Tag: culture shock

Letter to my undergraduate self: Becky Selwyn – ‘Be yourself and do things your way’

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Inspired by the Big Issue’s regular feature Letter to My Younger Self, we’re asking staff to think back to their own experiences as a student and tell us what advice they would give to their undergraduate selves.

In this post, we’re delighted to hear from Becky Selwyn, Senior Lecturer in Mechanical Engineering.

Photo of Becky, the author of the blog post

What and where did you study? 

I studied my MEng in Mechanical Engineering here in Bristol, and as part of the course I spent a year studying in Saint Etienne (in France) for my 3rd year. I stayed here to do my PhD as well, and then realised that lecturing was the thing I wanted to do with my life so I’ve been here ever since!

Did you experience culture shock when you started university? 

Yes and no – the studying wasn’t too bad as I had been used to self-motivating and managing my own time from secondary school, and had been working full time during my gap year, but it was overwhelming being surrounded by so many new people all the time. I’m quite introverted, and had only attended relatively small schools, so the step change up to large halls of residence and 100-person lectures was a lot to deal with (I have no idea how UGs cope now that there are sometimes 450 students in a lecture theatre!). Eventually I made some friends to sit with in lectures and to spend time with outside lectures, and that helped me to manage the social overload I felt the rest of the time.

What was your biggest failure and what did you learn from it? 

I failed a unit in my final year, and was absolutely devastated. It didn’t stop me graduating, but my initial response was to contact the Unit Director and ask whether I could attempt the resit (obviously without it being recorded on my transcript) – I was desperate to show that I could pass the unit properly, even if it wouldn’t count towards anything. The Unit Director told me to get in touch after the resit period and they would send me a copy of the exam to try. Of course by the time the resit period arrived, my initial feelings about the failure had faded and I didn’t ask for the paper – I was busy enjoying the start of my PhD. It made me realise that initial responses to failure can be very intense, but context, patience, and time make it easier to accept and move on from.

What are you most proud of about your time at university? 

In my first year, we had a group design project to make a cup dispensing machine, and my group won the competition. I’d suggested the design for the door, and we were the only group who had that type of mechanism and design, so I like to think that my idea helped us to win, even though our outer casing was held together with tape!

What was the best bit of feedback you received? 

I don’t remember receiving any feedback on my work other than a numerical grade and maybe a couple of vague words, but I do remember how I felt after various informal conversations with different members of staff. Some were really positive and left me feeling like I could take on any challenge. Others left me feeling that I didn’t belong here and should give up. I guess the impact of those conversations has influenced how I try to interact with people now – I saw that kindness, reassurance, and support went a long way towards helping me believe I could succeed on my own, so that’s what I try to provide for others. It also made me realise that feedback isn’t just a written comment on a piece of summative work – it’s everything that happens that makes you think about your work, and I try to help students see that too.

What advice would you give to your undergraduate self?

My undergraduate self wouldn’t believe it, but I’d tell myself that I am enough, and should have more confidence to be myself. Everyone is different, and that is where our strengths come from, so stop seeing all the things you aren’t and start embracing all the things you are. Be yourself and do things your way, because it will eventually show others that they can be themselves and succeed on their own terms too.

 

If you’re a staff member or postgraduate student and would like to write own letter to your undergraduate self, please get in touch: study-skills@bristol.ac.uk

 

 

Letter to my undergraduate self: Kerrianne Orriss – ‘Everything is fixable as long as you’re willing to learn’

Posted on by study.skills

Inspired by the Big Issue’s regular feature Letter to My Younger Self, we’re asking staff to think back to their own experiences as a student and tell us what advice they would give to their undergraduate selves.

In this post we’re introducing Kerrianne Orriss, Study Skills Tutor.

Kerrianne, the author of this blog post

What and where did you study? 

History BA (Hons) at St Andrews, Royal Holloway and then Liverpool (three universities in 4 years – don’t ask!)

Did you experience culture shock when you started university? 

