Health Counselling degrees

Since joining this year for my masters on what is the first year that the course has been run, lecturers have been great, content has been great and the communication between students and the university regarding covid and the constantly changing situation that we have found ourselves in has been excellent. Whilst it has not been possible to meet many students at the Uni socially there have been many social events run over zoom to get involved with and I feel they have made the best of an unprecedented situation.

Newman has phenomenal lecturers who have at least 10+ years in experience in their fields. They are incredibly friendly and understanding. They personally know majority if not all students. You can always contact them easily whether that's through an email or a knock on the door. On top of that, the lecturers have attended the university themselves during their career which I think contributes greatly to the learning experience - they know how it feels to be in our shoes in this very university. The atmosphere is inviting and warm. Everyone knows everyone and all staff and students go out of their way to help and support new students to fit into this little community. It honestly feels like a second home and I understand why Newman is number 1 in student satisfaction. Moreover, Newman takes pride in their library facilities. The library, which spans across 3 floors, provides a vast amount of books, journals ,articles and even physical interactive materials to take with us to teaching placements. There are silent, bookable rooms for when you need absolute quiet or an area with booths to work on group projects. The library staff are a must mention! There over 10 members of staff at the library, some of which have knowledge on each subject taught at the university if you're looking for that extra support. They can guide you and provide information on anything you need. Student support is a facility within the library that can help you write your assignments if you get stuck and need a boost. The class sizes are small too so you really get in-depth learning.

The teaching is extremely high quality. Before coming to Bolton, I spent two years at Swansea University, and the quality of teaching at Bolton far exceeds Swansea. Largely due to financial issues, its difficult to properly experience the student life, though from other students whom are more active, it seems fairly lively. Being a first year degree apprentice, the pay is not great at £7.12 an hour, which had been a huge concern at multiple points during my time with the university, however, the support from the university and the lecturers has gone above and beyond for me. With regards to improvements, this could be done through simply making the course sign on process easier and more linear for apprentices, as currently the use of Aptem and Moodle as two separate methods of adding students to the course makes it quite convoluted. There is also an obscene number of papers to sign. Though, that being said, the university has consistently asked for feedback, and is seemingly taking on board students concerns, which is very positive. Bolton University is also located extremely ideally for students who travel in from around the UK, only a ten minute walk from the station. This convenience, and the plethora of local food shops and take aways make it very easy to keep a healthy lifestyle, even if you don't have time to make lunch in the mornings. Though my experience of Bolton university has been short, I am very excited with my future prospects and continuing my education at the university.