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>> No. 6004 Anonymous
15th October 2015
Thursday 3:55 pm
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How do you approach studying a field that is completely unfamiliar to you?

That is, in a way that minimises picking up whatever bullshit myths and habits you'll have to eventually unlearn. Is there a way to build your knowledge step by step and have at least some insight to control your progress and to stop yourself going *completely* the wrong way (you know, bullshit frequently sounds rational and plausible… unless you know it isn't or your intuition is great)?

Is this even possible?

For the most of life I've been learning stuff through trial and pain. It works but I've had just as much to *unlearn* in the process as I would learn. Maybe there is a better way.
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>> No. 6005 Anonymous
15th October 2015
Thursday 4:55 pm
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Imagine you're lost in unfamiliar terrain. How do you find your way back to civilisation?

You could just head off towards the horizon, but you're likely to wander around in circles. A more sensible approach is to head for high ground, sketch out a rough map of the area and pick a few landmarks to get a bearing from.

When studying an unfamiliar subject, it's tempting to just start somewhere and plough ahead, or to pick and choose bits that seem interesting. A more productive approach is to take a broad survey of the topic, and identify key theoretical concepts.

Head to the library and peruse the relevant Dewey section. Pick out a couple of introductory textbooks, read the preface, skim through the headings and take notes. Contact some experts in the field and ask the crucial question "what do you wish you had learned sooner?".

When you do start studying properly, make sure to continually test yourself to prevent superficial knowledge from creating the illusion of competence. Summarise what you're learning for a real or imaginary person - if you can't coherently explain something to a layman, you probably don't understand it properly. Look for opportunities to use your new knowledge in a practical way.
>> No. 6006 Anonymous
15th October 2015
Thursday 7:02 pm
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This is a bit iffy.

I'm having similar struggles having done hard science for the past six years and now I'm doing a postgraduate degree on technology management and process innovation. I'm having to change my approach and the way I think.

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>> No. 5995 Anonymous
8th October 2015
Thursday 5:19 am
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Alright guys, can you give me a list of subjects to get a degree in? Or I suppose, good/in demand jobs, so perhaps something that doesn't even need a degree, just a course of some kind. Basically something that will lead to a career. Something, anything with good employment prospects/earning potential. Preferably something I could use to get work elsewhere in the world, and even more preferably, North America. It can be anything, anything at all. Just assume whatever the requirements are, I already do or will meet them, and whatever it is, I'll study my ass off for it. There's a few I have in mind but I imagine I've overlooked a few too, so I figured it doesn't hurt to ask as I might hear of something new that I haven't come across/thought of.

For those asking why, I'm just looking for possibilities to turn my life around and perhaps settle down somewhere instead of bouncing place to place, job to job.
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>> No. 5998 Anonymous
8th October 2015
Thursday 9:49 am
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>>5997

I haven't been able to find any statistics that would be relevant on an individual level. Skilled manual work is simply too diverse to draw useful conclusions. For workers in traditional construction trades, business skills are at least as valuable as vocational skills.

What I can tell you is that on aggregate, low-level vocational qualifications have no significant effect on lifetime earnings. The most valuable vocational qualifications are high-level qualifications (HNC/HND) in engineering-related subjects, which are worth about half as much as the average undergraduate degree.
>> No. 5999 Anonymous
8th October 2015
Thursday 7:27 pm
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Go and work on a cruise ship. I have a few mates who basically get paid to dick around on ships sailing in the Caribbean and to places like Fiji.
>> No. 6000 Anonymous
8th October 2015
Thursday 9:06 pm
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Is it silly to go back and try to study for a degree in Dentistry when you are 30?
>> No. 6001 Anonymous
8th October 2015
Thursday 9:22 pm
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>>6000
A 30 year old won't be retiring until they're a supercentenarian at this rate, so maybe not.
>> No. 6002 Anonymous
8th October 2015
Thursday 10:36 pm
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>>6000

Not at all, if your lifestyle allows you to leave work and study full time. If you already have a degree then you're on your own regarding funding, but it's certainly not too late.

