Art Exhibition in London

It is always nice and exciting to get away from Birmingham for a day or two, get distracted from our busy lives and visit other places in the UK.

Last weekend I was away in London and went to an art exhibition at Royal Academy of Arts, one of the most famous galleries. All year around the Academy attracts people from all over the world by presenting various types of art - from classical to modern. One of the exhibitions presented at the moment contains landscape paintings of three famous English artists - Constable, Gainsborough and Turner, exploring how this genre of art was developing in the UK being influenced by foreign 18th century schools of art. Apart from being inspirational this exhibition also offers a lot of historical details which makes it even more interesting.

It is certainly a place worth visiting while in London. A lot of people travel miles to enjoy what this city offers and we are very lucky to live only an hour and a half away from it!

The beginning of the second term

The new year has begun and it is already the second term at Aston University. For research students it is slightly different as we don't have exams so our work is continuous and we also allocate some time to our research during holidays. However, the end of the year is very fast approaching and if everything goes how it was initially planned I am expected to write up and submit my PhD thesis at the end of September meaning that there are a few months left and a lot of work still needs to be done.

This will of course require a lot of independent work and being able to organise yourself as apart from concentrating on PhD work there are also a lot of other commitments and work. I expect this term to be quite challenging as I will have to allocate a lot of time to writing up my analysis chapters for my thesis and balance it with my teaching work.

All students are getting quite busy at the moment as it is the beginning of a new term for undergraduate and master's students and research students carry on with their projects. So I wish everyone had a very productive term in terms of their work and achievements!

Exams at Aston

Exam anxiety is probably very well known to everyone no matter how well you are prepared for your exams..every single student has this feeling that there could be something extra they could have done to improve their performance. Hard work during term time, revision, last minute preparation and then being assessed on just one day performance can be stressful to everyone...But every one faces the same situation and knowing that can make it slightly easier.

PhD students do not have exams every term. After our first year we have to write a Qualifying Report summing up our research progress and an oral exam (viva) is held individually where we present our work and examiner asks questions and comments on your work. Once this exam is passed we work with our supervisors until thesis is completed - then final viva takes place. So there is a completely different way of assessment in comparison to undergraduate and Master's degree.

During my Master's Degree at Aston we used to have exams before holidays which I found useful as you tend to keep concentrated during term time and can relax during holidays not worrying about  revision. Aston University provides help in order to ease exam stress. For example, international students can sign up for English classes during term time for free to improve their writing skills and that is a great support as better language skills tend to increase your understanding of the subject and thus improve your grade. Apart from that all lecturers are always happy to provide guidance during term time so as it tends to get very busy before exams it is always better to come and see them once you feel you might lack understanding in a certain area.

Hopefully all exams went well for everyone! and now it feels like Aston life is back to normal - lectures, seminars and empty library for the first week of the term))).

Teaching and Learning Course

As part of our teaching experience PhD students have an opportunity to complete Teaching and Learning Course which helps us to develop our professional skills as teachers.

The course involved 8 sessions which took place weekly during which we discussed teaching process and shared own experience with each other. I was quite lucky that this course started at the same time as my first teaching experience at university therefore that enabled me to develop my own teaching style based on theory and practice.

At the end of this course we were required to complete a portfolio which helped us to reflect on our personal growth as teachers during this period of time as well as write some theoretical essays showing our understanding of teaching practice from theoretical point of view.

This course was extremely beneficial for me. The taught part of this course as well as independent work on portfolio have greatly supported and guided me to improve my teaching style.

Symphony Hall in Birmingham

Symphony Hall is one of the main attractions of the cultural life in Birmingham. It is located right in the city centre and hosts around 300 musical events every year, bringing world's famous musicians and performers and playing all types of music making it interesting for everyone!

The venue is impressive and it is an exciting experience to go to a concert there. Tickets are not very expensive and are usually available for purchase online and at the box office. Students have also an opportunity to buy tickets for only £5 just before the concert for some events!

It is definitely worth visiting it and enjoy an evening with friends!!!

Christmas Market 2012

Birmingham's Frankfurt Christmas Market has become one of the most exciting events in the city life. This beautiful outdoor market makes the city look fabulous and creates an unforgettable atmosphere.

It has already been taking place for 11 years and all residents of Birmingham as well as tourists look forward to this event. Christmas Market provides us with unique shopping experience - traditional Christmas decorations, a wide range of handcrafts, souvenirs, candles, etc are offered to visitors. Apart from that, there are also various activities which can be enjoyed, such as taking a ride on the famous Carousel.

It is a great place to spend an evening at with your family or friends!!!

PhD Experience

I have been a PhD student at Aston for already two years and one more year to go...I should complete my thesis by September next year if everything goes as it is planned.

These two years have really been an interesting experience and I enjoyed my life as a PhD student a lot. The amount of workload is enormous and challenging but as you progress it gives you a great feeling of achieving something important and significant. It is an independent process therefore it is valuable to have a supportive supervisor who will guide you in the right direction.

This time spent at Aston also helped me deciding what I want to do in the future. Having attended conferences and presentation where we had a chance to present our work, meet a lot of interesting people made me realize that work in academia is extremely interesting.

I am looking forward to complete my thesis, but at the same time I really want to make the most out of my last year, gain as much knowledge and experiecne as possible in order to move on to the next step.