It’s the final week of the summer term and so the final weekly events roundup of the undergraduate academic year! Find out what’s on this week:

Monday 12 June: Wellbeing Café

On Monday, it’s the final Wellbeing Café of the year. The Wellbeing Café is a space to connect with other students in a relaxed environment with a focus on promoting your wellbeing and mental health through activity.

Tuesday 13 June: Ancient languages, graduating action plan and summer lawn games

Are you curious about hieroglyphs, cuneiform, or Sanskrit? The Department of Classical and Archaeological Studies is organising an Ancient Languages Extravaganza on Tuesday and Wednesday. No prep or prior knowledge required.

Graduating soon? Use this workshop to create your own graduating action plan. This checklist will help you reflect on your career readiness and help you to set actions to fill any gaps. This is a hybrid event in Eliot and streamed online.

Get outside and have some fun in the sun playing lawn games on Templeman Library lawn. Try your hand at Spikeball, Stakk or Mölkky with the Park Wood Residential Life Assistants.

Wednesday 14 June: PG Summer Coffee Morning, creative language development workshop and archiving stories of migration

On Wednesday it’s the PG Summer Coffee Morning. All postgrad students are welcome to this multi-divisional PG coffee morning, with Gordan Lynch (Director of the Graduate and Researcher College), as well as the GRC Team and PG Network representatives. It’s a great opportunity to meet the wider PG community. In the afternoon there’s also a webinar for PGR students around staying well in difficult times.

Are you interested in migration, movement and people’s stories? Ahead of Refugee Week, our archiving stories of migration and movement workshop explores examples and challenges of how stories of migration and movement can be reflected in archive collections.

If English is not your first language, join us for this creative language development workshop, which will use a variety of media such as music, plays, news articles, as well as outdoor activities to develop your English language skills.

Thursday 15 June: Reflective writing workshops, outdoor games and food and drink festival

Reflective writing is a powerful learning tool which can help you to understand your own thinking processes, challenge your assumptions and explore logical approaches to arguments. On Thursday we have in-person reflective writing workshops at both Canterbury and Medway.

Join the Woolf College Residential Life Assistants for some outdoor games including table tennis, Molkky, Stakk and Spikeball. Plus there will also be free pizza provided!

The Taste of Kent Food & Drink Festival at the Gulbenkian Arts Centre is open to everyone, showcasing more than 50 amazing award finalists, who will be promoting, sampling and selling their delicious food and drink products. Tickets costs £6 in advance or £8 on the door.

Friday 16 June: Kent Community Oasis Garden

Want to spend some time outside? Come along to the Kent Community Oasis Garden (Kent COG) for an open gardening session. Everyone is welcome, and sessions are very flexible. Kent COG will need volunteers over the summer, so if you’re around, considering going along.

See more events.

Staying on or near campus over summer?

If you are staying on or near summer over campus, there’s still lots you can get involved in:

• Summer wellbeing activities – There’s lots on over the summer to help support your wellbeing including writing for wellbeing workshops, positive mental health workshops and a walk and talk group. See more wellbeing activities.
• PG Summer – Make friends, enjoy the sun and learn new skills over the summer at our PG Summer events. These are designed for postgrad students, but all students are welcome to join the social events (unless specified).
• Refugee Week, 19-25 June – Events include a short, guided walk to hear extracts of the Refugee Tales, as well as a range of workshops and lectures on migration and movement throughout the month of June. Learn more about Refugee Week at Kent.
• Medway Pride, 19 August – Join Medway’s biggest LGBTQ+ Pride event! You’ll need to register for a free ticket if you want entry into Rochester Castle Gardens where performances will take place.

See summer services and opening times.

We have made some changes to our academic appeals policy in response to student feedback.

What has changed?

• Annex 13 of the Credit Framework (Academic Appeals) had been replaced with a new standalone Academic Appeals Policy.
• The policy has been amended in line with the most up-to-date Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education Good Practice Framework.
• The deadline to submit a Formal Appeal has been extended from 15 working days to 28 calendar days. However, we still recommend you submit your appeal as soon as possible, especially when the outcome of your request may affect graduation, resits or continuing your studies.
• Standing Orders Governing Research Appeals have been replaced with Appendix 4 of the new Academic Appeals Policy (this applies to postgraduate research students only). No changes have been made to this content.

The updates to the policy have been made following a period of consultation and feedback with stakeholders across the University involved in the academic appeals process, including Kent Union.

Read the full Academic Appeals policy.

If you have any questions, please contact appeals@kent.ac.uk

This week, PG Summer continues with lots of events for postgrad students, including Postgraduate Careers Week events. And Happy Pride Month!

Monday 5 June: PG careers events (Medway)

There’s a wide range of events for Postgraduate Careers Week. On Monday you can attend an online session around academic adjacent careers in high education. Plus, there’s a CV Masterclass at Medway campus (and streamed online).

Tuesday 6 June: Considering a Master’s drop in and Zumba (Medway)

Considering a Master’s at Kent? Come along to a drop-in session outside Templeman Library to ask any questions about our courses and funding options.

On Tuesdays, as part of Medway Move, you can join a free Zumba class at The Hub!

Wednesday 7 June: GRC Annual Postgraduate Conference, Migration and Movement Creative Workshop and mindful colouring (Medway)

The Graduate and Researcher College’s Annual Postgraduate Conference brings together the postgraduate and postdoctoral community to recognise the excellence of research at Kent. There will be research talks, panel sessions, competitions and an exclusive postgraduate summer buffet to enjoy. Undergrads can also attend the conference as audience members.