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>> No. 5945 Anonymous
28th September 2015
Monday 7:54 pm
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Ive just moved into private student accommodation and none of my housemates have been home.

Having spoken to the neighbours apparently one of my new housemates is a big black man who likes beating his girlfriend at 2am and they have had to call the police on him.

Lads they could be messing with me but its shit me up and I don't know what to do. My immediate plan is to pop into my accommodation agents office and move but I can't afford it having just put down a large deposit and my finance is still in process - does 'I don't feel like getting stabbed' count as a valid reason of getting out of this contract?
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>> No. 5978 Anonymous
30th September 2015
Wednesday 12:28 am
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I cringe a lot when I read the papers or turn the radio on. You never hear, "A white paedophile was apprehended," but you sure as hell will hear, "A eskimo paedophile was apprehended."

Never, "An armed white man held up a bank," but "A black man bottled a woman." In Canada, when some eskimo guy murdered his whole family and then killed himself, people were discussing honour-culture and other finer parts of Asian cultures. When a white man does it, he is simply psychotic.

White is benign and the average, so it can't really be used nefariously. While other terms like black, and eskimo, are loaded and have negative connotations. They are used negatively, to "otherise" and dehumanise. The more I think about it, I realise to a degree that the everyday language of our society, and by extension all the media we consume is at worst racist, and at best, just ignorant and xenophobic. While that can be overlooked if we were a near homogeneous nation like Japan, and shielded from globalisation, I don't think it can be applied here in Britain, or anywhere in the western world.

Now I'm not fighting for one corner or another. I speak three languages, and out of all of them, English seems most inclusive, and all tribal hostilities/xenophobia seem like they are covert. You would have to stop and think about certain things to realise what they truly mean.

Maybe technology, economy, and civilisation are progressing faster than our languages and inner-selves.
>> No. 5979 Anonymous
30th September 2015
Wednesday 1:23 am
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>>5978
You cringe,no one else does.
>> No. 5980 Anonymous
30th September 2015
Wednesday 1:27 am
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>>5979
How do you figure?
>> No. 5982 Anonymous
30th September 2015
Wednesday 1:32 am
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>>5980
Public awareness.

It's just typical of trying to create a scenario rather than reacting to one.
>> No. 5993 Anonymous
5th October 2015
Monday 10:51 pm
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What the fuck, lads. I posted this thread last week and got caught up with other nonsense but I feel I need to clear some things up.

1) The reference to him being a big black man was a quote from the neighbours. I thought it was fairly obvious I was repeating what I had been told unless you're suggesting I have a black person spider sense.

2) I have never nor will I ever post on /R9K/. I did cross post on krautchan as I felt I needed some quick advice - no need to be a dickhead about it.

3) As it turns out I'm living with 2 black women with a boyfriend staying over a few days a week. He seems tame enough perhaps even a little intimidated as I forgot I have about 5 years on these kids. Then again he seems the jealous type so we'll see how it goes.

I haven't mentioned what the neighbours have said because I would rather avoid an argument. One of them made one of those indirect complaints about my smoking on the balcony though so fuck 'em.

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>> No. 5914 Anonymous
23rd September 2015
Wednesday 5:57 pm
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Fresh 18 year old here, so I'll hopefully be going to uni next year. My main concern is:
Do I persue a course in something I find horribly boring but tolerable (Computing) or something I very much enjoy but will be hard finding a job in afterwards (Music)

