After studying at the college for a total of 3 years now, I can confidently say that I have developed into the young professional I always thought I would never be. When I first started I was very shy and wasn't able to have the confidence to complete presentations but after completing modules which enhanced both my academic and personal skills I have no issue with putting myself forward for every opportunity I get offered. I have had the best time at the college and I will honestly be sad to leave after graduation - it's given me so much to prepare me for the working world and I will be forever grateful.

I believe the college offers an extremely generous amount of career-focused placements and opportunities for students. So far I have been student representative for 3 years, I am current a student fellow that is working with industry partners to organise events and recruit students for volunteering opportunities. I have also been involved with the national Posters in Parliament competition, and will be shadowing the manager of the Copthorne Hotel following my involvement with organising one of their events. Through great communication from the supervisor of all the student fellows I have also been involved in feedback sessions for college improvement, and, my most recent commitment is being one of the new members of the editorial team for the national college journal.

The main technique that I love about my teaching is how we always make time for class discussion, and we always are stimulated by our tutor to validate our points by challenging our arguments. My tutor also allows for informal presentations and research to be displayed in class time which not only gives us a chance to showcase our knowledge, but also has improved my academic skills greatly. 'What I like least' is a very challenging point for me to comment on as I have had no issues with my tutor's teaching methods.

12

When I first started at the college their facilities weren't that great (lack of computers and designated areas for HE students to study, for example) but since voicing students ' concerns at regular student rep meetings, the college has vastly improved their facilities. There are now HE students only areas in every building on campus, computers are readily accessible, they have created a HE only wifi which is miles faster than the regular wifi, and there are always staff on hand to help with any problems you may be having.

The support at the college has to be my main reason for choosing to study at Newcastle College rather than a typical university. My tutor is always readily available to book 1:1s, she is amazing at giving feedback as she is always challenging us to think more critically to improve our grades, and she outlines our next steps both in assignments and our future - just to name a few. The student's union at the college has only recently got back on it's feet, but the progress it has made is great - offering students drop in session to talk about any problems and organising social events to improve student's experience. I, personally, haven't had any reason to contact anyone at the college for counselling but I would feel perfectly comfortable reaching out to my tutor if I had any need to talk about personal worries or problems.