No Images? Click here University Updates Welcome to your first newsletter. We send these every month to let you know info about things like health and wellbeing, academic studies and the latest University news and events. We hope you're settling in to University life and are finding your way around. If you want to feedback about this newsletter or other communications then email: studentcomms@exeter.ac.uk. Preparing for university lifeStarting university can bring with it many opportunities and is usually an exciting time for new students. However, it can also be a time of change and this can bring with it challenges. Being mindful about your wellbeing and taking steps to support this, can help you to manage challenges and prepare for university life. Take a look at these videos and tips from current students for ideas on looking after your wellbeing. Wellbeing Services: workshops and groupsWellbeing Services offers a broad range of workshops and groups to help support students. These include Wellbeing and Study Skills workshops including topics such as confidence and resilience, essay structuring, stress busting and time management for studying. We also have groups and courses such as an Anxiety Management Group, Mindfulness Course, Compassion Focused Course, Autism Social Group and Fatigue Social Group. Please see our Workshop and Groups web pages for more information. Please note that you need to be referred to attend some groups. Make sure your vaccinations are up to dateThere has been a rapid increase in MenW, a type of meningococcal disease in recent years in the UK. University students, particularly freshers, are known to be at increased risk of meningitis and septicaemia. The MenACWY vaccination is available to all under 25 years olds for free. There are also cases of measles in the UK and the only prevention is two doses of the MMR vaccine. Contact your doctors' surgery to check if you have had these vaccines and book an appointment if not. If you are registered with The Student Health Centre, you can book an appointment by calling 01392 676606 for a special vaccination clinic on Saturday 6 October. If you are not yet registered with The Student Health Centre register now. Your safety: walking homeExeter is generally a safe place to live but it is always best to be aware of potential dangers and take some precautions, particularly when going home late at night. Let someone know where you are going and when you expect to be back and never let your friends walk home alone or walk home on your own. January exams - get your exam adjustments sorted in timeExam dates are available on the website and the next exams are 7 to 12 January 2019. If you need specific exam arrangements due to a disability, learning difference or injury, you should book an appointment with Wellbeing Services now to ensure your exam adjustments and Individual Learning Plans are in place in time. You need to have attended an appointment by Friday 2 November so don’t delay, get in touch today. For mental health conditions, please complete our Mental Health Appointment Request Form. For any other condition (such as specific learning difficulties or physical health conditions) please call 0300 555 0444 to book an AccessAbility appointment. Please be aware that if you received support at school or college, it will not automatically be carried over to University so you must contact us as soon as possible. Please contact Wellbeing Services if you have any questions. Your safety: drink spikingYou may have seen in the press that a Falmouth University student was recently admitted to hospital following a suspected drink spiking incident. The student is recovering well and the incident is being investigated by the police. Whilst drink spiking is never the fault of the victim and always the fault of the perpetrator, there are steps you can follow to minimise the chances of it happening to you on the Guild's website. Black History MonthOctober is Black History Month 2018. This is an amazing opportunity to celebrate the achievements of Britain's African and Caribbean communities and learn more about the culture and history of the African diaspora. There will be numerous events going on within the University and wider communities so make sure you check social media for updates but in the meantime, why don’t you test your history knowledge with this BHM quiz. Your Academic Personal TutorYour tutor is a named academic contact who you can talk to about your academic, personal and professional development. He or she will contact you at the beginning of the academic year to introduce themselves and make an appointment to meet you. Your tutor is your key academic point of contact at the university. Watch our Student Guide to Academic Personal Tutoring. Residence Life TeamIf you’re living in rooms allocated by the Accommodation Office, you will be supported by the Residence Life team. Every student in our accommodation is assigned a Residence Life Mentor who will visit you regularly and has experience of student life – you can speak to them confidentially about anything and they can point you towards other services at the University who can help. There are also Residence Life Team Leaders who are on duty every evening during term time to help with any complex or urgent problems you have. Find out more about the Residence Life Team. Register attendance at lectures on your phone or laptopUse the new Attendance tile on iExeter to sign in to all of your timetabled activities through our new Digital Check In service. We tested it last year with a selection of students who liked it, we hope you do too. Please contact your Info Point if you have any questions. Academic integrity and honestyAcademic integrity and honesty is a key part of higher education and is taken very seriously at the University. Turnitin is the computer