Yes – to the extent that I changed universities twice. I kept worrying that either I wasn’t performing well enough, or I did not fit in with my peers (or both). At St. Andrews there were many privately educated students who had bucketloads of confidence and could (it seemed to my 18-year-old self) converse fluently in ancient Greek and Latin. In my first classical civilisation class, the lecturer repeatedly referred to Persia and I panicked – where was this place and why had I not heard of it? My head was a-blur with so many unfamiliar words and concepts that belonged to a different world. At my school, showing an interest in ancient languages (or anything that was fascinating to me!) meant instant ostracisation. At university I became aware that other students had a head start on me – not only in their places of education but in their exposure to other worlds.

What was your biggest failure and what did you learn from it? 

The many times I kept silent in a tutorial. I was petrified of the sound of my voice filling the austere silence of the room. I often had a theory to put forward but my inner voice told me it was wrong or stupid. I then felt like an idiot when someone else gave ‘my’ answer and was praised. I gradually learned that my opinions were just as valid as my peers and that my difficulty with thinking under pressure was not insurmountable. I found that I could prepare not only by doing the pre-reading for the tutorial but by anticipating the kind of questions and arguments that might arise.

What are you most proud of about your time at university? 

As you can tell by now, I was not the most confident or self-aware student! I am proud that I developed my own techniques for studying as a dyslexic learner during a time when there was much less support for those with learning difficulties. I am proud that despite lacking confidence, I did start to believe in myself and speak up in classes. I am proud that I developed from a terrified nerd to a student who led study support groups in the third year and was confident in standing up for their beliefs. I am still a nerd, though.

What was the best bit of feedback you received? 

Typically, the only feedback I remember is bad feedback; bad on behalf of both myself and the tutor. He merely wrote ‘17’ at the end of my essay and popped it in my pigeonhole so he didn’t have to talk to me. I collected it and cried because I thought I’d failed. I went to my personal tutor to say I was leaving the university as I wasn’t fitting in with the ‘clever students’, to which he replied that a 17 was a first, so what was I thinking? I left anyway. It amuses me, looking back, that I did not think to look at the grading system or ask for more substantial feedback for that essay. There wasn’t a Study Skills service back then – alas, I would have learned so much!

What advice would you give to your undergraduate self?

Oh so many things! Here are the highlights:

Don’t eat so many marmite sandwiches – yes they are cheap, but you won’t want to look at marmite for another 20 years.

Don’t be afraid to talk to someone about your mental health – it’s so normal to struggle with university life and to feel like you don’t fit in. Ignore negative comments about being a feminist, not eating meat and caring about the environment. You will find your tribe.

Everything is fixable as long as you’re willing to learn. I wouldn’t change a thing about my childhood, but I wish I could tell my 18-year-old self that you can catch up on missed education, and there’s not some kind of secret society that imbues members with world knowledge and super-intelligence!

 

If you’re a staff member or postgraduate student and would like to write own letter to your undergraduate self, please get in touch: study-skills@bristol.ac.uk

 

 

Letter to my undergraduate self: Souwoon Cho – ‘Enjoy learning and don’t be afraid to explore your interests!’

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Inspired by the Big Issue’s regular feature Letter to My Younger Self, we’re asking staff to think back to their own experiences as a student and tell us what advice they would give to their undergraduate selves.

This month we’re hearing from Souwoon Cho, Digital Education Developer in the Digital Education Office.

 

Souwoon Cho, the author of the blog

What and where did you study? 

I studied International Management and French at the University of Bath. This was a four-year course where I spent the third year on a work placement in the South of France. Needless to say – coming back to the UK for my final year was a shock to the system!

Did you experience culture shock when you started university? 

Yes and no. Although my elder siblings went to University, I was the only one to move into university accommodation and move “away” from home. So, I didn’t really know what to expect. I also grew up in the Welsh valleys in a Hong Kong Chinese household, so to some extent I knew it would be different. The biggest culture shock for me, was when I saw my flatmates cook rice in a saucepan then drain the rice from the water when it was cooked. I had never seen this before! And vice versa, it was the first time my housemates had seen a rice cooker, which is how I had always been taught how to cook rice!

What was your biggest failure and what did you learn from it? 

My biggest failure particularly early on in my degree was not taking enough breaks from studying. I would block off long periods of time to get my head down and revise or write an essay. Then when my housemates would invite me to go for a short walk, I would often decline. I got better at this in my final year, partially because I knew it was the last year of being a student with some of my closest friends. We got in a routine of heading to campus together and scheduling coffee and lunch breaks throughout the day. This made me much more productive and more positive about my studies in general.

