The Collaborative Teaching Laboratory at Birmingham

By Rosie, Chemistry College of Engineering and Physical Sciences, University of Birmingham As a Chemist, I spend a lot of time in the CTL. CTL stands for ‘Collaborative Teaching Laboratory’ and it’s a £45 million pound state-of-the-art facility. Labs are a fundamental part of the Chemistry course: they are a way of bringing the Chemistry … Continue reading “The Collaborative Teaching Laboratory at Birmingham”

The Impact of Covid-19

By Rosie, Chemistry College of Engineering and Physical Sciences, University of Birmingham Coronavirus seems the unavoidable topic of choice for my April blog given that it is the primary focus for everyone now, causing a tragic loss for many and putting our lives on hold. We are living through an unprecedented point in history which … Continue reading “The Impact of Covid-19”

Welfare and Wellbeing Support

Starting university is a huge adjustment for most people: living in halls, being more self-reliant (doing your own washing! getting up on time!!), homesickness maybe, finding your tribe, let alone starting a degree. Your brain is bombarded with lots of new information very quickly and furiously processing the new environment can be absolutely exhausting. Some … Continue reading “Welfare and Wellbeing Support”

What am I learning and how does it help?

There are many different reasons why placements are a valuable experience and the most obvious of these is that a placement looks great on your CV!! When you finish your degree and start looking for jobs, you’ll probably notice that one of the major factors an employer will look for is experience. This is why … Continue reading “What am I learning and how does it help?”

The Big Report!

So I’m now 10 months into my placement and it’s time for the final report. For my course; this report is the major assessed part of my year and contributes 55% of my placement mark. As you might have guessed this means it’s no small piece, it weighs in at 8,000 words and is designed … Continue reading “The Big Report!”

Living away from campus

As you may have guessed your placement year will most likely be spent living away from campus and although you’ll still have rent to manage and bills to pay like before, the experience may well feel a little different. Different companies work in different ways. Some will provide you with accommodation either with other students … Continue reading “Living away from campus”

Take a break – how to keep your focus for work

As I mentioned last time you’ll probably have lots of additional university work to do whilst on placement but this year away isn’t all about working! After all, you do need to make sure you take breaks and give yourself some time to let your brain reset so you don’t just burn out. When it … Continue reading “Take a break – how to keep your focus for work”

A fine juggling act – distance learning modules and time management

Holding down a full time job is a challenge in itself, especially if you’ve never done it before. But trying to study on top of that is an even bigger task! Depending on your course structure you’ll probably be given some Distance Learning Modules (DLMs) to complete whilst on placement. These will enable you to … Continue reading “A fine juggling act – distance learning modules and time management”

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