How to pick the right University for you

Firstly, congratulations on deciding that you want to attend University - It's not an easy choice to make for everyone but you've already taken the first step! I have put together a step by step guide to help you find the right University and right course for you:

1. Select a subject area (e.g. Sport)
2. Decide whether it is important to you if you stay near home or can move away. (If you are staying near home your choices can become narrow very quickly).
3. Try looking at some league tables, for example The Guardian or The Complete University Guide. Note that different University's will rank better for different subjects and under different headings (e.g. student satisfaction, graduate prospects, entry standards etc.)
4. Use the UCAS Website to Find a Course - look at lots of different courses and different Universities (even if you are planning to stay near home).
5. Print off some courses and highlight things you like/dislike in different colours. You will start to notice a pattern, for example course content (more science/sociology) or method of examination (essays/exams/practicals).
6. Find a course that has the most of what you like - it is unlikely that you will love everything about one course but you can like most of it.
7. Research that particular course and the Universities that offer it.
   
8. Narrow down the Universities by checking out their websites, googling news stories, going to open days and chatting to people who have done that course or have studied something else there.
9. Sometimes courses appear more or less the same, so think about their geographical location - would you like to live by the sea, or in a big city, or in a rural area?
10. Make your choices on your UCAS application.

This can be quite an emotional time and the process can be quite stressful - be prepared for that. I try to deal with any emotional decision by looking at it logically at first, so following the process above can help with that. Here is another guide from The Complete University Guide.

Most importantly though is that you talk to people about it all - your friends and family can provide a support network and can be great to bounce ideas off of. Don't set your heart on one course at one institution - be aware that things may not develop in the way you intended them to, for example budgets can be cut and thus less places offered. 

Once you have an idea of the course and Universities that you are interested in, BOOK AN OPEN DAY! These are great opportunities to work out whether you like the University, the course and the local area - remember you will live there for at least 3 years!

Any questions please leave a comment below - otherwise, happy searching!

Halls...

This week it's all about Halls! I personally have never lived in halls (you can read my commuter blog from earlier in the year if you are thinking about Commuting) but many of my friends have - so I thought I would give you an insiders view of living in halls...

You can find lots more information about Living at Beds or specifically about Liberty living by clicking the hyper links. I would recommend attending an open day and taking a tour of the different accommodation that is available, plus you can then ask any questions you may have. 

Food Glorious Food!

Cooking at Uni can be a daunting task for some people so here a few tips to get you started:

1. Practice at home before you go 
2. Get family members to write down your favourite home cooked recipes in a way you can understand - better yet help them prepare it and make your own notes!
3. Help with the family food shop - this way you will get an idea about how much things really cost and where items live in a shop

Here are a couple of ideas of meals that can get you started - shoving something in the oven, like fish and chips/pizza/chicken nuggets is ok every now and then but you will get bored with it and won't do your health much good if you eat it with every meal!

Food Shopping

Here are some tips when you go food shopping:

1. Supermarkets reduce stock that is nearing its sell by date at the end of the day. Shop at this time for some great bargains. See the 2 photos - I got a £13.42 beef joint for £5.00 and a £1.35 loaf of bread for 19p! I cut the beef up into individual portions and froze it! That's 12 meals worth of meat for me! I love yellow sticker shopping!
2. Watch out for pricing - just because it says 'bigger so better value' doesn't mean it is! Below each price there is how much it costs per 100g/1kg/100ml/unit etc. so use that to compare prices to find the real cost.
3. Don't be precious about brands. Own brands can be just as good but 19p noodles are not a bargain - they taste disgusting and you won't eat them!
4. Do not go shopping when you are hungry! This only encourages you to pick up extra things that you don't need, which is not good if you are on a budget!
5. Write a list! Put on it your crisps, chocolate and cakes - that's ok! But when you shop you must stick to the list! I use an app called 'anylist' which means when ever I think of something I need I can add it to the list right then! You can share this list with others too so if you share it with your parents (who happen to be visiting at the weekend) then they might pick up some bits for you - BONUS!

Some Basic Recipes to look up:

Cook books are great but I am a fan of typing things like 'how to poach an egg for dummies' into Google for really basic instructions. Youtube is also great as you can actually watch people do things, so if you are unsure of how to cut up an onion, you can watch and learn.

Curry (Chicken, beef, lamb, veggie)

Stir Fry (great for when you need to use up things - and fairly healthy too!)

Spaghetti Bolognese

Steak and salad (this will make you very popular and is actually really easy!)

Home Made Beefburgers (Basically mince, onion and carrot - you can also make these meatballs)

Cook in the bag meals (all you have to do is put your meat in a bag, shake in the flavouring, tie it up, shove it in the oven and voila!)

Family Favourites (Find our how to make your families favourite meals - this will make you feel more at home at Uni, especially in the first few weeks)

One-Pan-Wonders (Or 2 pan for pasta/rice too):

I forgot to take a final photo -
I was too hungry!

These are great because it means less washing up!