What are you most proud of about your time at university? 

Although I loved learning French, I was terrified of speaking it. I always overthought what I said and was too afraid to make mistakes. The focus on second year was to find a work placement for the third year, which included writing the CV and cover letter in French and *gulp* having an interview in French too. I managed to secure an interview for one of the most sought-after work placements in my cohort, a meetings and marketing events coordinator role in a travel technology company in the South of France. It was my first interview over the phone, and I was home for the winter break. I remember having pieces of paper with French vocabulary stuck all over my walls as prompts – thank goodness video calls were not a thing back then!

The interview itself is still a blur to this day – but I was so pleased to receive a call from them 2 hours later offering me the placement. Although very challenging, I learnt so much and met some amazing people during that year.

What was the best bit of feedback you received? 

In my second year I had to write an essay exploring the cultural differences between three countries. I had to decide on a medium or topic to compare, for example news coverage or even coffee drinking culture. After looking at the topics students had covered before, none of them took my interest. I suddenly had a thought of comparing horoscopes in the UK, France, and Spain. As I went through, I found the topic really challenging as it became apparent that there was very little academic research on horoscopes. I had many periods of scrapping the idea altogether and starting again with the well-known topics. But after speaking to the unit director, I persevered and I’m so glad I did. I received one of the highest essay marks I had received throughout my degree. Most of these marks were because I explored a unique topic which the unit director had never read before. So, the risk was worth it!

What advice would you give to your undergraduate self?

My advice would be don’t just focus on the final assessment or exam. There were many times that instead of enjoying what I was learning, I would focus on a few topics so I could “strategically” revise for the exams. Enjoy learning and don’t be afraid to explore your interests!

 

If you’re a staff member or postgraduate student and would like to write own letter to your undergraduate self, please get in touch: study-skills@bristol.ac.uk

 

 

Letter to my undergraduate self: Genevieve Beech – ‘If something doesn’t feel right make sure you get advice and address it’

Posted on by study.skills

Inspired by the Big Issue’s regular feature Letter to My Younger Self, we’re asking staff to think back to their own experiences as a student and tell us what advice they would give to their undergraduate selves.

This month we’re hearing from one of our Library colleagues: Genevieve Beech, the early early morning Library Support Assistant at the Arts & Social Sciences Library.

Genevieve Beech, the author of the blog post

What and where did you study? 
Creative Writing with Media Studies (BA) at De Montfort University in Leicester and English and American Studies (MA) at Paderborn University in Germany. Both times I headed alone to a new city and I found that the most daunting part.
Did you experience culture shock when you started university? 
With my BA, it was definitely a shock to go from living at home to living independently, including managing my finances and cooking all my meals, in a new city with new friends. There was much more of a culture shock involved in studying abroad for my MA though. I’d been living in Germany for a couple of years before I began the course, so I hadn’t moved directly from England to study there, and that helped lessen the shock.
What was your biggest failure and what did you learn from it? 
Due to a couple of lifechanging events that happened during my first year of my BA Leicester I struggled to attend all of my classes and if I’d known about any kind of wellbeing services I would have loved to have made use of them. As that was 15 years ago, I don’t feel these services were emphasised enough. I don’t class it as a failure but I regret not seeking help when I needed it. I’m proud that I finished the course and did well throughout it, despite dealing with these big changes.
What are you most proud of about your time at university?
In my final semester in Germany I decided to take 11 classes so that I could head back to England that summer and write my thesis from there. I didn’t want to stay for another semester as I’d already been in Germany for five years. It was an intense time – and I worked part-time too – so I’m really proud I completed all the classes, including the weekly readings, quizzes, essays and end of term papers. I was definitely a lot more dedicated during my MA than my BA and really enjoyed studying even though navigating the German university system wasn’t so straightforward.
What advice would you give to your undergraduate self?
If you’re unsure, I’d recommend taking a year or two out and heading to uni when you feel more certain of the path you’d like to take, rather than feeling like you have to go straight to uni after sixth form/college. I also think that if something doesn’t feel right make sure you get advice and address it. I originally auditioned and was accepted to study Dance at De Montfort University but I switched to Creative Writing very early on, as I realised the theoretical side of the Dance degree was not something I enjoyed, and I don’t regret switching at all.

