My initial attraction to the university was attending a very modernised institution outside of London. Derby is one of the most communal places I have been to, where the town centre, and cites are wonder and full of amazing experiences and people. The university offers an immense range of subjects and has great level of academia when it comes to specialised degrees in the business department. One thing that I would like to highlight about the University of Derby (UOD) is the accessibility to gain a higher education with the amount of opportunities and courses that are vacant. People from all parts of the world enrolling into one institution provides a very diverse culture within such a small region (such as Derby). In addition the support system is very efficient especially encouraging undergraduates to take on board real life experience to initiate their career paths. There are always notifications about which internships, work experiences, part time jobs that are available directly through email. Lecturers are very understanding and considerate to the classes often preparing very comprehensive lessons as well as offering additional assistance to academic skills to enhance students' abilities. As part of the social experience in derby, it is incredibly easy to get involved in societies, sports team/clubs and lounge in leisure around the university. As a Sports scholar with a niche individual I have been fortunate to be welcomed into such a productive and friendly environment, despite not competing in any team based sports. The university does not discriminate towards any background and it a animable atmosphere to study in. On the contrary UOD does not offer any language programmes or degrees, so learning about foreign countries is not available in this university. Although the university courses are great, some courses do not allow the flexibility to change class times and so certain students will spend extensive days in classes. In the atrium there are food places to eat but I would not say there is a large range of inclusivity for dietary such as Halal, or Vegan options. Overall I think UOD is a good place to study, improvements that could be made is more surveys from students to gain suggestions as which area they should develop in.

Starting my course from 2020, after the pandemic, the university has adapted well to orchestrating lessons online for students. Progressing to the next two years has been seamless for my transition into physical lectures and seminars. Accounting and Finance is an advance course to study, in the first year the course is broken down significantly - to grasp the basic concepts. From then the development of learning in second and third year becomes a lot more technical which encourages more in depth thinking within the course. The academic year is divided into two semesters with six modules being taught per annum. My course offers very distinctive topics needed to gain exemption from accounting bodies such as: ACCA, CIMA etc... Which is very beneficial to kickstart your career after graduation as well gain a competitive edge at different graduate schemes. The in class lesson are very insightful and content based, requiring very good arithmetic skills. Past examination access is also helpful to learning the customary practice of the university examination process. However, some modules require extensive independent study and is heavily reliant on learning individually new content is only covered once per week. Some seminars lack engagement at covering content very clearly at times and focuses more on answering questions instead of working cohesively as a group sequentially.

Darley Bank, is one of the most modern halls which all rooms are ensuite. There is a choice for any size room as well as a studio included too. Students are able to pick their preference in single sex flats or mixed as well as sharing a flat with friends in the same environment. The rooms are very spacious including a large desk and many storage compartments for students. One thing that I like about the rooms at the student halls is that they accommodate for double beds, which was very comforting. The bathroom showers were excellent with good balance of pressurised water as well as heating within. The kitchens are communal (unless it was a studio) and there was enough cupboard storage allocated for each flat member. However the fridge and freezer storage was not as big and often they were not very good quality. Apart from this the kitchen design is fantastic and well laid out. There has been a recent shortage of staff member for the student halls which often meant, on weekends it was difficult to get assistance from a hall manager for maintenance issues. Sometimes communication time is slow from requesting for maintenance repairs and additional reminders need to be put through to prompt repair in the flats. The hall does not come with cleaners within the flats so sharing with messier flatmates can cause disputes within the building.

Location is great and so far no need of improvements.