programme we use to check for similarities in written work against material within its database (such as texts and publications) to help us identify possible cases of plagiarism. This year, more courses will be using Turnitin for submission of written assignments. To avoid any issues, please ensure any material you use is appropriately referenced or attributed to the original author. You can read more about this in the Academic Honesty module on ELE which shows in your course list or in Chapter 12 of the Teaching Quality Assurance Manual. Please contact your Academic Personal Tutor if you have any questions. Get ahead! Complete your library inductionYour online library induction provides an introduction to library services at the University of Exeter. Explore the University libraries and learn about the resources and support available to help you succeed. Need a letter confirming student status?You can generate official documents to confirm your student status for things such as your bank account and council tax by going to the Student Records and Registration tile on iExeter. You can then choose 'Generate Self Service Letters' and choose the letter you need to download it as a PDF with a stamp and signature. Please contact SID for help or hard copies of letters. 1-1 academic skills supportAre you ready for the upcoming academic year? Support in academic writing, planning or even time management is available for eligible students. Find out if you are eligible and apply. New student residences updateDevelopment works have started on our Streatham Campus for our new on-campus student residences, Moberly and Spreytonway, due to open in September 2020. Moberly is located between Birks Grange Village and Duryard and Spreytonway, is located at the end of St. German’s road. More information can be found on the project pages, or if you have any questions please contact residencefeedback@exeter.ac.uk Loans for Doctoral-Level study now availableIf you are thinking of doing a postgraduate research course at doctoral level (for example a PhD), you can now apply for a student loan to help finance your study. Find out more about the Doctoral Loan scheme on the government website and information about Doctoral and PhD degrees available at Exeter is on the postgraduate research webpages. Get info on places to Eat and ShopThe University's Eat and Shop team provides information on places to eat, drink and shop at the University. During the next few weeks, we have loads of goodies and competitions running so be sure to get social with us on Instagram @eatandshopexeter and sign up to our newsletter to find out more. Deals in the Streatham Campus bookshopBlackwell's Bookshop, located in the Foyer of the Great Hall sells all your course textbooks. The bookshop is running a Student Price Match Guarantee Promotion, which matches the lowest new official price on Amazon, Waterstones or WHSmith, ensuring you can buy your texts at the lowest UK prices. The bookshop also sells and buys second hand books. Follow the University of Exeter on Chinese social mediaWe have an official WeChat and Weibo account for the University of Exeter. Follow us by scanning the QR codes below. You can also search for us ‘ExeterUni’ on WeChat or ‘UniofExeter’ on Weibo. Exeter Student Ambassador Scheme: apply nowWe are looking for current students who would like to share their experiences with others, to join the Exeter Student Ambassador Scheme. Student ambassadors work on a wide variety of paid jobs (e.g. promoting their subject, campus tours, open days, workshops with schools and mentoring), and are able to increase their employability and skills while doing so. Find out more and apply by Friday 19 October at 17:00. Student-run scheme supports ambitions of children in careA student-run outreach scheme which supports the development and ambitions of local children-in-care is looking to recruit new mentors. Avolve is the first scheme of its kind in the country and offers one-to-one mentoring sessions, community networking and educational public awareness events to secondary schools in Exeter. Their mentoring programme focuses on improving the academic attainment, attendance, attitudes and interpersonal skills of Avolve's mentees, to give them the best possible foundation from which to enter the world outside of the care system aged 18. The scheme is expanding to cover four schools this autumn so if you would like to get involved please contact avolve@groups.exeterguild.com. Careers and Placement Fair - 23 October, 11:30 - 15.30Come along to the Careers and Placement Fair sponsored by Teach First in the Great Hall and Sanctuary, Streatham Campus. Featuring over 80 exhibitors from a range of sectors offering internships, placements, graduate positions and further study opportunities. Open to students of all years and disciplines. STEM Careers Fair - 6 November, 11:30 - 14:30Check out the STEM Careers Fair sponsored by Newton Europe in the Great Hall and Sanctuary, Streatham Campus. Featuring more than 80 organisations offering STEM-related opportunities including internships, placements, graduate roles and further study. Open to students of all years and disciplines. Mary Harris Memorial Chapel Diamond Jubilee - Saturday 6 & Sunday 7 October Business Meets Philanthropy - 11 October, 18.30 Mercure Rougemont Hotel, Exeter Make your business idea a reality at Exeter Startup Weekend - 12 to 14 October Kamila Shamsie - Creative Dialogues 'in conversation' series - 18 October, 19:00-20:30, Alumni Auditorium, The Forum, Streatham Campus Prevent event - 31 October, 12:30 - 14:00, Streatham Court C Waking up to Planetary Health 2018 - 7 November, RILD Building, Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital Tell us what you think of this newsletter: Get in touch with your feedback or news stories at: studentcomms@exeter.ac.uk |