University rating
Tell us about your overall university experience so far.
Northumbria is a brilliant place to study. There is always something going on in regards to student life, whether it be quiz nights at habita or planning trips places for people to go to. In regards to the facilities, there is so much, from sporting facilities, to academic facilities like the library, there is also other places to study if someone doesn't want to use the library. One of my favourite things is probably the multiple options of cafes/places to eat because they can also be used to study and the prices are amazing for students. The university provides support for a lot of things outside of academic study, such as mental health support, financial support and general well being support, not forgetting all of the things in place to help regarding careers.
When it comes to actual study, the support we get from tutors is amazing. They will always provide help whenever it's needed, whether it be a personal matter or something regarding the work. The university definitely has some of the most amazing professors, I know my course in particular has some amazing and supportive members of staff.
I'm not really a student that gets involved in a lot of things, but I know that if I ever wanted to, I would be made comfortable to do so. Overall, the university is great.
Course rating
Course rating
English Literature and Creative Writing is a brilliant module. In the first two years there is an equal balance of the two in regards to the work and then I like that we had the option for which modules we want to do for third year and which subject we want to do our dissertation on. The course content, I have enjoyed mostly, there is a wide range of modules. However I feel like, in regards to assignments, especially in first year when a lot of people had never written a full academic essay before, that there should be more support. Maybe classes on how to structure and write an essay, what it is the essay needs to include, especially when it is a large word count, as that's definitely one of the main things I struggle with and I know a lot of others do too.
The tutors on this course are amazing. They are all so supportive whether it be regarding something personal or something related to the work, they always take time to make sure everyone is ok and know what they are doing. If someone requests help with something, they always do their best to support them.
In regards to facilities, I feel like humanities is definitely not as prioritized as much as other courses, such as sport or science. I feel like the most there is for us to use, for the course alone, is texts from the library.
Another thing this course lacks is opportunities for placement and internships. I had planned to do a placement year for my third year, but didn't go through with it as there were little to no options for me to chose from, which was quite upsetting as I was hoping to use that as my opportunity to get some sort of work experience at university.
In regards to timetabled hours we get at university, I feel like it is a lot less than other subjects, especially since creative writing doesn't get lectures, and if we do it's maybe once a month, but using the time slot for what would be a seminar. I think people on the course would benefit from more timetabled hours, especially with creative writing, because although it is quite an independent thing to study, I feel like, as writers, we need more opportunities to sit and share and receive good, detailed feedback on how to make our work better- we get 10 minutes per semester, if that, plus a tutor session, and I don't quite think that that is enough to allow someone to receive detailed feedback from people. I also believe that on the creative writing course that there should be more classes to learn how to be critical with work, whether it be someone else's or your own, because it's a huge thing in writing, but it's not touched on enough.
Overall, I love this course. I think maybe the career aspect of it should be explored more, letting us know the careers we can go into after university, because a lot of people, including myself, still don't quite know what we want to do or what opportunities there are.
University halls
What do you think about the safety, condition, location and cost of your accommodation?
I stayed at Trinity Square in first year and I really enjoyed it. It allowed me to be sociable with others and make new friends and it was a particularly comfortable place to live.
One thing I have when it comes to halls, is that they are always more catered towards first and seconds years. As a third year who wanted to keep living in student accommodation, I decided not to as I think living with first and second years would be distracting. I think maybe there should be some thought in creating halls for third year students, like myself, who aren't particularly sociable, but are able to live comfortably somewhere that isn't full of distractions, and somewhere that has other students in the same boat as them and around the same age group.
I also feel like the cost of studios are quite expensive for those who want to live alone, I wanted to live alone for my final year, but simply couldn't afford to pay around £140+ a week.