Environmental and earth sciences - Subject Guide

This is not a typical university experience. Which I love. The teaching spaces most used by the degree are in an old Victorian school (recently upgraded/modernised to include 2 teaching spaces, staff offices and a small library) and farm building (converted to classrooms, these get quite cold in the winter but do have log fires!). Facilities are basic and alot smaller compared to other uni's but they try to improve access to things like classrooms outside of teaching time to make up for the lack of dedicated student space (there is supposed to be one but this has had many challenges so I would not feel comfortable saying there is one!). The campus is in a fairly isolated village on the edge of the Bannau Brycheiniog national park, this can make things like shopping difficult but there are lots of small businesses and a couple small supermarket stores. I love the access to the national park and local nature reserves (some can be assessed by foot) but some people find the isolation of the place challenging. This degree being the only degree at the BMC site and small class sizes also means that there are less people to socialise with - although the student society (led/managed entirely by students) connects people to NVQ and graduate students. Many students also participate in the wider Talgarth community planning, helping at and attending things like the food share, repair café and local markets. The degree students I've encountered have a wide range of ages and life experiences, not all from a traditional education background. The teaching includes different teaching methodologies (respecting/inviting peoples knowledge/skills, daily landings, embodied teaching methods and discussions etc.) although some people feel these aren't as radical as they may project in marketing materials e.g. most of our teaching is done inside (as apposed to outdoors - ''classrooms without walls!''). However, the teaching spaces allow you to be out in nature by simply walking out of each classroom so many people take their breaks outside. The teaching staff try to incorporate the class's wants/needs as much as they can, part of this has been increasingly doing things outside when appropriate. The student support has been disappointing compared to what I was expecting from my conversations with the college before starting the degree. Many conversations have been had about this since - the small degree team makes it easy to speak to the right people and they try to make themselves accessible - however no visible action was made on this through out my first year. I am aware of plans to improve this, so I hope this will become a problem of the past! The degree has still felt very 'under construction' as a whole, at the worst times this felt like being a guinea pig. There is frequent detailed student feedback at the end of every module in the first year, which will hopefully be improving things for future years. The degree is very broad, this can stray into a negative 'breadth over depth' but mostly I have found this really interesting and having reached the end of the first year I feel like I've completely expanded my ideas of what the world is/could be and how I see the world in my daily life. I've found my first year deeply challenging to my beliefs/lifestyle such as capitalist ideas of consumption but they do also try to include things to counter this such as discussing Joanna Macy's 'Active Hope'. However, I did not feel like despair/hope was well balanced at the start of the degree (worsened by the aforementioned lack of student support), so you may need to be prepared for an emotional rollercoaster if you choose this degree! Despite the mix of positives and negatives, I can't imagine choosing a different degree at this point. The pathway for careers are less clear for this degree but I feel like I'll be more prepared for the future and its jobs. I'm looking forward to my second year and seeing where this journey takes me!

Best- the campus, the uni buses are reliable, good food options on campus, the campus is green and attractive Bad- some societies could be made more inclusive to a range of abilities (especially sports ones) even clubs that allow a range of skills can feel unwelcoming

Great locations with beautiful scenery. Staff are very friendly and helpful. Sometimes experience technical difficulties with library computers and Wi-Fi connection.

The facilties are a great mix of places to study as well as relax with friends, from good quality libraries to department buildings with nice study spaces. Lovely location, close to nightlife with nice walking distances to the surrounding docks. The access to student wellbeing services could be improved so the help is there for more people who need it

Great location and campus, friendly, good facilities Could do more to listen to and reflect students' views on current issues

Love the amount of societies I’m a part of a netball society, and Wednesday matches and yolo nights are a highlight. A negative is sometimes too many emails, which can make it confusing.

1 The uni has good study spaces and facilities for STEM courses. 2 There is a good support system higher up, and they are happy to try to accommodate most things if you have the time to work through the bureaucracy. 3 There is not much student life stuff higher up. If you want, you can find an AUSA society. 4 It is well located, with easy access to the city centre. 5 The campus feels good and generally blends ancient and modern elements. 6 The union does have good options for food if you don't want to bring lunch to campus. AUSA has been undergoing a period of change, so it is slowly becoming easier for societies to work with. Still, in general, you will focus on the societies without interacting much with the students' union.

The campus always looks presentable and is easily traversable. In the library, there are plenty of people to help with whatever you need. Uploading assignments, looking back at past lectures and looking at your timetable are all very easy to do. I have been supported quite well academically throughout my first year. There could be a wider range of societies to join, but this is not a significant issue. The student union regularly has events for anyone to take part in. The student accommodation is on campus, and other locations are not far, making it easy to attend lectures and classes.

Professors and staff are more than happy with give advice and feedback on work and take student feedback into great consideration when adjusting modules. There are plenty of nice study spaces on campus and being next to a canal and nearby parks makes the atmosphere calm and peaceful despite it being in the centre of London. Being a short journey to central london make society socials super fun and gives access to a wide variety of activities without affecting the study spaces of the university. There are frequent events run by the SU and the university itself. Study spaces on campus can fill up quickly and become loud during busy days and the same is seen in social spaces making it harder for commuting students to stay on campus.

Best experiences; - The tutors are incredibly nice and knowledgeable - The course is incredibly well put together Worst experiences; - Car park space struggles

I appreciate and love how my course is enhancing my skills for the real world and industry. Great integration of transferable skills

Can choose from different societies and make so many new friends, lecturers show great support and help with assignments

I love the campus and feel right at home, there is such a wide variety of modules and opportunities to volunteer and further my studies. Theres is such a mix of societies you can join to make the most of UoB

The University has good quality teaching and learning material from lectures. The location of both campuses is great as there are many accessible facilities and strong travel support from buses, cycling, walking etc. Rising costs can be seen as a possible issue as prices and rent and tuition fees are increasing which means budgeting will have to be considered more for students.

The campus is amazing and clean, the lecturers are helpful. It could be improved by having the student union open later for using the pool table etc.