Accomodation

One of the first decisions you will need to make once your place at University is confirmed is where you are going to live.  If, like me, you move away from home to study one of the options open to you is halls of residence.

I lived in halls for my first year both times that I went to university.  It made sense to me, and was relatively hassle free.  There are a few adjustments to make, as there always are when you live with someone (see my previous blog post Flat Pack Furniture and Flatmates) but the benefits are numerous.

Fancy new halls at UoB

Location, location, location
Most halls of residence are in the centre of town or very close to the university campus which makes navigating a new city easy.  I lived in halls next to the campus so I could be out of my bed and in lectures within 40 mins!  Very handy as you become used to the student lie-in!  There was also a bus stop 50 yards from the front door which was perfect for the early morning starts on placement.

A sense of identity
By living in halls you instantly have a group of people who you have something in common with – you all live together.  The first few weeks away from home can be daunting and homesickness is not unusual – I know I experienced it, and still do sometimes.  My top tip to beat the blues is to surround yourself with noise; turn the radio on, watch a DVD, or get together with some friends.  And this is so easy when you live in halls.  There is always someone around to share a cup of tea or cook dinner with. 

Being a grown up is hard!

All bills included
One of the horrible things about growing up is budgeting.  Living in halls takes some of the stress out of it as there is just one outgoing – your rent.  This covers water, gas, electricity, internet and all the other things that eat away at your student loan.  The only additional expense you will have is food, washing and a TV licence.  It makes the transition to independent living a little easier.

Finally, I have a few tips for living in halls:

• Designate male and female bathrooms – most apartments are co-ed and separating bathrooms will reduce arguments.
• Discuss a cleaning rota – it may not be something you want to stick rigidly to, but, it will ensure everyone does there bit.
• Buy some flipflops – you can wear them in the shower and around your room.
• Decorate your room – lots of pictures and bright colours.  Use white tac so it doesn’t cause damage, but it will make your room much more homely and warm.
• Get some earplugs – if you are working nights (which you will as a nursing or midwifery student) there will be times when you need to sleep when everyone else is awake.
• Keep a toilet roll in your room – just in case!

This is how I look after a run of night shifts

See you next week!

Take 2

My new theatre

I am often met by surprise when I explain what my career was before starting my training.  It does seem quite a jump to go from theatre to midwifery, but with half of my family working within the NHS, the change has always seemed more natural to me.

I had a few fears about returning to university for a second time.
Initially, I was reluctant to admit that I hadn’t made the right decision the first time.  I have always been the sort of person to agonise over the decisions I make.  I cried when I had to choose my GCSEs, scared that my teachers would no longer like me if I didn’t choose their subject.  In retrospect this is completely ridiculous, but for a 14 year old the overwhelming fear that the choices I made in that moment would dictate my future was a very real one. 

So when I realised the theatre wasn’t the right world for me, it took me a while to adapt to this. I knew I wanted a career, not just a job, so I was never looking for a quick fix.  It was however quite a

Its not easy to get on to a course!

commitment to agree to complete another three year degree.  Being a student again also wasn’t massively appealing; I had a nice life in London, earning a good salary and going to the theatre whenever I wanted so the prospect of limited funds, deadlines and assignments wasn’t something I was looking forward to.  It wasn’t long however, until I remembered all the brilliant parts about being a student.

I love learning, and from speaking to my friend who was half way through her training, I was absolutely fascinated about the process of pregnancy and birth.  There was also the opportunity to make a new group of friends, something which I am always open to.  Making friends at university is completely different from making friends at school – at school, you are friends because you are in the same form class, or you sit next to each other in Biology, but in higher education, you are brought together by a shared passion and interest.  In my experience, it leads to closer and longer lasting friendships.  It did cross my mind that I would be the eldest in the group, but I soon realised that midwifery attracts people of all ages and backgrounds.

The joys of being a mature student

I also had to consider that midwifery was a completely new subject for me.  I had not studied any science since my GCSEs, some seven years previous!  I also hadn’t always wanted to be a midwife in the same way I had always longed to be on the stage.  My move to midwifery was a considered decision, looking at my interests and personality strengths.  Although I had the bizarre experience of applying through UCAS at the same time as the students I was teaching, returning to study was one of the best decisions I have ever made.  I have never looked back.

