Blog posts

What’s Happening in Paddington?

Nebz

MSc Preventive Cardiology

When I first started my Masters here at Imperial, I loved the South Kensington campus. The tall periodic buildings that surrounded it, the open lawn and copious activities within the campus – it all looked great. When I realised that this wasn’t my main campus, but Paddington was, I was a tad disappointed. As nice as Paddington is, it didn’t have the same elegant feel as South-Ken.

Nevertheless, I’ve grown to love my campus and appreciate all it’s little treasures, so I’ve decided to give a brief guide on things you can do if you ever find yourself on this campus!

Freedom!

Bayan profile

Chemical Engineering

Symptom 1: uncontrollable shrieking.

Symptom 2: endless hours wasted.

Symptom 3: hypersomnia.

Symptom 4: watching an entire season in one day.

Diagnosis: You’re done with exams!!!

I can’t believe that I can finally say that I am done with my first year at Imperial. The end seemed so far away, almost unattainable and, yet, here we are. Allow me to give you a little insight to those past few weeks; a rare glimpse into the hectic life of Imperial students during exam season. Well, mine anyway.

Each day I would wake up with determination; I am going to revise Maths today and do a couple of past papers.

Exams are over!!!!!

Medicine

So much for blogging a bit over the past couple of weeks to keep me sane. Life has consisted of revise, eat, sleep, repeat for the past couple of weeks, and I think I may have gone (more) crazy. I’m still slightly in shock, both that exams are over and I can stop revising, and that I’ve finished my first year. Things are starting to wind down now – most subjects have finished exams, and although some still have projects to finish, everyone’s taking time to relax a bit. Just went down to the kitchen to get some lunch, and currently it’s pancakes and loud music.

Getting into the (public health) game with the Health Systems Development course

Master of Public Health

One of the highlights of the MPH is the optional Health Systems Development (HSD) course offered by the WHO Collaborating Centre for Public Health Education and Training. When we were first told about it back in October, it garnered quite a lot of interest for its hands-on approach to professional development and health systems management. It was the opportunity to learn the operations of international health systems while at the same time maintaining a focus on the English NHS, incorporate crucial management & leadership skills, and finding out more about key stakeholder interactions within health systems that initially caught my eye.

Volunteering at Cheltenham Science Festival

MSCi Physics

So, I’ve just got back from Cheltenham Science Festival. It was a really fun and hectic week!

Like most volunteering experiences, a lot of the work we were doing was basic slave labour—cleaning venues between talks, getting water for speakers, clicking people in and out of venues, making tea, carrying messages etc etc. Even while doing these routine tasks however, we were surrounded by such great communicators and lovely people, from the speakers in the talks we attended to the stall holders in the drop-in zones, and the other volunteers.

There was a wonderful atmosphere of inspiration and urgency in many of the talks—most of the speakers were funny and excellent at communicating, but even the ones who seemed initially slightly dumbfounded by the large audiences, had such a depth of knowledge and passion for their subject area that their talks were really brilliant.

Setting up for Cheltneham Science Festival

MSCi Physics

I’m volunteering at Cheltenham Science Festival this week and have just got back to the YMCA where we are staying after a long day of unloading chairs and tables and sofas and fridges off lorries and distributing them around the venues. I am not a very strong person (!) so this has been a tiring day, but absolutely worth it, because the venues look incredible now, and one of the things I got to help lift was a giant dinosaur head!

Cheltenham Festival looks like it is going to be a great experience– if anyone is interested in science communication I would thoroughly recommend applying next year.

Just a note…

Medicine

It’s about 1am, I can’t sleep, so I thought I might as well blog.

The blog’s been a bit quiet lately – the opposite of everything else in my life. I can’t believe it’s been over two months – it feels more like two minutes.

Since then, ICSM will have made all their offers to potential Freshers. So, to all of you who received offers…. CONGRATULATIONS! Welcome to the best medical school on the planet (I’m not at all biased…)

For those of you who didn’t, don’t give up. I didn’t get into med school first time round, so I took a gap year and worked as a healthcare assistant.

Changes

Nebz

MSc Preventive Cardiology

So.. recently in my course I’ve experienced some changes.

Research Project

My MSc in Preventive Cardiology is a taught course where we have to do a research project worth a 3rd of our overall grade. Those who want to do a PhD or go into research after their masters understand the importance of the research project and choose something that they may like to follow up afterwards. As I’ve said in a previous post, I am interested in cardiovascular disease and mental health, and I was hoping that as part of my research project I could actually have patient contact and carry out some interviews.

End of third year… almost

MSCi Physics

My exams finally finished today!

I think they went pretty well in general, although third year exams are hard (as you might expect!)

This was the first exam season where I’ve consistently struggled for time during the exams—normally I finish with a bit of time to spare and check things over, but this year has been a mad rush right until the end for almost every exam, which was disconcerting.

Except for one day of lectures related to next year (that I am accidentally missing by going to Cheltenham Science Festival next week) and the summer balls, I am now done with uni for the year!

Study Breaks

Isobel profile

BSc Biology with a year in Europe

I am a strong believer in the study break. As the weather gets more gorgeous and my exams get closer, I think I would end up hating life if I didn’t make time to get outside and enjoy it. Some people prefer to power through the exam season in the library but that’s just not my style. So here’s a run down of my fave ways to enjoy a break from revision.

Tea at the V and A seems like something that you would only do as a tourist or when your parents come to visit but this amazing, beautiful museum is literally next door to us so I think it makes a great break from revision to have a little wander and enjoy a delicious cup of tea in the café.

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