Letter to my undergraduate self: Therese Kelly – ‘It is okay to ask for help and to say you don’t understand something’

Posted on by study.skills

Inspired by the Big Issue’s regular feature Letter to My Younger Self, we’re asking staff to think back to their own experiences as a student and tell us what advice they would give to their undergraduate selves.

This month we’re introducing our newest Study Skills Tutor, Therese Kelly, who will be working with students in the Faculty of Social sciences.

Photo of Therese, the author of the blog post

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What and where did you study? 

I studied for a BA in the Anthropology of Religion at the University of Wales, Lampeter. Then 15 years later I went back to uni and did an MA in Social Anthropology, here at Bristol. I am now finishing a PhD in Social Anthropology through Manchester University.

Did you experience culture shock when you started university? 

That’s an interesting question. It was more the location that was a shock rather than the university itself. I grew up in London and then opted for a university deep in the Welsh countryside, in a very small farming community. This was partly because I was a young mother with a child, and I wanted to be somewhere less hectic. I was a mature student of 24 when I started my degree; I became a mother when I was 20 so waited until my son was old enough to go to school before going to university, and Lampeter seemed lovely. It was a wonderful place to study! It is a very small university, and it didn’t take long to become part of the student community.

What was your biggest failure and what did you learn from it? 

My time management was awful when I was an undergraduate, especially during my first year. I always left it to the last minute to write an essay. One essay I handed in two weeks late and so it was marked down 20%. If I had submitted it in time, it would have got 70%, a first, so I was gutted! I learned pretty quickly after that to plan my writing time better.

What are you most proud of about your time at university? 

I was, and still am, a shy person, the difference is I have learned to manage it. When I was in the first year, I was part of a group giving a presentation about a Hindu temple we visited for one of our modules. I can still remember how I felt when it was my turn to speak. The blood rushed to my face, my heart was beating in my mouth, and I was so nervous I struggled to focus on the people in the room, I was terrified! I managed to get through it but thought, I must get over this fear. So, I signed myself up for presenting at as many seminars as possible and each time I did it, my ability to talk and present improved. I believe it was one of the bravest things I have done for myself.

What was the best bit of feedback you received? 

I didn’t think my work was any good most of the time as I had very low self-confidence. But after having completed an essay that I actually enjoyed writing, the lecturer said in the feedback that I had ‘clarity of expression’ and that the essay was ‘a joy to read’. I was so happy that my essay was not only readable but that someone got joy from it too!

What advice would you give to your undergraduate self?

I could say, PLAN YOUR WORK! I could have reduced so much stress and got a better mark if I had organised my writing better. Saying that, getting a 2:1 rather than a first is still a great achievement and I did really enjoy being an undergraduate. So, what I would say to my undergraduate self is that it is okay to ask for help and to say you don’t understand something, and enjoy the fresh air and the wonderful countryside!

Letter to my undergraduate self: Lewis Coyne – ‘I learned to actually listen to the feedback I was getting’

Posted on by study.skills

Inspired by the Big Issue’s regular feature Letter to My Younger Self, we’re asking staff to think back to their own experiences as a student and tell us what advice they would give to their undergraduate selves.

This month we hear from Lewis Coyne, Study Skills Tutor.

Photograph of Lewis, the author of the post

What and where did you study? 

I first studied at Cardiff University for a BA in Philosophy and English Literature, followed by an MA in Analytic and Modern European Philosophy. Then I switched to the University of Exeter, where I got an MRes in Science and Technology Studies and a PhD in social philosophy.

Did you experience culture shock when you started university? 

Yes – but I didn’t think so at the time. I had an elder brother at university, so broadly knew what to expect, and had travelled around Australasia on a gap year with friends, so thought I could look after myself. But on reflection I wasn’t fully comfortable with taking charge of and being accountable for my actions, as I had a terrible work ethic, appalling diet, and complete inability to get out of bed before 10am. This was amplified by the fact that, as a humanities student, I only had about two contact hours a day – meaning that my work was almost entirely self-directed and the structure of my day self-imposed. I really struggled to adjust to that, and as a result most of my first year was a mess! 

