Maryam K.
As you guys know, I’m in first year! This means the modules I’m currently reading in second term are Psychology and Development, Psychology and the Individual, Research Methods 2 (RM2), Addressing Problems and Inspirational Research. I’m really loving this term’s core modules and I’m super excited to let you know what I get up to on one of my busiest days – a Tuesday.
9am – 11am: Developmental Psychology Lecture
So, quite early in the morning I have a lecture on Psychology and Development. This is by FAR one of my favourite modules so far as it goes into super interesting topics such as how we acquire language, the stages that we develop certain skills and even about morality & psychopathology.
Just to let you know, most, if not all, lectures are 2 hours long in first year and this can seem lengthy at the start. But, we do usually get a sufficient break in between and lectures are always recorded in the instance you do end up missing a lecture (you’re also able to speed/slow down the lecture when you watch it back).
11am – 12pm: Seminar for either Individual or Development module
A seminar is a smaller group of people discussing certain aspects of the module you’re currently learning about. It’s great for consolidating knowledge from lectures and set reading as you have Graduate Teaching Assistants that can clear up any questions you may have. With our seminars, there’s usually tasks/reading to do beforehand so that you’re prepared for any discussion that happens.
My seminar is straight after the lecture which I find quite nice as it gives me a long break before my next lecture (but this differs depending on which seminar group you’re in). The modules for the seminars each week alternate, so you only have one seminar every other week for a topic.
I loved my seminar this week on “Psychology and the Individual” as we looked at unhealthy and healthy food marketing, and the ways in which such food chains/products reinforce us to buy their products (and applying this to learning theories).
12pm – 3pm: BREAK!
Most of what makes this my longest day is the break I have between my seminar and my RM2 module.
I usually grab some lunch from the nearby Tesco and go into the library to get some work done. But, on days I want to relax – I go down to Guy’s bar and order some food whilst watching some Netflix on my laptop with my friends. Whatever you do in your breaks is entirely up to you and there’s so many food places nearby campus to try!
3pm – 5pm: RM2 Lecture
So to end the day I have a lecture on Research Methods. It’s usually quite chill because we have a workbook given to us with all the necessary information on each lecture and our lecturer guides us through statistics and any calculations on the projector. The pace is nice and slow so that we aren’t rushed which I really appreciate!
5pm onwards: Home time!
I usually go home after a long day and have a well-deserved rest for the evening!
PSA: this is my only super long day in the week which I told you about to give a good idea of all the things you will do on the course. But, there will be earlier finishes and some days there are no classes! So, don’t worry.
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