GETTING READY FOR YEAR 3

It feels so weird saying it but I shall be going into my third and final year in September! Eeeeek! I literally cannot wait but I know I will have so much work to do once classes begin.

The Dissertation is possibly going to be the hardest one so I shall be giving you some tips on how to cope with the work load (and shall keep you updated as I go along with my own work) and also how to get ready for your third year!

Dissertation Tips:

• Start sooner rather than later: I started about a month ago now on my Dissertation research and there is still so much to be done! Starting as soon as possible is for your benefit as this means you won’t have a crazy workload all at one time!
• Know what you’re researching: This is important as you do not want to leave it months and you still do not have a thesis.
• Talk to your Dissertation Supervisor regularly: This way they know how to help you best and what can be the next step for you
• Get a list of possible Dissertation books from your Supervisor and hunt through the library for other books that weren’t on the list: This is important; you need as much information as possible! Remember it is likely to be 10,000 words so you need all the quotes you can get.

Most of these tips were for your own benefit as you don’t want to have a breakdown halfway through third year. Plan things out properly and you will then begin to feel much more calm when it comes to approaching your Dissertation and other classes.

Keeping up with a busy schedule:

Everyone has busy schedules in their third year, or even any year! What with work, classes, social life and joining sports etc., it can get pretty stressful. Here are just a few tips to keep you on top of things:

• Keep a diary: This seems pretty straight forward, that’s because it is! It really is the best thing to keep on top of things and stops you from getting too stressed out.
• Plan things ahead of time: Last minute plans are great and all but it’s stressful when you need to think about whether you already have plans!
• Make sure you get enough sleep: Things do not end well if you do not have enough sleep. Things get on top of you and you end up emotional and moody! Get enough sleep and everyone will be happy J and then you’d want to do more things!

Planning for Freshers:

• Detox: This is soooo important! You need to prepare your body for the amount of alcohol that you’re going to consume (depending on how much of a drinker you are). I don’t drink a lot on a night out but it can get tiring and can take over your body when you are drinking every night. Make sure you drink a lot of water and eat healthy food like chicken, spinach, eggs etc. Anything that has a lot of protein to keep you going! Also try to get a good night’s sleep after you go out (seems impossible I know) but it’s important!

• Plan what you’re going to bring to your new home (if you’re moving in): You don’t want to forget anything! There is a handy guide on what to bring, here: http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/wiki/What_To_Take_To_University
• Most importantly, have fun: Freshers is a time to get to know new friends and have an amazing time. So enjoy yourself!

But more on Freshers in another post!

Enjoy the rest of your summer guys J

What I’ve been up too…

So these last few weeks have been non-stop, we’re working Clearing now and last week I worked 6 days in a row and it was super tiring!! Aside from this I’ve also been working hard on my dissertation, I know we’re not back at university until the end of September but I know the work load is going to be crazy so I’m trying to do as much as I can now!

ß This is me right now 

Weekend trips to the university library are becoming a thing and shopping for stationary too (who doesn’t love new stationary each year, if you say no... you’re lying!! :P)

I’m soooooo looking forward to going back to university though, I can’t wait for Cheerleading to start up again and see everyone who went home for the summer. I’m absolutely buzzing for Freshers Fortnight, there are so many amazing events that I literally cannot wait for!! Also, this year I can see Cheerleading initiations from a different angle, as a returner! I also just can’t wait for days after class when we go and chill in the Student Union bar with a drink and a cheap but tasty meal catching up with my friends. J

When I go back to university for my third and final year (it feels so scary writing that!!!) I’ll be based on the new campus: Stockwell Street. It looks so fancy, modern and new! I can’t wait to see what it looks like inside. The new library is also going to be here so I’m looking forward to seeing it all!

Work has been fun though; we have Theme your Team where everyone dresses up for the day. Also on the weekends we all go out for a drink and it always ends up being a great night.