I'm also thinking of going Birmingham City. Any of you lot over there, how is it?
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>> No. 5981 Anonymous
30th September 2015
Wednesday 1:31 am
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>>5976
Yes it was a fucking lot and I did it and having worked full time not once though my undergrad was nearly as stressful or time consuming. Op will likely have less than half the hours I did. I'm not trying to sound impressive, I'm just trying to reinforce earlier points I've made. I had 28 hours, did I go ot all of them? Did I fuck.
>> No. 5983 Anonymous
30th September 2015
Wednesday 1:36 am
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>>5981
So then it's not really accurate to say you "did fuck all" is it?
>> No. 5984 Anonymous
2nd October 2015
Friday 12:55 pm
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>>5932
I wouldn't mind anything from my own production and DJ'ing (I know the course won't help that, but I'm sure there are societies that would be worth getting into)
In terms of jobs, recording engineer, sound design, live sound etc. I probably wouldn't even mind being a teacher.
>> No. 5985 Anonymous
2nd October 2015
Friday 1:15 pm
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>>5983
If just going to your course lectures is considered not doing fuck all then we've got a real problem on our hands.
>> No. 5986 Anonymous
2nd October 2015
Friday 1:23 pm
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>>5985

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VKHFZBUTA4k

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>> No. 5906 Anonymous
22nd September 2015
Tuesday 11:34 pm
5906 Freshers Week
Luckiest bastard alive, lads.

How's freshers going? Meet anyone nice, win any raffles?
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>> No. 5910 Anonymous
22nd September 2015
Tuesday 11:47 pm
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>>5909

You're hysterical. I'm never out of the place.
>> No. 5911 Anonymous
23rd September 2015
Wednesday 12:32 am
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>>5910
Waterstones is for browsing and stealing from, nobody actually buys anything.
>> No. 5912 Anonymous
23rd September 2015
Wednesday 1:05 am
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>>5911

Thanks for your input.
>> No. 5913 Anonymous
23rd September 2015
Wednesday 10:06 am
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Our LRC had an identical prize for a treasure hunt too.
I've been at this uni two years and had shit all luck then this week I have three girls making various degrees of moves on me. It never rains but it pours. They're not even freshers. I'm not going to let myself be less cynical about it, that way lies disappointment.
>> No. 5917 Anonymous
24th September 2015
Thursday 9:14 am
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>>5913
Make that 4 now. This is ridiculous.
This one was a stereotypical sjw down to the polka dot dress and horn rim glasses. Terrifying. I may just cut off all my hair again so no one is attracted to me, it's much simpler.

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>> No. 5797 Anonymous
4th August 2015
Tuesday 3:23 am
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So I'm going to do viewings for some private student housing and my main concern is security.

As far as I'm concerned all I want is a simple lock on the bedroom door and be unlockable from the inside without a key using a thumb operated catch. Did a bit of googling about and I can't find anything that clearly says in black and white under the law that HMOs are required to have such locks. Is there any act that states this? Also going through a few forums and it seems some landlords are a bit arsey about it and try to shut up security concious students with TV licensing costs being brought up. Another thing I should really google a bit more as my knowledge on the subject is that it is irrelevant if you have equipment that can watch live television, you are not required to pay for a license. However that knowledge is from the man down the pub.

What's the proper way of going about asking for locks on the bedroom door without a landlord trying to pass the cost off to you when it seems that they must be legally required to do so themselves?

While I'm here, any general tips on not getting fucked over by a landlord?
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>> No. 5820 Anonymous
6th August 2015
Thursday 11:57 am
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>>5816
Try find a place with locks already on the doors, or a landlord who won't be so hesitant to install locks. If they're reluctant to do something which is necessary for the security of their tenants, god knows what else they'll scrimp on. As someone who's had my room trashed and my bed fucked on when I was away and a housemate had a party, I can't overstate how important room locks are.
>> No. 5826 Anonymous
9th August 2015
Sunday 12:46 am
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Well looks like I'm going for a place where locks are on all bedroom doors and TV license is covered.

Problem is that there are several couples in the house. Looks like I'm going to go look through the market for ear plugs and noise cancelling headphones and perhaps head over to /g/ for recommendations. There was two other people in my last flat and while one of them was kind enough to play music when he was with his missus the other was fairly loud and made the remaining semester quite uncomfortable hearing that.
>> No. 5901 Anonymous
18th September 2015
Friday 10:31 pm
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To save making another landlord fucking over thread, I'll post here. Need to check something though.

