Camilla Hurley – Studied and worked in Spain

Camilla studied at Universidad de Oviedo for 1 semester, she then completed her work placement with TUI Travel in Palma de Mallorca.

“Studying and working abroad was the best experience ever and choosing to do my degree at Hallam was the best decision ever made.  Studying International Business with Spanish has allowed me to spend 18 months in Spain as part of my degree.

Before I moved abroad I was very nervous and I had no idea what to expect as I had never even to Spain before.  However, as soon as I got there I was having such an amazing time meeting people from all over the world.  There was nothing to worry or be concerned about because it was a new experience for everyone there.  Returning back to England after the full 18 months was a bit strange, after spending so long as part of another culture you will pick up mannerisms from that Country.

Generally the University system with regards to lectures and seminars is the same in both the UK and Spain, however, the grading system is slightly different.  All of my classes were in Spanish so at first it was a slight challenge but after a while it all became that little bit easier.

The working culture in Spain is a lot more laid back that it is here in the UK.  Everyone is so friendly and willing to help you with whatever worry or doubt you may have.  I made friends from all over the work and also of all different ages.  Working in Spain is a lot different than in the UK and it is something that you need to adapt to in order to make the most out of the experience.”

 

This Week’s News

Monday 27 April 2015

In this week’s edition…

Student Voice
Employability
Support
Immigration

 

Best wishes,
International Student Support Team

Support for Nepalese students

For all our students from Nepal – in the aftermath of the earthquake we want to make sure that you are aware of the support available for you at this time.

We are very saddened by the devastation caused and do appreciate that this is a very difficult time for you. We hope you have been able to make contact with your family and friends, and that they are fine.

Please feel free to come and see one of our advisers in case there is anything at all we can help with. Our advisers have appointments available everyday (you can book by calling 0114 225 3813 or email internationalsupport@shu.ac.uk) and are also available for daily drop in 11am – 12 noon.

Please do not hesitate, we are here to help in any way we can.
International Student Support

SHU GoGlobal blog competition

Now–Friday 26 June 2015

Share your experience of going global to inspire others and you could win an iPad mini.

1798880_642887015833414_8849657337390631202_n

The SHU GoGlobal blog competition is to create an online blog about your experience of internationalising while being a student at Sheffield Hallam University. Internationalising is the process of gaining an understanding of other cultures and developing a global outlook.

The brief is to create an online blog which records the best stories from your time at Sheffield Hallam or your study/work experience abroad and the impact the experience has had on you and your future.

You can read the competition rules at www.shu.ac.uk/global

Preparing for exams and coping with exam stress

Exams are coming up in May and this can be a worrying and demanding time for many students. But there’s no need to panic; get your preparation right and use the right tools and resources and you’ll be on the right track.

We like this exam hints and tips article from the Independent. There’s lots of great tips here about organising and looking after yourself in the run up to the exam period.

You should also think about eating healthily to carry you through your exams. Healthy eating doesn’t have to mean lengthy preparation and you can get some great and quick ideas from the Beyond Baked Beans student food website. Some of our members of staff also have some suggestions for cheap, easy to prepare food now that it’s starting to get warmer outside.

It might also be useful to you to know what tools and resources are available to help you with your exam preparation:

You might find the Library Gateway useful. This online resource brings together all the different search tools you might need to find your way round the physical and electronic collections in the SHU library and you can find it at: http://library.shu.ac.uk

You can also access subject guides which introduce students to the books, journal articles and news items relevant to their subject area. You’ll find this at: http://library.shu.ac.uk/subjectguides.html

Another service offered through the learning centres are the drop-in study support sessions. If you’ve got a question about an assignment you’re working on or you want to have a draft of an assignment looked at, these weekly one-to-one sessions with a study support tutor are designed for just that. Look on shuspace here for more details.

Throughout April you may also be interested in attending an academic skills workshop as these cover a variety of study-related topics. A particularly useful session at this time of the year is the Get ready for exams session which will provide you with planning and revision tips.