In this photo I cooked everything in one pan. I did the meat first, then sweet potatoes and root veg (carrots, onions etc), then I added the meat back in and added other veg (sweet corn, peas, mushrooms). If you want you can add a sauce of some description but I just had it with a bit of Mayo and some salad that needed eating up. LUSH! 

Mega Lazy meal - salad from a bag
(reduced of course) and I cooked some
chicken to go with it

The less pots, pans and kitchen equipment you use the better really - especially if you hate washing up as much as I do! BUT I am always careful of using separate utensils for raw and cooked 

meat - I don't want to risk food poisoning!

Final Food Thoughts:

• Don't scrimp too much on food - enjoying your food helps keep people healthy but also happy!
• Use your FREEZER - this is a good way to save of wasting food & money! If you cook too much (which you will do to start with at least) then portion it up and freeze it to heat up and eat later.
• Slow cookers are AMAZING! It means you can buy less expensive cuts of meat, yet they still melt in your mouth! I often put on a stew/curry and leave it to cook all day when I'm at Uni and then when I get home and can't be bothered to cook - it's already done and ready to eat instantly!

Here is my infamous slow cooker - Nancy - who is loved by all!
We cook as a house and then people can have dinner when they get in and its
hot and yummy for everyone - no matter how late home you are!

Open Days!

Open days are a great way to get to know a University, whether you have already selected your choices or you are still looking at different possibilities, they give you
an insight into life at that Uni.



What is an Open Day? 

This is a day where people are welcome to attend to familiarise themselves, friends and family with the Uni. It provides advice with regards to the course you are interested in, what the accommodation and facilities are like and about services provided by the Uni.



What happens at an Open Day?

I have attended several open days and they tend to follow a similar format. At some point during the day there will be a campus tour, a visit to the accommodation, a visit to the sports facilities, a visit to the library,  a chance to speak to staff and potentially students who are specific to your course, a chance to discuss student finance and maybe a few talks on various subjects. Some faculty specific open days provide 'introductory lectures' so you can get a feel of how lectures work at the Uni. 

What do I need to do?

Firstly check to see if you need to book onto an open day, and if so do it.

Then turn up with a list of questions you would like answering - this may be through various talks, visits or by asking staff/students directly.

Make a note of the answers to your questions somewhere because you are bombarded with so much information that you won't remember everything!




What questions do I need answering?

Here are a few to get you started, but they are individual to you:

• What do you look for in a personal statement (Course Specific)?
• What is the UCAS tariff for this course?
• What have previous students gone on to do after graduating?
• Am I guaranteed a place in Halls if I apply for one?
• Do most students stay or go home over the weekend?
• How much do Halls cost? What does this include?
• What's the town/city like?
• (To students) How has the course been so far? What has the teaching/support/facilities been like?
• (To students) What is the best and worst thing about Uni?
• (To students) How do you manage money?
• What sports teams and societies do you have?
• What bursaries/scholarships are there available and how do I apply for one?

Want more information?

Visit the Universities webpage, search for them on twitter and facebook. 

There is some really useful information on UoB here: 
http://www.beds.ac.uk/howtoapply/oe/ug/visit which may answer some of your questions. 

Commuting...

I don’t live at University; I live at home and commute in. There are many advantages and disadvantages of this but I thought I would talk you through my thinking process when deciding where to live whilst studying at Uni.

Benefits of Living at Home:

• You know who you are living with, their habits, mess and their cooking abilities
• Meals are cooked for you (not always), and cost of food is split.
• Washing machine facilities are in the house – no dragging clothes to the laundrette
• Heating! (although in Halls this isn’t really a problem!)
• I could continue with my activities outside of Uni

Disadvantages of living at Home:

• Traffic - Rush hour traffic is a pain! You will devise several different routes to switch
  
  between just to keep the drive a bit more interesting.
• Sleep - Get used to having to get up earlier, you don’t have the option of rolling into lectures in your PJs!
• Social Nights out – You have to find somewhere to stay overnight, but once you have made a few friends I’m sure there will be a sofa you could sleep on!
• You don’t get to meet new people as easily – there is a wealth of life experience that can be gained from living at Uni that some people really value.

I’m sure you can think of more and specific things that apply to you in your own situations. For me it was a no brainer – I knew I wanted to live at home and commute in. It works really well for me, I don’t feel like I miss out on anything, and if I want to go out I crash at a friend’s house and then drive home the next day.  I think I have the best of both worlds, but it’s not for everyone.

Here are my top 3 tips to consider when deciding whether to live in or not:

1. How will you be commuting? Car, Public Transport? Easy route? Lots of transfers between trains/buses?
2. How long will it take? Remember to double this for 9am starts and 5/6pm finishes! Are you really going to be ok getting up at 6am, leaving the house at 7am, getting home at 8pm (or 11pm like I do after team training) to then have to drive back the next morning?
3. How much will each option cost? Remember to compare the finances of your options as this may help your decision.

     Here is the link to the Beds Accommodation: http://www.studentvillagebeds.com/ 

               Have a look and decide for yourself!