Live in a house with a prepayment leccy meter, which I believe was installed for the tenancy commencing 2013. But I've received two bills for electricity from a different provider, for the end of the 2012 tenancy, and for the entire 2013 tenancy. Overall, it's about £350. The end of the 2012 tenancy's bill is in the name of the landlord, but he gave it to me to pay (I moved in 2014), and the 2013 bill is addressed to the previous head tenant, who was head tenant 2013 and 2014.

So I'm not going to pay, as I didn't live here during any of this duration. However, the landlord is adamant he doesn't have to pay, and the previous head tenant lives in another country. So if they both refuse to pay, as the current head tenant will this affect my credit rating? Can they just switch the debt to me?
>> No. 5902 Anonymous
18th September 2015
Friday 10:36 pm
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>>5901
>The end of the 2012 tenancy's bill is in the name of the landlord, but he gave it to me to pay (I moved in 2014)
Give it back and tell him to fuck off.

>and the 2013 bill is addressed to the previous head tenant
Return marked NO LONGER AT THIS ADDRESS.
>> No. 5903 Anonymous
18th September 2015
Friday 10:38 pm
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>>5902
>NO LONGER AT THIS ADDRESS
On second thoughts, if you don't have a forwarding address, maybe that should be NOT KNOWN AT THIS ADDRESS.

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>> No. 5892 Anonymous
7th September 2015
Monday 11:27 am
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Lads, I need your advice because I'm stuck and I don't know what to do.

I am currently still waiting for my application to be processed for a postgraduate research project which I submitted ages ago. I've spoken to the applications team at the university last week and they told me they would chase it up and that I will receive an email when the decision has been made but they did not give me any definite dates for this. Yes I am pretty late in the game now for applying which is partly because I have already been messed about by another university who just never got back to me at an earlier stage in the application. Naturally I am apprehensive and need something to happen because all I'm doing now is sitting at home neeting.

What I will need to do if they either reject my application or want me to start next year is to find work which in my profession would involve moving. The moving part can be pretty straightforward as I can just move to the city of the university but finding work will be difficult when I don't know if I am soon to be going into full-time academia. Should I email a local specialized recruitment business explaining my situation and see if they can find me part-time work in the meantime or should I keep my uncertainty secret and say I am looking for full-time work?

I just want to accrue thousands of pounds of debt and add to the sum of human knowledge. I never knew I could slip so easily between the cracks on this.
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>> No. 5893 Anonymous
7th September 2015
Monday 11:42 am
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For a start, begin ringing them up and not just waiting for replies to emails.
>> No. 5894 Anonymous
7th September 2015
Monday 12:52 pm
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>>5893
I'm not a moron. I've spoken with the head of department before I submitted my application and have been bothering application services weekly over the phone since then with very little they can really do due to the nature of research applications.

The best estimate I have been given so far is a 2 week window but naturally that is a long time to be sitting with my hands in my pockets.
>> No. 5900 Anonymous
15th September 2015
Tuesday 9:17 pm
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I've only went and got it haven't I.

Lads, I was so confident that either I wasn't going to get in anywhere or that my start date would be moved to next year that I haven't organized my financing or where the hell I'm going to live. I have an offer for the 1st of fucking October.

Fucking hell, I've been trying to get in touch with admissions all day but it seems like they took a bloody day off. 20 minutes I sat there at one point trying to get through. Anyone have an experience with doing any of this at the last minute, is it time I tried walking into the bank with a banana in my pocket and demanding money?

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>> No. 5861 Anonymous
26th August 2015
Wednesday 1:23 pm
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How long after graduating do I get before not having any form of job becomes embarrassing?

I know it seems desperate asking here, but has anybody got any steadfast advice or tips that are better than the usual platitudes?

I crammed in as much work experience (relevant to what I'm going for), studying abroad, languages and relevant society positions as I could ready to hit the road and nobody will give me any flicker of interest. Yet, it seems those who sat on their arse for three years or made no effort to do more than the usual university bubble entails have all took jobs at leading newspapers and other respectable institutions.

I'm not envious (well, just a bit), just feel like there's something I'm missing to help wrap it all up.

