Category Archives: Student voice

Your chance to share your student experience or hear from other students.

Sheffield Hallam University International Prize

Do you know an international student who has made a significant contribution to the University both in academic achievement and in the life of the University Community? If so, then nominate them for the Sheffield Hallam University International Prize!

Sheffield Hallam University awards two annual prizes of £200 to the full-time or part-time students of non-UK origin have inspired and supported their peers. They may have gone above and beyond, helped you while on your course or had a positive impact on your time studying at Sheffield Hallam.

You can nominate students here, giving a reason why you think that they should be presented with the award. We’ll pick the winners, who will be given their certificate on the 26 April at our special Celebration Event – the prize fund will be allocated by bank transfer.

Nominations are open from Monday 27 March and close on Thursday 6 April.

Complete a survey for a chance to win an iPad Pro!

GREAT images_Knowledge The British Council and the GREAT campaign are researching to explore the student journey and decision making process of international students coming to study in the UK.

They have created a short,  simple survey which asks about your own thoughts and experiences. Only newly arrived  students who started a course from September 2016 onward are eligible to complete the survey. By completing this survey you have an opportunity to win a brand new iPad Pro worth £750.

Your answers will help your university to improve the communication of its offer to students like you from around the world.

Link to survey

The survey will take about 10 minutes to complete and the deadline is the end of January 2017. Everybody who completes the survey will be entered into a prize draw. Two winners drawn at random will each receive a brand new iPad Pro worth £750.

SCOPE graduate Igloo Novas’s semester in Sheffield

Igloo at her graduation with friends at Sheffield
Igloo at her graduation with friends at Sheffield

“I first did an Associate Degree in Applied Social Studies with Urban Studies in Community College at City University Hong Kong. This led me to do the top up course, Applied Social Science at SCOPE, which is in partnership with Sheffield Hallam. Due to my outstanding academic performance I was able to obtain a scholarship to study a semester doing postgraduate credits at Sheffield Hallam.

My first impressions of Sheffield Hallam were that it is modern, especially the library, very much like SCOPE. I particularly like the classes in terms of the mix of international students and small class sizes which encourage communication and group discussions, and lecturers get to know you more which is very different to SCOPE.

The modules that I studied had field trips which encouraged me to explore British culture, and faculty support has been great too.

I have found the support that the International Experience Team provide has been great and the programme of SHU GoGlobal activities has given me experiences of British culture, especially in the events, activities and particularly trips they have provided. I have enjoyed being a Culture Connect mentee during my time here and being matched to a local student as a mentor has helped me a lot in adjusting to local culture.  At SCOPE, I mentored incoming US students in a group mentoring scheme where two local (Hong Kong) students would mentor three US students. I would show them around key landmarks around Hong Kong and talk about the local culture.

I have been fortunate to attend my graduation at Sheffield Hallam, it will be an experience that I will never forget. I was shocked to hear a live violin orchestra performing at the ceremony! I felt that the event was steeped in tradition which I thoroughly enjoyed.

Thanks to my academic achievements at SCOPE and SHU, I have been able to pursue a Master of Urban Planning at the University of Sydney in early 2017.

I would say that my semester at Sheffield has given me unforgettable life experiences for my future studies.”

Student Profile: Amy Ng

We asked Amy Ng, a student from Hong Kong studying Molecular and Cell Biology, to tell us a bit about her time at Sheffield Hallam, and how she adapted to living in England as a Chinese student.

“As a new student, I felt very welcomed by the friendly staff and my coursemates at Sheffield Hallam and have quickly made many friends from all over the world through the social activities organised by the International Experience Team. I have also joined the International Career Enhancement (ICE) Club as a crew member.

The International Experience Team is very supportive to all crew members and offer us briefings, training sessions and ICE Club Xtra events which ranges from seminars by business leaders to business simulation activities. As a result, I have brushed up on my customer service skills and multicultural awareness, and have enjoyed the time working with and learning from local and International students.