I can hear the bells!

My friend is getting married tomorrow.  I am currently dashing back from Germany to be there, and I am so excited.  She is the second of this particular group to get married and as well as having the

I do...want to do this!

honour of watching her getting hitched to the love of her life, it also means an opportunity to catch up with the girls.

I refuse to believe I am old enough to get married, although many of my friends are determined to prove me wrong.  Of my two groups of friends from Loughborough University, we have had 6 weddings, 4 children and 8 homes bought!  It seems like it is just me lagging behind still as a student.

It’s funny where life takes you.  When I left school at 18, I didn’t know what I wanted to do.  I went to university because I always knew that was what followed A-levels, rather than having a game plan in place.  I studied Drama because I was passionate about it, and had a smidge of talent.  It was very daunting therefore when I left university the first time because I didn’t know what I wanted to be! 

The most optimistic part of me wanted to pursue acting.  I had dreams of being snapped up by a casting director as I walked down the road, but of course, this hardly ever happens.  So, I started working as a teaching assistant because I couldn’t find any other work and really enjoyed it.  I then had an opportunity to move to London for three months as my friend was going travelling and wondered if I wanted to take her room in the flat.  I had saved enough money to cover the rent so I decided to take her offer up.

Spot the Drama student

 A few weeks after settling into city life, I contacted the National Youth Theatre, of which I was a member, asking if they wanted any help, stuffing letters, making tea, that sort of thing.  They emailed me back and soon I was working as an expenses paid intern.  This was followed with an offer of a job working within the Creative Learning department and before I knew it three months had turned into two years.   The friend whose room I had taken came back and, along with her now fiancé (husband tomorrow!) lived in the lounge until they found a place of their own.

I was starting to think however, that a job in the Theatre wasn’t right for me.  Although I helped to run the Access to Higher Education course the NYT ran, much of my work was office based and I was beginning to get cabin fever.  I love a spreadsheet as much as the next geek, but I knew my future was in something more practical. 

It was either teaching or something medical.  I applied for Midwifery after being inspired by an old school friend who had recently started her training and the rest is history as they say.

It’s never too late to embark on a new career.  See you next week.

Flat Pack Furniture and Flat Mates

Last weekend I moved once again.  In my 27, nearly 28, years of life, I have lived in 11 different houses, with 30 different people (not all at the same time).  I have lived with family members, strangers and friends and I can tell you this – you don’t really know someone until you live with them.

Student Village

My mum tells me when she dropped me off at university at the tender age of 18, she cried because she was scared I wouldn’t make any friends.  Hopefully, this isn’t because she thinks I am a social pariah but more because I didn’t know anyone.  I must admit, when I waved her goodbye I sat on my bed and wondered if I had made the right decision.  Then there was a flurry of knocks on my door and a second year student came bursting in. Her name was Katie and she soon became a close friend - which is fortunate, because we shared a bathroom. 

I loved living in student accommodation when I did my first degree.  I had an immediate group of friends, all doing different courses to me and whom I went on to live with out of halls.  So it felt only natural to do the same when I started at the University of Bedfordshire.  I wasn’t familiar with Luton so living in student accommodation right in the centre of town was extremely convenient whilst I was finding my feet.  I also didn’t drive at the time so was relived to discover the university, bus routes and shopping were all in easy walking distance.

One of my favourite passive aggressive notes

 There is a knack to sharing a house or halls of residence with other people as other people’s habits will drive you up the wall if you let them.  Door slamming, milk stealing, hair in plug holes, late night music blaring – I have lived with them all.  You have to remember, it is only temporary.  There are also massive positives; another person’s DVD collection to raid, someone to make you a cup of tea when you are hung-over, someone to help you put together your flat pack furniture as you try to make a room, a home.  As long as the benefits outweigh the negatives, stick with it.  If not, move on.

Flat mates are a staple of university life.  Hopefully you will be as lucky as me and make some life long friends.  See you next week.

Housemates for three years, friends forever

Well, hello to you!

Who wouldn't want to study here?

Welcome to my first blog.  I couldn't really think of an exciting way to introduce myself, so I thought I would do a short interview.