It's not all bad though, I did speculatively apply to a company who said I sounded great, invited me to an interview and said they'd get back to me to confirm dates. They emailed me again to say they were still confirming the dates. I emailed them twice (a week apart) to ask if it was still happening and they've just ignored me.
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>> No. 5887 Anonymous
27th August 2015
Thursday 11:14 am
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>>5881
This sounds interesting. Do I really need an entire degree for this? What would you say are the minimum experience/qualification requirements?
>> No. 5888 Anonymous
28th August 2015
Friday 9:57 am
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>>5887

On a technical level, most definitely not. However it would be expected, as life is like that nowadays. If you are an undergraduate you might havea chance though.
>> No. 5889 Anonymous
28th August 2015
Friday 10:09 am
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>>5887

An NCTJ might help. Bear in mind that there are no entry requirements whatsoever to freelance writing other than having the guts to pitch.
>> No. 5890 Anonymous
28th August 2015
Friday 3:36 pm
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>>5877

What sort of thing do I post without being an idiot and giving away my real details?

>>5881
Interesting, thanks, but not what I want to get into.


Weirdly enough lads, got an email yesterday fromthat guy (a month later) telling me he'd like me to go for interview.

Not really sure what to do anymore lads. Can't get anything right.
>> No. 5891 Anonymous
28th August 2015
Friday 9:54 pm
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>>5890
To post your CV here just change all the identifying stuff to fake placeholders. This includes not just changing your name to Simon Bennett and your address to 10 Downing Street, but your company name to Multinational Software Giant Ltd. or Upscale Supermarket Chain plc. As long as the stuff that matters is there, like your skills and responsibilities.

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>> No. 5839 Anonymous
25th August 2015
Tuesday 4:39 pm
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What's the best online resource for learning SQL? In the line of work I want to go down it seems extremely important based on job adverts I've seen, as does VBA. I'm completely unfamiliar with programming though, and can't tell a good site from a bad one.
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>> No. 5856 Anonymous
26th August 2015
Wednesday 1:42 am
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>>5853
>> No. 5857 Anonymous
26th August 2015
Wednesday 1:47 am
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Oh look, a circlejerk.

Who are you lot to know the context of OP's question or what he's done to answer it?
>> No. 5858 Anonymous
26th August 2015
Wednesday 1:58 am
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>>5857
The OP made no attempt to contextualise the question, so we must assume it stands by itself. They've also made no attempt to tell us what they've done to answer it, so we must assume they've done nothing. These are pretty sound assumptions, given that in decades of people asking questions online they've held true far more often than not.
>> No. 5859 Anonymous
26th August 2015
Wednesday 2:37 am
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>>5858
My experience of asking questions on .gs has been unhelpful and obstructive. You're all cunts. Not a matey cunt, just a cunt.
>> No. 5860 Anonymous
26th August 2015
Wednesday 3:40 am
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>>5859
Did you also make no attempt to do prior research and contextualise your question so as not to exhibit the "XY problem"? Because those things definitely correlate very strongly with unhelpful and obstructive answers.

http://mywiki.wooledge.org/XyProblem
http://www.perlmonks.org/?node=XY+Problem
http://meta.stackexchange.com/questions/66377/what-is-the-xy-problem

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>> No. 5831 Anonymous
12th August 2015
Wednesday 4:33 pm
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So I'm going to be doing a masters at Manchester from September and I foolishly thought I would be able to apply for accommodation in August and have a good chance of getting a place in student halls. But after phoning the accommodation office I finally got them to admit that it is quite unlikely that that'll be the case, and I was advised to also look for private accommodation.

Turns out there hardly seem to be any rooms left in private halls either. I keep making inquiries only to be told that everything is sold out (update your fucking website accordingly then, cunts), but that they can put me on a waiting list.

How likely is it that I'll be able to find student accommodation this late in the game? I don't really want to look for rooms in private houses because I don't want to be isolated from the wider student body like I was during my undergrad. But it looks like I have to unless I'm willing to pay more than £120pw.

