Kent’s School of Biosciences will support Kent hospitals to increase the number of COVID-19 tests that can be carried out each day.

Specialist molecular biology equipment will be loaned to boost the capacity in NHS labs to carry out more tests for COVID-19 and detect infected samples.

More than 30 academics, postdoctoral researchers and PhD students from the School have volunteered to help perform testing at hospitals in the county.

Professor Dan Mulvihill, Head of the School of Biosciences, said: ‘We are in a privileged position to help the NHS and offer resource to help fight this virus. Our volunteers will use their skills to work alongside NHS workers during this time of need and hope to make a difference.’

Dr Jill Shepherd, Programme Director for Biomedical Science within the School of Biosciences, said: ‘The first thing we wanted to do was to see how we could best support our NHS colleagues. It is a great opportunity for our academics, researchers and students to utilise their molecular biology skills to make a difference here and now.’

To see KMTV’s report on this go here.

It’s time to choose your modules for next year.

From 9- 20 March 2020, you must choose the modules you want to study in 2020/21.

You will need to log into your SDS during this time to submit your choices.

Further information and instructions will be sent to you via email – please read this and be prepared!

Guidance on how to complete OMR

OMR is not first come first served, but you must ensure that you have submitted your selections by Friday 20 March in order to give you the best opportunity to register for your preferred choice of module.

Please note if you are going abroad or to a year in industry next year you do not need to select modules.

If you have any questions please contact us:

Canterbury csao@kent.ac.uk
Medway msao@kent.ac.uk
Follow us: @UniKent_CSAO

The University of Kent is shooting a promotional virtual open day film on Tuesday 17 March (Medway campus) and Wednesday 18 March (Canterbury campus) and would like to feature a number of Kent students on screen in non-speaking roles such as in group situations.

Application deadline is 10.00 Thursday 12 March. All selected students will receive a £10 credit on their KentOne card.

Find out more and complete the online submission form.

Spend the day volunteering with Strode Park Foundation for their gardening footprints project. Get outside and enjoy time with new people while helping your local community.

We will be leaving the University of Kent (Canterbury campus) at 9.30 and returning at 15.30. You will need to be available for the duration of this time and wear clothing and footwear that you don’t mind getting mucky.

Transport will be provided to and from the project but you will need to provide your own packed lunch.

Please complete the booking form to confirm your attendance.

You can log volunteering hours for the project through the Kent Volunteering Scheme.

Did you know it’s University Mental Health Day Thursday 5 March? We have lots of free wellbeing activities on and around this day at Medway. Get involved- whether you want to learn how to access support, or you just want to cuddle a cute dog!

There’s a variety of events happening during the week:

• Random Book of Kindness- be inspired by a mystery book from the lifestyle collection
• Dog therapy- dog cuddles!
• Chill and chat your Campus Chaplain Lynne Martin- write empowering messages, do some colouring or play games
• Student support information stands- learn how we can support you
• Treatments- get your nails done or a back and shoulder, hand or scalp massage!
• Junk modelling- get creative recycling to make art, trinkets, accessories and sculptures
• Craftivism- feel inspired by crafting or cross-stitching positive messages
• Pound fitness- pound out stress with colourful drumsticks for a full-body workshop that incorporates cardio and weight training
• Building exam confidence through mindfulness practice (5-week course)

See the full programme of wellbeing events.

Students are invited to attend the final Kent Talks event for this year,  Tuesday 10 March 2020 in the Gulbenkian Theatre from 18.00-20.00.

This event will be focused on the social norms of the community and how people perceive feminism, mental health and social awkwardness. Our speakers will focus on raising awareness and opening a new perspective in these topics.

The Speakers…

• Temidayo Oyekan : REVULVA, Black Feminism & Pop Culture
• Tomi Mayegun : Mental Health & the Imagination
• Nas Islam : Social Awkwardness 

This is a great opportunity to collaborate with your friends all around campus, meet new like-minded people and deepen your educational and social values. Become a part of our community and don’t miss out on this amazing event!

The Careers and Employability Services (CES) are holding a number of events to support your career development, such as:

• Finding experience
• Where to find jobs
• Succeeding in applications
• Getting creative with CVs
• Video and telephone interviews
• One to one practice interviews
• Interview/assessments centre

To take advantage of these free events, see the Careers events calendar, or if you are in your final year of an undergraduate programme, you can see the Finalists events calendar and filter by ‘Careers’ to see targeted career events to prepare you for life after university.

Discover the “A Hundred Years of Women in Law” exhibition 16-31 March in the Drill Hall Library café gallery. The exhibition features the ‘First 100 Years’ project by Spark21 and ‘Kent’s First Women Magistrates’ by Dr Anne Logan from the University of Kent.

The First 100 Years is a ground-breaking history project, supported by the Law Society, the Bar Council and CILEx, charting the journey of women in law since 1919. The project is powered by Spark21, a charity founded to celebrate, inform and inspire future generations of women in the profession by showcasing positive role models for women in law.

In 2018 while visiting Kenya, MSc Healthcare Management student Martin Daay had the opportunity to visit a rural Massai village in Amboseli near mount Killamanjaro. While touring the village, Martin learned from the elders about fuel and the difficulties they can have obtaining it.

Martin saw the cramped conditions the people were living in and the potential health risks associated with burning fuel in these environments. In these communities, after sunset, many people have no light and are forced to use kerosene lamps. Consequently, these communities have seen millions of children each year get severely burned. Sadly, kerosene is the leading cause of child poisoning in Africa and one of the main causes of respiratory diseases for women in the developing world. It is also three times the cost of electrical energy.

Upon leaving the village, Martin thought of the possibility to introduce solar technology to the village. The use of solar technology could lead to a reduction of issues he witnessed in the village; health hazards, fire safety and spending cost. In August 2018, after returning to the UK, Martin launched ‘Project_Daaylight‘ with the support of his friends in Kenya and the UK. In phase one of the project, Martin self-funded 40 solar lanterns for the village in Amboseli.

Project_Daaylight aims to

1. Provide scalable solar power solutions to the village to gradually eliminate the use of kerosene lamps
2. Develop a social enterprise working with young women and men in the village to train them on solar technology
3. Promote the use of sustainable solutions (health management and Environment management).

In addition to these aims, Project_Daaylight hopes to further contribute to addressing some of the social challenges faced by these communities such as high rates of unemployment and child marriage.

Martin has received positive feedback from members of the Amboseli Maasai village about the impact of his donation; improved light quality for children doing school work at night, improved air quality in the homes and reduction in spending on Kerosene. This humble success has further motivated Martin to develop phase two of his project.

Phase two of Project_Daaylight, which is due to begin in April 2020, will see the introduction of high capacity solar powered systems to the village.  Martin plans to install a total of twelve home lighting systems in addition to providing solar lanterns in the village. These systems will allow the villagers to cater to their basic energy needs.  Furthermore, Project_Daaylight aligns with the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development initiative.

Martin is very passionate about supporting others, whether they are here in the UK or other locations around the world. His vision is to support the Amboseli Maasai village attain 100% of their electrical needs via renewable solar energy.