Joining recreational clubs such as SHU Canoe Club and working as a student crew member for ICE Club have helped me gain confidence in interacting with friends from all over the world and working in a diverse environment.  In Sheffield Hallam, you will receive a lot of support for your aspirations.  This is the place for you to transform yourself!”

Many thanks to Amy for telling us how she’s enjoyed her Sheffield Hallam experience; if you’d like to be featured here to tell your story from any of our partner institutions, then please email us: goglobal@shu.ac.uk

Get the facts about Sheffield

Find out from our students why we all love Sheffield! Find out how green, big and happy it is, and just why it has so many students who stay here after they study.

Check out this fantastic video in which Sheffield Hallam puts questions to students about the city that they live in and see how they do:

If you’re reading in a country that cannot access YouTube, then click here for a Youku link

Hallam Award – Final Deadline

The Hallam Award is the Students’ Union skills award that recognises and rewards students who have developed their skills through extra-curricular activities within the Students’ Union, university and in the community.

The Hallam Award is designed to help you reflect on the transferable skills you have developed that will help you in your future career aspirations and beyond.

If you’ve been a part of SHU Fest, Culture Connect, ICE Club, Global Friends or any other SHU GoGlobal scheme, then you can apply! Even if you’re studying abroad at one of our partner institutions, you can also apply!

The deadline is next week though, 10 June, so click here to get your application in! More about the scheme can be found in the video below:

Climate Change – Whose Responsibility?

Climate change, as ever, is a hot topic, bringing with it a host of fiercely-contested debates, scientific research and differing political opinion.

Below is a great event which is coming up aimed at inspiring debate, with speakers from a range of background and organisations there to spark lively discussions around climate change.

It’s hosted by Hope for the Future, a group formed to encourage and equip individuals and organisations to lobby their MP on climate change. Details are below:

Environment weeks event May 2016 Final v-page-001

What can SHU GoGlobal do for you?

We thought it would be a good idea to highlight our Facebook page: what does it do and how can you get involved?

The SHU GoGlobal page is a place for us to speak to students, to give you information about things going on in Sheffield, opportunities to work and study abroad, as well as a social hub, enabling students from all around the world to come together and learn about each other’s culture.

It’s the best place on the web to keep up-to-date with what the International Experience Team are up to, as well as to be the first to hear about any opportunities to work with us to welcome and support new and existing students.

So there you have it, if you haven’t already then like our page!

Student Rep Awards – Nominations Open!

Every year, Sheffield Hallam Students’ Union likes to recognise the fantastic work that our student reps do acting as the link between students and their respective faculties.

The Awards are designed to show appreciation for reps who have gone above and beyond, engaging with students to communicate any concerns or feedback that they may have about their course and relaying any information from faculty staff effectively. Our student reps act as a voice for the student population and provide an important bridge between teaching staff and SHU students.

You can nominate student reps from each faculty; someone who you feel has made the biggest impact across groups, societies and departments; as well as academic and support staff who you think deserve recognition.

Nominations for the awards are open now, and can be found here.

SHU Fest introduces James Barnett – a classical piano performance

Article written by journalism student Emily Fitzgibbons:

jamesbarnettePianist James Barnett is set to perform live at SHU Fest, Friday 4 March.

He said: “I’m a little bit nervous but no more than I would be playing anywhere else.”

James, who started playing aged six, said the piano has always been important to him. “I forget about everything else when I’m playing the piano. I remember the first time I heard my teacher playing. It gave me goose pimples and I just thought it was the best thing ever.”

He was classically trained at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester and is part of a choir and plays at church services.

James, who admits to not performing solo as much as he used to, is now a professional piano teacher. “Everybody has got music ability. It helps if you start when you’re a kid but I do teach a lot of adults who haven’t had lessons before.

Debussy, a French composer, is James’ inspiration.

Watch his performance at 1pm in Heartspace, Level 2 of the Owen Building.