Don't suppose anyone in Manchester has a shed for me to live in?
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>> No. 5832 Anonymous
12th August 2015
Wednesday 4:36 pm
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Not to worry, pal. The student area of Manchester is absolutely massive, you won't struggle to find a cheap house within walking distance.

Are you UoM or MMU?
>> No. 5833 Anonymous
12th August 2015
Wednesday 5:49 pm
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>>5831

Get yourself down Velvet on't Canal Street and shack up with a feminine looking bumder, m8.

In all seriousness, you should be fine just keep looking. I doubt you'll get isolated, fucking everywhere in Manchester is a studenty place. My mate is getting the jail soon, so his housemate will be looking for a lodger. Something will come up.
>> No. 5835 Anonymous
12th August 2015
Wednesday 8:44 pm
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>>5832

UoM. I live in London and I'm not going to be able to go up for any viewings before I move, so I'd rather find a place in some kind of student halls, where I'd know I'm just getting a cookie cutter box to live in with nothing else to worry about.
>> No. 5838 Anonymous
13th August 2015
Thursday 7:49 am
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If you can't find anywhere using traditional methods, try Spareroom, my mate who did his masters last year at Manchester did that.

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>> No. 5834 Anonymous
12th August 2015
Wednesday 8:08 pm
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I've been asked to provide references for an application which is fairly bog standard as I'm sure you are all aware but I've also been asked to do this with no official form for my would-be references to fill out. This baffles me.

How exactly do I go about approaching people for such an open ended reference, will former lecturers they know what to do when I ask them? Should I construct my own reference form with tick boxes of a similar nature to the Anschluss referendum?
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>> No. 5836 Anonymous
12th August 2015
Wednesday 8:56 pm
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>>5834
You don't. Their willingness (or otherwise) to pursue referees is their problem, not yours. If they won't make you an offer because they were too lazy to do their own jobs then take it as a good sign and move on.
>> No. 5837 Anonymous
12th August 2015
Wednesday 9:01 pm
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>>5834
Just ask for a written reference, it's pretty standard practice. Generally you should approach your university tutor for a reference, not just any lecturers.

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>> No. 5792 Anonymous
18th July 2015
Saturday 12:22 am
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Rambly and slightly drunken post incoming.

I graduated the other day and prior had applied to loads of graduate jobs and unfortunately they'd all come back as a big no, despite some interviews. However since then I've applied to a few and been considering Masters degrees and PhDs and other jobs and I've got terribly excited about future prospects, but at the same time I don't half feel like I'm too old for it or that I'm going to waste my twenties despite being in a position no different to anyone else who's done a degree with a gap yah.

Was just sitting outside drinking with my housemates and thinking yeah, I can do all this stuff in a few years time, wait and see it could be really great.

Just wanted to share.
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>> No. 5793 Anonymous
18th July 2015
Saturday 1:50 am
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>>5792
Are you really so drunk that you've mistaken /uni/ for your LiveJournal?
>> No. 5794 Anonymous
18th July 2015
Saturday 8:59 am
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>>5792
Make sure you pick what you want and not what you think will be easier. It's always a false economy.
>> No. 5795 Anonymous
24th July 2015
Friday 8:42 pm
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Well it's a week later and now I'm back home with the parents and sober. And now I'm lost and confused.

I want to do uni again and do first year and do all that sex and partying shit again, I didn't make the most of it in first year (especially the sex bit, scratch the 'again'). I have no money and no job and the idea of being stuck in this fucking rural shithole for a year is making my head hurt. Life's static and shit here. There's loads of jobs, great! But what the fuck is the use of spending my early twenties going to work then coming home at my parents house. No friends, no girlfriend, just loneliness, absence of excitement or purpose. I want to go to the gym but I can't afford it or even fucking get there.

Whinge. I want to be where the happening is and meet people again.
>> No. 5796 Anonymous
24th July 2015
Friday 8:57 pm
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>>5795

I don't remember posting this. I'm pretty sure I was in the shower at the time.