As a student at SHU you are also automatically enrolled on the new Blackboard organisation Academic skills resources (2014/15) which includes My Study Skills: the toolkit.

The Academic skills resources Blackboard organisation contains

  • My Study Skills: the toolkit (a SHU online resource available this academic year to July 2015)
  • skills4studycampus (which has a section on exam skills)
  • links to recommended free resources

Please note, the first time you go to skills4studycampus you have to register – this is to set up your personal account so that you can see your progress, go back to where you left off and add notes in ‘my journal’.

Finally, in terms of your wellbeing, you may find this ‘Ten things you can do to look after yourself’ leaflet useful as basis for improving your physical and mental health. The Student Wellbeing Service can offer you lots of support around dealing with stress too. They have self-help resources available and can also see you in a one-to-one or a group setting. There are also the final group sessions of the year which you can attend on areas such as mindfulness and assertiveness skills.

We hope this is useful for you and will help you to feel prepared as we move towards the January exams. If you have any particular worries or concerns about exams, please feel free to come and speak to your Student Support Officer via your faculty helpdesk or an Advice and Information Adviser at one of our drop-in sessions. These run Monday to Friday at both City and Collegiate campuses.

And remember, stay calm and start preparing!

Make your voice heard!

national student survey -web banner

If you are a final year undergraduate student, this is your chance to have your say!

The National Student Survey is a national, independent survey which evaluates your whole student experience. The purpose of the survey is to provide publicly available information for future students about what you think of the University’s services and courses. It’s your opportunity to provide honest feedback about your whole student experience.

Plus, for every survey completed the University will donate £2 to your RAG charities, so that’s even more reason to give your feedback. Last year we raised over £10,000 and we’re hoping to beat that in 2015.

So don’t miss your chance to make your voice heard – the deadline for completing the survey is 30 April 2015.

Find out more here.

Want to save up to £60 a month on food bills?…

…then come to the Love Food Hate Waste workshop!

The Love Food Hate Waste campaign tells us that: “Food waste is a major issue. We throw away 7 million tonnes of food and drink from our homes every year, the majority of which could have been eaten. It’s costing us £12.5bn a year and is bad for the environment too.”

So, if you or anyone you know wants to:

  • Learn how to save up to £60 a month on your food bills
  • Reduce your impact on the environment
  • Make better use of your time by managing your food better at home?

Food3…then please come along to the free workshop on Tuesday 12 May in Cantor 9016 between 10am and 1.15pm. Places are limited, so book your place on the session. Please email Marion Homer on ailsa.guard@wrap.org.uk if you’d like to attend the session and put ‘Sheffield Hallam 12th May’ in the title.

Warning – telephone scam

warning

We have received news that there is a scam targeting international students.

This scam follows a similar pattern to previous scams:

  • A student receives a call from someone pretending to be from the Home Office
  • The incoming number appears to match a genuine Home Office number
  • The student is told that there is a problem with their visa and that they need to pay a fine and/or give the caller personal information and contact details
  • Some students are also told that they will be visited by a Home Office official

Please remember that the Home Office will never call an international student to request payments or ask for personal details in this way.  DO NOT make payments or give information to anyone calling you like this.

Psychometric tests for Chinese students (Profiling for Success)

Have you experienced taking a verbal or numerical psychometric test in the UK? Have you wondered what your score would have been if the test had been in Mandarin? Would you like to compare your results across both languages?

The Careers and Employment Service are taking part in a research project to try to answer such questions and would like to ask for your participation.  In return you will not only get the chance to practise some of these tests but you will also receive a report that we hope you will find useful.

To learn more about this opportunity please attend a briefing session on Tuesday 28 April at 1pm at the Careers and Employability Centre. The briefing will last just under an hour and you will have chance to view some of the test reports . The tests that are available for you to take are

  • Verbal reasoning
  • Numerical reasoning
  • Abstract reasoning
  • Personality Type Indicator

To find out more please book in using this link.

If you are unable to attend this session but would like to find out more please contact Karen Allan, Employment Adviser on K.Allan@shu.ac.uk