What was your biggest failure and what did you learn from it? 

My biggest failure was probably all of my first term: I didn’t do much reading (a major problem when you’re studying English Literature!), which led to not going to seminars very often, which in turn led to some shocking last-minute essays that thoroughly deserved the low marks they received. (Just thinking about the poor people who had to mark them makes me cringe, even now.)

What I learned was that I had to take university seriously, and as part of that re-discover how to properly apply myself to my education. I hadn’t enjoyed school a great deal, and from the age of 14 tended to do just enough to get by without excessively disappointing my parents. This carried on through to the beginning of my undergraduate degree. But by the end of my first year I’d found, for the first time I could remember, that learning could be immensely enriching – even enjoyable. That late discovery probably explains why I carried on all the way to PhD level! I should note that I didn’t make that switch in isolation, though: I was helped enormously by the positive influence of my then-girlfriend, now wife, who is a far more diligent, switched-on, and all-round better person than me.

What are you most proud of about your time at university? 

From those inauspicious beginnings I went on to win a departmental prize for the highest-performing undergraduate in Philosophy. (Needless to say, I wouldn’t have won it if first-year marks counted toward the final degree classification!) It was quite the turnaround, and I’m still proud of that now.

What was the best bit of feedback you received? 

I used to find getting feedback on anything I’d written a horrible experience, regardless of whether it was broadly positive or negative, in-person or in writing. I knew in the abstract that feedback was a useful, even necessary part of learning, but I just found receiving it excruciating. Over time, though, I learned to get over that anxiety and actually listen to the feedback I was getting, and this only came through the process of being given it repeatedly. For that reason I wouldn’t say there was a single best bit of feedback I received – it was nearly always useful in training me to be more comfortable with it. 

What advice would you give to your undergraduate self? 

The thing is, when I arrived at university I was such an arrogant twerp that I probably wouldn’t have listened to any advice, even from my future self. So what I would do instead is just talk to younger-me, explore what I enjoyed about the subjects I was studying, point out that it was a more stimulating form of education than school had ever been, and basically just try to gently encourage the process of self-development that my undergraduate years ended up being.

Letter to my undergraduate self: Beckie Arden – ‘failure will help you recognise what to do to succeed’

Posted on by beckie.arden

In a nod to the Big Issue’s regular feature Letter to My Younger Self, we’re asking staff to think back to their own experiences as a student and tell us what advice they would give to their undergraduate selves.

This month we hear from Beckie Arden, Study Skills Tutor.

 

What and where did you study? 

Biology and French at Sussex University.
Which turned into just Biology at Sussex University.
Which then became Human Science at Sussex University.

Did you experience culture shock when you started university?

Yes! I found university a huge challenge in my first year. I was a hardworking student from a small rural town in Devon. I worked hard because I was terrified that if I didn’t, I’d fail. However I also felt that all my academic success was down to chance. I assumed it was luck that led to my GCSE success, or my strong A ‘levels, none of it could possibly be down to actual ability or hard work. Luckily I had some very intuitive teachers at school that spotted my ‘imposter syndrome’ and tried their best to help me. Things were a bit different at Uni. Huge lecture halls, the conveyor belt of practical classes, brief and infrequent seminars or tutorials. No one knew who I was or what I was thinking. I had to work very hard to overcome my insecurities myself. I nearly quit many times in that first term. I very nearly didn’t return after the winter break. But then I managed to take control of a few things. I changed my accommodation as I was very unhappy in my first flat. I managed to drop the ‘French’ part of my degree, because it was just not working out (I hadn’t actually done French A’level). I found some balance. Things seemed a bit more manageable. And I felt that I had some control over my journey through this very unfamiliar world.

What was your biggest failure and what did you learn from it?

So after two years of a Biology course that I was succeeding in but wasn’t very excited by, I discovered my perfect degree course; Human Science. It involves five major subjects – Biology, Anthropology, Philosophy, Psychology and Linguistics. Look it up. It’s amazing.