‘Creative Expressions of Migration and Movement with Maryam Sandjari Hashemi’ in Nexus. London based Iranian artist Maryam will deliver this creative workshop, sharing her artwork and her journey as a migrant artist. Participants are invited to bring an object and its story to the group, and will be actively creating artwork using drawing, collage or other techniques.

Join the Medway Residential Life Assistants for some mindful colouring in the Oasis Lounge. De-stress with friends or come on your own.

Thursday 8 June: Coco the therapy dog and open-air cinema ‘Rocketman’

Coco the therapy dog is back in Nexus, Templeman Library on Thursday. Come along for a pet or a cuddle! There will also be mindful colouring on offer.

The Gulbenkian Open Air Film Festival’s final film this year is ‘Rocketman’, the musical fantasy about Elton John’s breakthrough years. This event is free to attend and non-ticketed, so you can just turn up on the day.

Weekend 10-11 June: Pride Canterbury

Pride Canterbury is this weekend! At Kent, we stand for Pride and will be marking the month in a number of ways, including sponsoring Pride Canterbury, with more than 100 of our staff and students set to join the parade this year! If you’d like to join the University of Kent section of the Pride March, you’ll need a free wristband which can be picked up from the Gulbenkian on Thursday and Friday (first come first served). **Change to pick up times** Thursday: 12:30-14:00 and Friday 12:00-13:30. The parade is followed by live entertainment with food and drink in Dane John Gardens.

Opportunities

• Summer catering jobs at Canterbury campus: Our Catering Team is looking for warm, positive people with bags of energy to help out over the summer season. Prior experience is not necessary, but it is desirable.
• Windrush exhibition: call for student contributions.
• Internship Experience UK: Running from 26-29 June, this 4-day online immersive internship experience is a platform for you to fast track to a career of your choice.

I was introduced to the Kent Community Oasis Garden (KentCOG) in my second year, coming along to the open sessions on Wed and Fri 10:00-14:00 when possible, fitting it around my studies. The project is such a warm, welcoming space. The volunteers and staff are lovely.

During a typical volunteering session, I might water the plants, plant more seeds, create a woodchip path, put in a fence, harvest crops that are ready, or paint flowerbeds. The work is varied and is very flexible based around your ability, needs, and mood.

There is always something to do and it is wonderful to be able to get stuck into an activity and properly switch off your mind. I always look forward to seeing the other volunteers. There are a wide variety of ages, knowledge and skills, and talking to people who come to the garden is always fascinating and lots of fun.

Bella’s top five reasons to love KentCOG:

• Mental health: get outdoors and feel a sense of accomplishment at what you’ve achieved.
• Physical health: planting, pruning and digging doesn’t feel like exercise, but it is!
• Spending time offline: you can’t use your phone when you’re wearing gardening gloves!
• Get closer to nature: the sound of birdsong, and fresh air of the outdoors.
• Eat local food: volunteers can take home some of the veg that’s grown at the garden.

Like the sound of this? Gardening sessions take place on Wednesdays and Fridays, 10:00-14:00. Find out more on the KentCOG webpage, or follow them on Instagram.

Written by Isabella Sabin-Dawson (Final Year student) and Joshua Stevens (Student Services staff), 23.05.23

We hope you had a good bank holiday weekend!

June marks the start of PG Summer  – activities and events for postgrad students. June’s theme is your career!

Find out what’s on this week:

Tuesday 30 May: How to find opportunities abroad and Kent Union Activities Awards

Interested in working abroad as part of your degree, summer break or after graduation? Join this online session about how to find opportunities abroad.

Kent Union’s Activities Awards are on Tuesday evening, celebrating the very best societies, fundraisers and volunteers of the year.

Wednesday 31 May: Kent Community Oasis Garden, PGR wellbeing session and academic skills (Medway)

Consider volunteering at Kent Community Oasis Garden, located near Park Wood. Everyone is welcome at the Kent Community Oasis Garden, whether you’re an expert gardener, a complete beginner, or just coming along for a chat.

Are you a postgrad research student or considering becoming one in the future? Join this online session with nationally recognised expert on university mental health and wellbeing Gareth Hughes. Gareth is author of the Wellbeing Thesis, an online resource for postgraduate research students.

Need some help with your studies? Student Learning Advisory Service (SLAS) are holding academic skills drop-in sessions at the Drill Hall Library.

Thursday 1 June: Campus litter pick and ‘Shaun of the Dead’ open-air film showing

Join the Conservation Society for a litter pick on campus. It’s an opportunity to get outdoors, earn Employability Points and a make a difference to our campus.

This week’s open-air cinema showing is zombie comedy ‘Shaun of the Dead’! The film will be showing outside the Gulbenkian, with food and drink available to purchase.

Friday 2 June: Bubble football and photography walk

Give bubble football a go with the Eliot Residential Life Assistants and Kent Sport. Bubble football will be followed by a mini pizza party. This event is free but places are limited, so book on now.

Learn how to utilise your phone camera on our photography walk with the Photography Society. Explore the best places to take photos on campus and learn new photography skills.

Saturday 3 June: Summer Ball

Kent Union’s ultimate end of year party is back! The Summer Ball means Canterbury campus transforms into a one night only festival with live music, free fairground rides and themed areas! Don’t forget to buy your ticket.

Reminders

• It is best not to bring a bag with you as they aren’t allowed into the exam hall, but if you have to bring a bag, please allow time ahead of your exam to store your bag in one of the lockers or bag drops on campus.
• Remember to return your books to the library before the end of the academic year, especially if you’re a final year student and are leaving uni this year, or are going to be away from campus over the summer.