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>> No. 5732 Anonymous
21st June 2015
Sunday 1:49 pm
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After some years in the wilderness, I think I've finally gotten over my Crippling Social Anxiety.

I mean crippling. I've just finished my first year at uni, most of which I spent lurking in my room eating toast and watching tv.

But, after years of being told I'm 'actually better at socialising than a lot of people', it's finally sunk in so I'm not so much scared about how to go about getting friends in second year [go to societies, go to events and the post-events drinking, extrapolate the people I meet into nights out, make an effort to meet my flatmates since I'm living solo in some cheap private halls, etc] as wondering how to disguise/explain how I managed to meet exactly no one in my first year.

I know meeting people as a second year is 'harder', but meeting people is easy enough really. The thing that worries me most is getting 'found out' by the people I meet as somebody with no uni-mates in the city despite being in the second year. Should I attempt to just gloss over it and hope no-one notices?

I'm almost considering saying, if I have to, that I spent most of my time outside of studying looking after an ill relative. But my head says there must be a better way than that. My lack of experience of uni social life makes it hard to second guess what a good approach would be. Any advice from uni lads?

also general uni social anxiety thread? I'd happily share my experiences if
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>> No. 5733 Anonymous
21st June 2015
Sunday 2:19 pm
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also general misuse of the word extrapolate thread.
>> No. 5734 Anonymous
21st June 2015
Sunday 3:42 pm
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>The thing that worries me most is getting 'found out' by the people I meet as somebody with no uni-mates in the city despite being in the second year. Should I attempt to just gloss over it and hope no-one notices?

A harsh but liberating truth is that social anxiety is fundamentally driven by a self-defeating form of egotism. When we worry about what other people think of us, we're profoundly over-estimating our own importance. People are generally far too busy thinking about themselves to notice the minor embarrassments of others.

For example, most people worry that if they go to a concert or a nightclub or a restaurant alone, they'll be judged to be a loser with no mates, but that fear is almost entirely unfounded. In reality, nobody is paying that much attention to the people around them. Our anxieties make us imagine the world as being infinitely more hostile than it really is. Even if we were being judged in that way, would it really matter?

There's a peculiar mathematical fact called the friendship paradox that makes most people feel a bit socially inadequate. The simple explanation goes like this: You're much more likely to be friends with someone who has a lot of friends than someone who has few friends. Social groups are invariably held together by a small hub of very gregarious people. Having very few friends is in fact normal, but for obvious reasons you're much more likely to meet people who are very outgoing and spend a lot of time socialising. It's a bit like going to the gym and noticing that everyone there seems much fitter than you - what you're seeing is a biased sample.

In short, don't worry about it. If you're good company, people will want to be around you, regardless of your anxieties. Some people might judge you negatively if they know that you struggled to socialise in your first year, but others will empathise with your situation and help you to get out of that rut, so it all evens out. This is especially true at university - everyone knows what it was like to turn up as a fresher and not know anyone. Most students feel lonely in their first year. The only way you'll be harmed by your past is if you let fear stop you from getting out and meeting people, if you close yourself off for fear of being hurt.

If social anxiety is really holding you back, speak to someone at Student Services about counselling or therapy. Most universities have some sort of counselling service, and many have really excellent services available.
>> No. 5735 Anonymous
21st June 2015
Sunday 7:45 pm
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>>5734

I'd like to add, that the first year you spent feeling rather lonely and without friends can be to your advantage. I don't doubt that you learnt a lot and it brought you to where you are now- the experience may have been bad or negative, but I do believe you learnt a little about yourself and your independence. At the very least, you can start your second year with a clean slate and a more mature approach (against starting the second year as the 'guy who always threw up at parties').