Hope everyone's summer is going great!

CHESSINGTON WORLD OF ADVENTURES

So as I said in my last post, I went to Chessington World of Adventures! J Jade’s (who you’ll see in many of these photos) granddad collected the tickets you could get in The Sun newspaper and we ended up going to the adventure park for free! We both had so much fun this day so I thought I would share some photos with you.

First we went straight to the bigger (it is mostly little rides at Chessington as it is aimed at younger people) rides to try and get on as soon as we can before it started getting really packed! The queue for the bigger rides ended up being around 30 minutes (this then became a habit and the waiting time for each ride ended up being around the same time!)

As Jade and I are both big animal lovers we decided to check out what animal shows they presented throughout the day. The first one was the Penguin Show and they were so cute! It was boiling hot on this day so they just decided to swim around in the water, the way they waddle when they get out is so adorable!

We then walked around the other parts of the Zoo and saw some Otters, Lions, and Monkeys and watched the Sea Lion Show. This was way too mesmerising to take pictures of; I couldn’t look away as I didn’t want to miss what they did next!








We then went on loads of other rides including my favourite, Bubble Works! Every time I came to Chessington when I was younger, I HAD to go on this ride. It brings back so many memories now, no matter how much it has changed!


The lights and colours in this ride are really pretty, Jade has a waterproof camera so we could take pictures on all of the rides we went on!

Like the Dragon Falls:

This is like the best ride ever when it’s an extremely hot day!

After this we then bought ourselves some doughnuts:

And then went on a Safari ride:

After this we went back to look at the Gorillas:

Look how small I am compared to a full size Gorilla!!!

After this we went on one last ride/attraction which was extremely trippy! Everything was moving and there were so many colours. It was so confusing!!

So this was our trip to Chessington, I had a really fun day and I hope you enjoyed this post!

Life since Year 2 ended.

I feel weird saying it but I actually miss university, I miss all my friends who live far away, my cheerleading J buddies and I actually miss the classes too.  During the summer I’m working in the Clearing office, which is fun but it’s also tiring, I work 9-5 every day until it ends in September. I know this isn’t a big deal as people do this all the time, but it is when you’re not used to it!

I’ve been trying to keep up blogging on my personal blog (www.britishheartsxo.blogspot.com) every other day too since summer has started. The end of the second year in university caused too much stress if I worked, done my assignments and blogged as well! So unfortunately I had to give blogging the boot for a little while. I do enjoy blogging so it was hard to give it up for a while! Although, giving it up did give me some good fortune as I received a 2:1 for my second year which I was really happy about!!

This week I’ve been working, seeing friends and I’m also going to Chessington World of Adventures and I feel like such a kid because I’m so excited!! I haven’t been to Chessington for years now so it’ll be so much fun to go back. I’m just hoping it isn’t busy and isn’t too hot whilst walking around. (Take a guess at what my next post is going to be about!!) My family and I used to go every year for one of my cousins birthdays so it’ll be nice to relive the memories and have a great day on all the rides. I LOVE roller-coasters so this is the perfect day out for me, the faster the better I think! The weather has been amazing as well so I’ve been making the most of it by sitting outside on my lunch break and relaxing in my garden with the book which I’m obsessed with at the moment – Game of Thrones (A Clash of Kings). If you haven’t read it yet, I would highly recommend it! The first one was a bit slow at first but as soon as I started to recognise the characters and get to know them better I fell in love and become obsessed (Not surprising I guess if you have read the books!). Have a good week, guys! J

CLEARING BEGINS AGAIN.

So, now that summer is here I have been working a lot at the office and we have just moved to a much much

bigger room to take all the calls and chats to do with Clearing 2014! It’s going to be super busy but I really enjoyed Clearing last year. The days went so quick because it was so hectic and it was quite a lot of fun with the Teams we were on and I’m hoping it’s like that this year. We’ve also got the university Open Day on Saturday July 5th if anyone is interested in coming! 10am-3pm and it’s open across all campuses.

