Two/thirds through my first year at university!
Back in December I wrote a blog post called: “Becoming a University Student”, which looked back on my first term at university. Having just finished my second term I thought it was time once again to reflect on everything that has happened. Term two has been great, as by this point I have started to actually know what I am doing, and have made lots of lovely friends along the way, but I still have the joy of discovering new things.
During this term, on my course I have found my confidence has massively grown. I have started to get used to doing more group work, something that had been a shock in my first term. This confidence has helped me to take on more leadership roles in the group work, which has given me more opportunities to demonstrate my skills and understanding, and also opportunities to develop and push these skills further. Last term, some of the modules I completed were similar to what I had previously studied at A-Level, therefore I was nervous I might struggle a lot more this term, as all my modules were tackling subjects I had never even heard of before! However, I think it was this novelty which actually made these modules so interesting. I was motivated to work hard, especially in my personal study time, to start to understand these modules and even look deeper into some of them, which I found particularly interesting. I believe I now have a stronger understanding about media, even if I still have no idea what I want to specialise in for the future.
Also this term, I completed my Add+Vantage module, for which I decided to take an introduction to Adobe Photoshop. I could not have been happier with my choice, as I have loved the tutorial style of learning and the ability to apply this to our own piece of work. In a short time I have learnt so much about Photoshop which skills I can now apply to my degree course and hopefully increase the standard of work I produce. As I enjoyed this module so much, I am hoping to take the next level in Photoshop for my Add+Vantage next year, so that I can build and develop these skills further.
If you read my Becoming a University Student post, you know that I joined quite a few societies. On top of continuing to attended Book Club and Christian Union both which I greatly enjoy, I have started to become involved in other societies. For example, I have a radio show with my friends Natasha and Scott called Media Highlights as a part of Source. Also I continue to write for Source News, which I am hoping is starting to develop my writing skills. I also joined the Global Leadership Programme, which I am loving being a part of. All of this has meant that I have quite busy weeks, however, I would not want to give any of it up as I enjoy it all so much.
As I previously said, I have found term two easier in the sense that I know what I am doing, and I am no longer panicking about not being able to find my lecture hall or making new friends. This has meant that this term I’ve had the opportunity to start developing further as an individual. Especially as I’ve had so many chances to explore new sides of myself, which I had never really considered whilst being at home. For example, attending lots of the university art shows or even small things like joining gym classes and making new friends, and even doing my radio show. I feel that all of these things are helping me to discover what I am truly interested in, as well as making me a more well-rounded person, both of which I am hoping will start to direct me with ideas about future careers in the coming year.
In my first term at university I felt I had been thrown in the deep end, trying to balance all the things I had to do from university work, socialising, staying healthy and even cooking and cleaning and general living away from home struggles. However, this term I feel I’ve managed to get everything much more under control, by improving my time management and organisational skills, as well as working on prioritising what I need to achieve. It is by doing this, that I can manage to be involved in so many societies and extra-curricular activities, as well as keeping on top of all my university studies and looking after myself. I only noticed that I had managed to achieve this once I had come back home through speaking to my friends about everything I do and getting shocked looks and comments about how busy I must always be.
Overall, I have really enjoyed this term, even though there have been stressful moments when everything seems to go wrong! I am even starting to feel more at home in Coventry than I imagined I could, back in September when I first arrived. I only have one more term left (May to June) and I am excited to see what else will change in this time. What I am still struggling with is how ridiculously fast time seems to fly whilst at university, as I seem to be quickly approaching the end of my first year.