And, I shouldn't imagine that you have to hide your last year. I highly doubt that people will change their opinion of you if they 'discover' you made no friends the year previous. It's fine, anyone that doesn't tolerate it isn't worth your time.
>> No. 5791 Anonymous
16th July 2015
Thursday 4:49 pm
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Just finished first year and made some good friends of varying levels of closeness.
I'm good at managing friendships at uni as I see everyone as often as I need to.
Now it's the holidays, it's different. I talk with them over facebook/whatsapp although it's difficult to keep it interesting and finding new things to talk about, without it feeling forced. Easiest way round this is visiting people which I've done where I can.
As for people I see occasionally, I'm trying to make an effort to talk to them at least once this holiday so that they remember me/it wouldn't be awkward to talk to them when the new year starts.

Same goes for next year, I suppose. There'll be people I won't see this year - should I ask them out or let them contact me?

Honestly, I'm hopeless at facebook and the like. I wouldn't use it if there were another way.

whiteline
>> No. 5744 Anonymous
26th June 2015
Friday 7:50 pm
5744 Placement Years
I've just finished my first year of Electronic Engineering, and spending all my time drinking, playing video games and masturbating is starting to get a bit monotonous. I've got a placement year in my third year, so I thought I'd have a look at that.

Is it worth applying now? -- From my cursory skim of some websites, it seems applications aren't open yet, but there are forms and emails to be sent to. Would applying now make me look over-eager?

I'm very interested in spending the year abroad. In terms of placements abroad, is there anything I should be aware of, like work visas and the like? Are there any countries where English is not spoken as a native language but only knowing English would be good enough for a placement?

Has anyone done an engineering placement? Did you get a lot from it?

Cheers lads.
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>> No. 5745 Anonymous
26th June 2015
Friday 8:00 pm
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What is the application process? Do the university handle your placement completely and you just apply with a list of a few places you'd like to go? Or do you arrange with a company yourself for you to have a placement there?

If it's the former, there's no point in thinking into it too much now, but try to do less drinking, videogaming and masturbating (or at least make it less obvious) next year, because the department will undoubtedly determine who gets their first choice by who actually bothers with the course on campus and who gets the best grades. If it's the latter, it would probably benefit you to start scoping out places that you might like now and start sending out some emails to try to arrange your placement nice and early, so that the paperwork is less stressful later.

Are you sure you're allowed to go somewhere abroad?
>> No. 5746 Anonymous
26th June 2015
Friday 8:18 pm
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>>5744
>Is it worth applying now?

It's worth learning about how to apply now, and getting the experience and general CV fodder to strengthen your application, whenever you make it. Ask your tutors. Go to careers centre events. Look up what companies offer. Try and get some work experience even if it's only a week or two. Contact HR people at various engineering firms; don't be a tool and only go for Bentley Systems, Thales and BAE, diversify your shit and go for the myriad of other large-medium-small engineering firms who can offer you experience. Just ring up the front desk and ask them who you should try to talk to.

>Would applying now make me look over-eager?

Who gives a fuck, it's your life.

A pro tip I have for added CV fodder is to attend chartered institution events of some kind (in your case, the IET - http://www.theiet.org/events/ ). You'll get to talk to people in the trade and possibly email addresses and more to try and get placements/work experience off. Most events will be free, though they may be very heavily booked in advance.
>> No. 5747 Anonymous
26th June 2015
Friday 8:54 pm
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>>5744
I didn't do a placement but probably should have.

One thing to take into account is that a successful placement could well lead you into a safe job after graduation. Another is that throughout the placement you should be thinking about what you will be doing for your final year project. Ideally you will choose something similar to what you have spent the last year working on / with and maybe even in conjunction with or sponsored by your employer. My uni loved joint projects as it can get you a newspaper article and lets the higher ups wave their dicks about a bit. It looks good on the CV too.

Going abroad may be better suited as a summer project for 2-3 months instead of a full year. If you hate the work or the location then you can either soldier through or just piss off home without much of an impact on your degree.
>> No. 5748 Anonymous
26th June 2015
Friday 9:48 pm
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>>5745
As far as I'm aware, it's the latter. And the implication was that we could as long as the tutors can easily get there, which may rule anywhere outside of Europe out -- which would then mean I have to stay in the UK because I don't think anywhere else would take too kindly to someone who doesn't speak the native language.

whiteline
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