I feel like every year I talk a lot about doing a lot of different things during my summer holidays but I usually find myself working a heck of a lot and going out with friends on the weekends. This year I hope is different. If you read my last blog post then you’d have read all about what I would LOVE to do this year, whether that gets done or not is a different story. I really hope I do some of it, I feel like I need to spend more time exploring my own city. I’d probably be amazed at half the stuff there is in London that I’ve never seen before.

What I’ve been super excited for recently is actually returning to university in September for my third and final year. It scares me so much to know that this is my final year at university and then once it’s over I’ve got to find a proper job in the big wide world. After university I plan to go into the police force, work for a couple of years and then move to Australia. I’m not sure why but that has always been my dream. It’s scary to know that probably 70% of my third year goes towards my final grade!!!! Eeek! Wish me luck!!!!

SUMMER BUCKET LIST

Now it is officially summer, there are loads of things I want to do before I go back to study in September. Whether or not I’ll actually do them is another thing as most of my university friends have gone home for the summer (boo). The main thing I want to do in life is travel, anywhere and everywhere. Here are a few things I want to do this summer:

GO TO PARIS

Paris has always interested me, and I've only ever drove through France so I haven’t had a chance to explore the country in all its glory. I see and hear of people visiting Paris all the time and it always looks so beautiful.

VISIT EVERY BEACH IN SOUTH ENGLAND

This is a given, I love the beach, particularly a sand beach but with that being a bit of a long-shot in England, I won’t mind a pebble beach! I love the smell of the sea and the small tourist shops that are there.

MEET AS MANY NEW PEOPLE AS POSSIBLE

I do love meeting new people, as you have no clue what they’re going to bring in your life, whether it be good or bad it’s still an experience. You’ll learn new things from everyone you meet and they could end up meaning a lot to you.

STAY OUT UNTIL THE SUN RISES

This I've always wanted to do, particularly in London. I want to be relaxing at home and someone calls me and asks me to just hang out. We’ll go into London and explore everywhere we can, places we've never been before and then watch the sunrise.

SAY ‘YES’ MORE

I've been trying to do this more anyway, but I believe that saying yes more opens a lot more opportunities for you. It opens a lot more adventures as well.

TRY SOMETHING NEW

A bit of a given, but who doesn't love trying something new? Whether it be painting or dancing, it’s nice to learn new things and you could actually find out that you love this new hobby and this new side of you.

APPRECIATE LIFE

- ALWAYS appreciate life.

The End of Year 2

So my second year has come to an end and I couldn’t be more sad, this past year has made me realise how much I love university and I’m excited for year 3 to begin! This year I joined the cheerleading team which I’m so so glad I did, I’ve met some really amazing people and I’ve loved all the experiences that have come up along the way. I’ve also met loads of other people through the other sports teams and through being more social by going to Sparrows and just making more of an effort!

 

I also recently learned that I got a 2:1 for my second year which I’m so ecstatic about!!! I’m so proud of myself that I worked hard and got the grade I wanted. The work this year has been slightly challenging but enjoyable because it’s a subject I love. I’ve said it all along that you should study a subject at university that you enjoy because it makes the workload easier and your overall experience of university more enjoyable.

Is it weird that I’m looking forward to writing my Dissertation next year? Even though I probably won’t be saying that when it comes to it! I already know that I’m writing my dissertation on Disney so it can’t be that bad, can it!? Lets hope not! I’ve also loved writing this blog and I hope at least some people do gain advice from it and it helps some people make some decisions for the best (LIKE JOINING CHEERLEADING, if you’re thinking about it - DO IT! You won’t regret it!)

I hope you guys have an enjoyable summer! I still will be updating this blog as Clearing is coming up and I still want to let you guys know what I’m up to and what’s going on in my crazy life at the moment!

Stacey x