But I was a scientist. I had aced my science A’levels and that was why I had applied to do science at university. I could do science. I knew what was expected. So when I got 41% for my first anthropology essay (honestly I’m not even sure I knew what anthropology was at that point) it was quite a shock. I realised that applying the same approach to studying and writing in anthropology as I had in biology wasn’t going to work. I needed to learn how to read, think and write for anthropology. I came to see that for each of my new subjects, there was a skill-set that I had to employ, a way of doing things for each that was distinct. It was my first experience of learning how to learn.

What are you most proud of about your time at university?

That I persevered. I was unhappy at the start, but I changed things and made things better rather than giving up. I asked questions I didn’t know I could ask – like ‘please can I change my degree’. I carved my own path through a very alien setting, despite the culture shock and the imposter syndrome, and I achieved a 1st class degree on a course that even today I could talk about for hours because I loved it so much. I’m proud that I made it work.

What was the best bit of feedback you received? 

When I failed my driving test I was told ‘failure will help you recognise what to do to succeed’. I wasn’t keen on hearing it at the time, but this feedback came flooding back to me when I struggled with that anthropology essay. I had been terrified of failure. This fear underpinned the mammoth efforts I put into my work. However I learned that my understanding of how to study and how to achieve was unlocked once I had experienced failure.

What advice would you give to your undergraduate self?

Take every opportunity offered and keep your ears and eyes open for what’s available. I didn’t use nearly enough of the support that was available as I just didn’t know it was there, and I didn’t join nearly enough clubs or societies, as I just didn’t realise that you could. Also maybe don’t wear tin foil and cling film to the freshers ball, and go easy on the free margaritas on salsa night.

Letter to my undergraduate self: Simon Gamble – ‘Don’t waste brain power on fears, spend the time studying’

Posted on by study.skills

In a nod to the Big Issue’s regular feature Letter to My Younger Self, we’re asking staff to think back to their own experiences as a student and tell us what advice they would give to their undergraduate selves.

This month we present Simon Gamble, Head of Study Skills.

Did you experience a culture shock when you started University?

Completely. I had no idea what I was doing, plus I didn’t really know if I should be there because I got pretty bad grades at A’ level. It all had a huge psychological effect on me and I was very unsure of myself for a long time, which is why I spent the first term getting drunk, doing no work, lying in bed all day and making friends with some real idiots. One day I was so freaked out I just wandered round the whole city feeling lost, instead of doing a practical session about fungus. I genuinely had no idea what was happening to me. It took me about four months to get over it, well into Spring term. Luckily I’d also made friends with some really great people, not just idiots. Those good people really helped me.

What was your biggest failure and what did you learn from it?

I failed a unit in year two. It was my favourite subject and I loved all the lectures, but I spent all my time working on the subjects I found hard, just assumed I’d do well at this one and I tanked. That was when I had to relearn how to learn. It taught me that there are techniques and strategies for learning that I needed to apply, especially that testing myself was a huge help and that studying takes time and some organisation. In the retake I got a really good score, though it was capped at a pass grade. I didn’t care though, because the revision skills I gained were more important.

What are you most proud of about your time at university?

My time in France. There were two of us accepted to go to Université de Technologie de Compiègne on a placement year. We worked incredibly hard, but we had a brilliant time and we were trained very well. Some previous students hadn’t made much effort and we were going to be the last ones unless it went well, so we turned that placement around and even got our names on a research paper. When we got back the head of course knew our names, so obviously we’d made a good impression. I made some brilliant friends, learned to speak French really well, learned to cook, survived a car crash and kind of discovered myself. I came back transformed and it made the final year so much better.

What was the best bit of feedback you received?

“You’re enjoying yourself here aren’t you Simon? Well, if you want to keep enjoying yourself, do some work.” Head of School, January, year 1. I listened.

What advice would you give to your undergraduate self?

Don’t worry so much, just do your best. You have a perfect right to be here and to be doing this, so get on with it. Be kind, be helpful and friendly and say yes to anything that sounds interesting. All those things you’re scared of, they’re never going to happen because they’re extreme and life is mostly very mundane. Just don’t waste the brain power on fears, spend the time studying and talking to your fellow students about your subject instead. You’ve done really well to get here and that’s not going to stop, so just keep on at it.  And don’t move in with Gerry because he turns out to be racist and you end up really hating each other.