Name: Cat Cracknell

Age: 27

What are you studying at the University of Bedfordshire?
BSc Midwifery (Pre-Registration)

Why did you choose the University of Bedfordshire?
When I was applying via UCAS, I decided if I was applying to one university, I may as well apply to as many as I could.  My sister was studying at the University of Bedfordshire, so I thought I would apply here as well as she had had a good experience and liked the area.  The course structure and facilities available at UoB are also excellent and really made my decision very easy!

What did you do before your current course?
I have a degree in Drama from Loughborough University.  After I graduated, I wasn’t really sure what I wanted to do so I worked as a teaching assistant for a while before moving to London and working for the National Youth Theatre for two years.

We are all a little bit crazy!

Why midwifery?
Many of my family and friends work in the NHS in various roles.  I wanted a career where I could care for people but didn’t feel nursing was right for me.  I felt drawn to supporting women during their journey to motherhood.  I also thought I had the right personality and character strengths to be a good midwife.

What is your favourite aspect of your course?
I have the most fantastic job in the world! I have also made an amazing group of friends who share my sense of humour and support me through the ups and downs of being a student midwife.

What is the hardest part of your course?
It’s never nice when a tragedy occurs, but the support you receive as a student is second to none.  You also have the usual stresses of being a student, such as having no money, assignment deadlines, balancing work and having a life!  It is absolutely worth it though.

What is coming up in the next few weeks?

RCM

The dreaded dissertation writing! Our unit is also being visited by Cathy Warwick, Chief Executive of the RCM which is exciting.  Lots of new experiences for me to blog about…

So that’s me.  I am looking forward to blogging about the last few months of my course and hopefully give you an insight into life as a student midwife at UoB.  See you next week! 

Welcome to my penultimate post!

Evening All!

Well, this is my last post but one and I am well into my summer leave (and rather getting into the swing of it!). I have had a rather chilled past week; gardening and sunbathing, cleaning, cooking, throwing away things prior to packing my life into boxes and general helping out around the house. All of my family are getting together next Sunday as an 'end of an era' kind of thing at my grandparents house prior to putting it on the market, so it may be the last time we all have the chance to get together. I am the youngest in my family and with me moving to Somerset, my sister living on the Isle of Wight and my mum planning to relocate at some point in the future, we will be all dotted around England so it could be rather difficult to find the time to see everybody. It's sad really as I grew up living next to my grandparents and in the same road as my cousins and we were all really close but things change, sometimes for the good and other times not so good.

As I have mentioned in previous blogs, my Gran was part of the reason I applied for the nursing course and she died before I started, and my Grancher passed away earlier this year. Quite a number of other students also experienced tough times throughout the three years of study. Sometimes it was homesickness, sometimes illness to those close to them and other times loss of a loved one. On some of those occasions student's would leave the course to spend more time with their family, or look into re-joining the course at a later date. Others applied to have extensions on their work submission dates just to take a little time out. In one way I was luckier of having more time to come to terms with my grandfathers illness. I would spend time on placement then come home to help with housework to free up time for my mum to see him more. I had time to come to terms with what was happening and made a point of doing all work early as I couldn't predict what would happen. With many people there is no time to get ahead of the game so to speak.

The main thing is to know that when you start the course, there are always avenues at the University to help. There is a big team at the main campus who can assist with many issues, such as financial, extra support in study, etc. When it comes to something more personal such as a family issue the lecturers for nursing are there to support and can meet with you to discuss options such as an extensions with work. The main thing is to ask for the help before it gets too much and to know what options lay in front of you before making any sudden decisions. I hope nothing bad happens to you or your loved ones throughout the course but if you do need help, the Uni definitely can assist. 

I look back on my three years and can't see how I got to this point. I still see Facebook posts from other students I have met through placement who are in  a year below me writing about how tough things are and panicking about work and remember writing almost exactly the same things. We were told that from the end of Year 2 things would fly by and I shrugged that off, but trust me...it really does! The main thing to remember is you will need support at some point, so make sure you take time out for family, friends and uni mates too. They will all be going through the same thing, and everyone will have different strengths and weaknesses, different ways to tackle their workload, but at least your stresses will be the same!

And on that note, I must depart to sleep. Will see you next week for my last post!

Em x

P.s. still no news about the job I applied for....nail biting wait!