Category Archives: Student Guide

Europe Day

Celebrate Europe Day at the UK’s European university

As the UK’s European university, Kent is committed to the opportunities provided by European and international engagement.

To mark Europe Day and to celebrate the University’s role within Europe, various activities have been planned for Thursday 9 May, to which everyone is welcome.

International Partnerships is hosting a ‘European Opportunities Fair’ in the Gulbenkian from 12.00 – 14.00. The event will showcase the University’s many opportunities available to both staff and students. The event will be accompanied with a traditional blend of live European music between 12.30 – 13.30 and a European-themed menu throughout. #EuropeDay2019

Upcoming highlights arising from Kent’s European links include:

For further information about the University of Kent’s engagement, links and commitment to Europe, see our Europe webpages.

Couch to 5K

Get running with Kent Sport’s Couch to 5K

Can’t run or haven’t run in a long time? Give it a go with Couch to 5k!

Kent Sport is bringing back our popular Couch to 5K challenge for the summer term and we want you! With this programme being especially designed for people who have done little to no running, it’s the perfect way to start something new.

In this 12-week plan, you will work on your running and by the final week you will be running for half an hour or approximately 5K. You won’t be on your own as our enthusiastic staff will be with you every step of the way to help you achieve your target. This challenge builds in time and effort, so you’ll constantly be impressed with what you can do if you push yourself a little.

For this term, we have two sessions a week to support you in your goal of achieving the challenge. You are welcome to attend just one or both of the sessions each week.

Session 1

Starts Monday 12 May 2019, 17.10 to 18.00  – meet at Sports Centre reception (runs continuously for 12 weeks)

Session 2

Starts Wednesday 14 May 2019, 12.00 to 13.00 – meet at Sports Centre reception (runs continuously for 12 weeks)

Anyone is welcome. No experience necessary.

Please note the sessions include warm up, cool down, stretches and you therefore won’t be active for the full hour. No need to register just turn up, meet at the Sports Centre reception and off we go. Comfy clothing and footwear advisable.

Free for Gold and Silver members or join Kent Sport for £5 with Bronze membership and pay £2 per session.

Any questions contact: sportsdevelopment@kent.ac.uk

Kaitlyn Regeher hosts podcast series on the benefits of research

Dr Kaitlyn Regehr, Lecturer in Media Studies, will be hosting a new podcast series entitled How Researchers Change the World, launching today, 7 May 2019.

The series, which is supported by the publisher Taylor & Francis, will release a new episode every two weeks, and will cover topics as diverse as new technology, the impact of social media, virtual reality, climate change, artificial intelligence, and gender studies.

Every episode will follow the story of one passionate researcher and their journey from the initial spark of an idea through to world-changing findings.

The first instalment tells the story of Dr Orii McDermott, Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of Mental Health, University of Nottingham, whose work as a music therapist gave her an awareness of the research needed to enhance her own practice and to improve the lives of her patients, people living with dementia.

Speaking of the series, Kaitlyn said: ‘I am thrilled to be working on this innovative project with the amazing team at Monchu and WBBC as well as with Taylor & Francis, a publisher dedicated to supporting researchers  at all stages of their careers.’

The podcasts will be available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Sticher. To read more, please see the dedicated site here: www.howresearchers.com

Computing Common Room

A new social space for Computing students

A new common room has opened in time for students to relax and collaborate in during the exam term. The room, for the exclusive use of Computing undergraduates, will be open from 8.00-19.00 Monday to Friday.

The common room on the ground floor of the Cornwallis building in Canterbury is the latest change in a series of updates to the building to make it more modern and welcoming. The common room is deliberately close to the placements team, employability and marketing team, KITC and The Shed, helping to create a real student hub at the heart of the building and making it easier for students to find help in any of these areas.

Head of School, Professor Richard Jones, said: “This new space is good way of welcoming back the undergraduate students and giving them their own relaxing space at a very busy time in the academic year. We hope that they will enjoy their own area with room to chat, eat and even study if they wish. And of course we wish all of our students the very best of luck with their upcoming exams.”

The next update will see the School student administration team move downstairs to be nearer to the other student services.

KTV celebrated at the NaSTA awards

KTV, Kent Union’s television station, was recently celebrated at the National Student Television Association (NaSTA) awards.

NaSTA comprises over forty affiliated student TV stations from all over the UK. Each year, the organisation runs an awards ceremony in which stations submit examples of their programming for appraisal by judges drawn from the wider broadcast industry. This year there were 465 award entries, and the awards were hosted at the University of Nottingham on 26 April.

KTV won the Jisc Special Recognition Award for their innovative training schemes, and Madeleine Bolton won the Best Dramatic Performance award for the KTV produced film, Sweet Child of Mine.

Sweet Child of Mine was written and directed by student Tyler Hamblin, who is completing his BA (Hons) in Film in the Department of Film. The drama was produced as part of the KTV Film Festival, and was also Highly Commended in Best Drama category, and shortlisted for Best Writing and Best Cinematography.

