What
is the accommodation like in your university town/city? |
| I've
been very impressed with the halls of residence in
Huddersfield- there's a few to choose from now, as
they've kept building more! So they are new,
with good modern facilities.We also did
very well in finding houses to live in after the
first year- there are some really nice ones around. |
| How
much on average do you spend on food shopping per week? |
| £30 |
| What
is the course you are studying? - Was
it your original choice when applying for university? |
| BA
(Hons) Multimedia Design, yes this was my
original choice. |
| How
many years does your course last? |
| 4
(It's a sandwich course, with a work placement in the
third year). For my placement year I have
had 8 weeks work experience at BBC Manchester,
working on the Entertainment part of their website,
and managed BRGS's website for 8 months. |
| What
you enjoy most about your course/ what impresses
you about it?: |
| I've
been able to learn lots of new things, such as making
websites, virtual reality and digital design. It
has really stretched me creatively and
I've done a lot of work that I never imagined I would
be able to! |
| What
you enjoy least about your course, and what could
be improved : |
| They
do not teach you how to use the computer software (such
as Flash and Dreamweaver)- you are left to
work it out for yourself. Also, I don't enjoy learning
about computer programming or how computers work, but
it's got to be done! |
How
do you rate the teaching standards on your course,
and do
your tutors/lecturers/the university give you the right support for your
studies?: |
Some
of the tutors are not very good at explaining things,
and it can be misleading. They did not provide us with
much help in finding a work placement which caused lots
of unecessary stress to all students on my course. It
is only now, that the School of Art and Design, which
my course is part of, is setting up a placement unit
and providing useful documents/advice/guidance to help
with getting a placement (and this is half-way through
my placement year!!)
All the lecturers seemed to be part-time so they were
only there like one day a week, so it was difficult to get help if you
were stuck with something. There has not been much guidance or
much solid feedback on the work I produced. Some of the projects they set
us, were not very well thought out.
On the positive side, the tutors do have the knowledge and industry
experience, but maybe it's just their teaching skills
that need improving (some of them may not have been lecturers/tutors
before). |
| What
A Level Grades/UCAS points did you have to achieve
to be accepted onto your course? |
| CC (Although
they seemed to let people in who achieved EE). |
| Why
did you choose the particular course you are studying? |
| I
wanted to do something creative, but
something different that I had never tried before. |
| Best
thing about being at university: |
It
prepares you for life! It's like a trial-run!
You learn how to be independent and about the best
way to sort things out! You meet people from different
parts of the UK and opens your eyes to the way other
people in the country live.
|
| Worst
thing about being at university: |
| It's exhausting,
and a bit nerve-racking when wondering
if you chose the right course, or what you're going
to do when you graduate! |
| What
do you plan to do after you graduate? |
| I'd
like to have a break from studying and work when I
graduate by travelling. But I'm still exploring
the possible careers I could do. |
| If
you were to recommend going to university, what would
you say? |
| If
you go to university and manage to stick at it, despite
how hard it can be, then you will feel really
satisfied that somehow, you successfully found a way
through such a life changing event! |
| Do
you get homesick? If so, how do you deal with it? |
| For
the first month of uni, I was not homesick at all,
but it was after that it hit me and I felt quite homesick.
However, as I knew home was not far away and that I
could go home whenever I wished, this made me feel
better. You feel more at home in a house, than halls
of residence, so try to get into a house with your
friends in the second year and it really will feel
like a second home. |
| Do
you think you made the right choice? Or looking back,
would you have gone to a different university/started
a different course? |
| I'm
still very interested in Psychology so
sometimes I wonder if I should have done that. I'm
still glad I went to Huddersfield though, because I
love living there! |
What have you achieved whilst being at university? |
| I
can now talk more easily to people who I don't
know! And I've produced a lot of work I am
proud of! I've met some really interesting people.
I've learned how to cook and experiment with food!
I can now multi-task between working, eating, doing
my laundry, sorting my finances, phoning home, attending
lectures, and so on! |
