Rachel

Choosing Newcastle

Newcastle is a brilliant University to be a part of. It feels very ‘homely’ and everybody is extremely welcoming.  The city has a lot to explore with many amazing sights to see, making it very easy to feel comfortable and safe to live here. I chose Newcastle because the degree is very specific, and few universities offer it. I wanted to stay in the North East, and Newcastle was by far the nicest university that offered my course, so I decided to come here!

Studying at Newcastle

Newcastle is a great university. All the lecturers are always happy to help with any issues that students come across. You can knock on a lecturer’s door and they’ll be happy to help. The library is a great resource for studying. It has a large number of online and hardcopy resources. It has services such as Maths Aid to help you with aspects of maths. The Writing Development Centre at the library can improve your writing style and check over essays).

My Master’s is more full-on than my Bachelor’s, but it’s not too different. I do still have a social life! We’re taught modules in blocks, which means we study one subject at a time and then we’re assessed. Ten credit modules generally last one week and then we have a consolidation week. Twenty credits normally last two weeks with two consolidation weeks. The class size here is quite similar to my undergraduate course, which is good.

Postgraduate community

The postgraduate community is a very close and welcoming group. Everyone is happy to help each other with whatever problems occur. During the postgraduate year, the students spend a lot of time together during lectures. This expands into a social side that creates great friends. We had the opportunity to take part in group activities during freshers week, which was a good opportunity to meet new people. I socialise with people on my course, as we have a close course community.

Funding my studies

I found out about the Postgraduate Women in Science and Engineering Scholarship through an email from the University. The application process was easy. I was lucky enough to receive this scholarship, which helped me pay for my course fees. It also leaves me some money to live on for the rest of the year. I received a total of £10,000. This means that I only have to pay for my accommodation. I would not have been able to attend the course without the scholarship.

Career aspirations

I would like to get onto a graduate scheme to experience all aspects of the Geotechnical Engineering industry. The Careers Service are very good for pointing out what schemes are available and preparing applications. My lecturers also point out jobs and graduate schemes we might want to apply for.

Accommodation

I managed to get myself a place in Albion House. The accommodation is great quality and right in the city centre next to St James’ Park. This makes everything very accessible and is very close to many services such as the train station and supermarkets. The University is only a couple of minutes’ walk away depending on which building you need to be in. I love living at Albion House. It is a very welcoming place and in a great area. It also mostly houses postgraduate and mature students. The application process was all done online. I chose to go through university accommodation as it was easier to arrange than finding a house elsewhere in the city. Wherever I ended up I was always going to be in a good location.

Living in Newcastle

I like the fact that it's easy to get to lots of places in Newcastle, and it’s generally a nice city to be in!

Remembering Newcastle

I love how many different people I’ve met. Everybody’s been extremely welcoming and I’ve had no bad experiences at all.