The station was also shortlisted in the Highly Commended in Light Entertainment category, shortlisted for the Mars El Brogy Multimedia Award (for working with Inquire and CSR), and also won Best Sports Coverage.

To see a segment of Sweet Child of Mine, please see KTV’s YouTube channel here:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQAbDwGEiY0

AHRC Collaborative Doctoral Partnership PhD studentship with The British Museum

The Department of Classical and Archaeological Studies has announced a fully-funded AHRC Collaborative Doctoral Partnership PhD studentship between the University of Kent and The British Museum titled ‘Exploring economy, society and culture through glass bangles: origins, circulation and cultural impact in the Western Indian Ocean’.

This project aims to understand the spread of glass bangle production and circulation in the late and post medieval periods (c.1200-1700) – for instance, by mapping production areas and distribution – and investigate the cultural value and meanings of glass bangles, through a combination of archaeological science and investigation of size, colour and decoration (including a formal typology).

The project will support the British Museum’s research on trade and connections around the Indian Ocean, and provide the opportunity to develop the career of a future Museum Curator, Archaeological Scientist or Material Culture specialist. This is a collaborative studentship and will therefore be jointly supervised by Ellen Swift, Reader in Archaeology in the Department of Classical & Archaeological Studies, and Andrew Meek from the British Museum.

During the studentship period, the student will have the opportunity to undertake a placement at The British Museum, in the Department of the Middle East or Department of Scientific Research. During this time they will be able to gain hands-on experience in relevant work-based skills for a career in the field of cultural heritage. There will be an opportunity to undertake training courses in techniques of scientific analysis and the student will also participate in the planning for an upcoming exhibition during the course of the PhD.

This studentship is funded by the Collaborative Doctoral Partnership scheme, and is one of seven studentships the British Museum is supporting this year to supports its work. This is the second Collaborative Doctoral Award gained by the Department of Classical & Archaeological Studies in recent years; the other is a collaboration with English Heritage to study the Roman artefacts from Richborough Fort and is held by PhD student Philip Smither.

  • One studentship is available, either full or part time, and the award pays fees up to the value of the full time home/EU rate for PhD degrees as well as full maintenance (UK citizens and residents only). The value of the stipend for 2019/20 is £15,009 plus an additional £550 stipend payment for Collaborative Doctoral Students.

Application deadline: 7 June 2019

Interviews will take place on 20 June 2019 at the British Museum in London.

Full details and information about making an application are available on the University website.

 

Hammers

Choosing a trusted tool that’s right for the job

There are apps and software out there that can help you manage your time, take notes, read efficiently and more, but choosing one can be a minefield!

These tools, which you can search or browse, are tried and tested by University staff.

We’ve selected the free or Kent-provided tools that we think will save students and staff time and increase your productivity.

Some of them are on student PCs, some are online tools you can use anywhere, and others you can add to your device.

They can help you with:

  • Accessibility
  • Text to speech and screen reading
  • Voice recognition
  • Reading
  • Time management and focus
  • Writing
  • Collaborative working
  • Images, video and audio
  • Planning, mindmapping, notes and meetings

 

‘Share what you use too!’

Use a great app that we should share? Recommend it at www.kent.ac.uk/tools or visit regularly to see what’s been added.

Campus shuttle bus

Campus Shuttle booking now available

Booking is now available for the Campus Shuttle. Book a seat online here.

If you are travelling to exams, be sure to book a seat to guarantee your travel. Where possible, we recommend booking on an earlier service to ensure you arrive in plenty of time for your exams.

The Campus Shuttle starts running again Tuesday 7 May 2019 for the start of the summer term.

The Campus Shuttle is a free coach service between Medway and Canterbury campuses which runs during term-time only.

For more information visit the Campus Shuttle webpage or follow @CampusShuttle on twitter.

Graduate School Prizes

Graduate School Prizes – nominations closing soon!

Do not miss your chance to nominate someone for this year’s Graduate School Prizes.

These prizes recognise the excellence of its postgraduate researchers and the outstanding work carried out by academic and administrative staff members in support of postgraduate research and education.

The Graduate School Prizes will be awarded in the following categories:

  • PG Researcher
  • Research Degree Supervisor (winners of this prize will be entered as Kent’s nomination for the Times Higher Education ‘Outstanding Research Supervisor of the Year’. Read about last year’s prize winner, Professor Nicola Shaughnessy)
  • School Director of Graduate Studies
  • Postgraduate Administrator
  • Postgraduate Teacher

Apply or nominate a candidate now via the Graduate School website.

Deadline for nominations is 8 May 2019, and winners will be announced on 30 May 2019 at the Kent Researchers’ Showcase.

Read about last year’s winners here.

Selfie Station at the Global Hangouts event

Global Hangout 15 May 2019 – Summer Special

Join us for our ‘Summer Special’ Global Hangout from 5 – 7pm in the Gulbenkian Café. There will be live music, summer punch, tasty snacks and much more – all free of charge! Take a break from exams and celebrate as we near the end of term. All students welcome – tickets available on a first come, first served basis. Book now!

The International Partnerships team look forward to seeing you all there!