Tag Archives: advice

World Mental Health Week: 6 – 10 October

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world-mental-healthBU recognises that good mental health is vital to living life fully. To educate and help raise awareness around mental health issues, BU is hosting a wide variety of events between Monday 6 and Friday 10 October.

Events include presentations from those suffering from mental illness, and a screening and talk about ‘Finding Mike’- a  campaign that went global at the start of the year to find the stranger that stopped mental health campaigner Jonny Benjamin, from taking his own life.

Numerous speakers will visit throughout the week to give both personal and professional views on different mental illnesses and information stands will provide advice and support.

The information below gives the highlights of the week, but for full details and to book onto any of the events, please see the World Mental Health Week Programme.

Monday 6 October

  • Talk from the Police and Dorset Healthcare University NHS Foundation Trust about the mental health street triage team; Bournemouth House (BG10), 10am – 11am. More information and to book onto this event.
  • Hidden Talents – a group of staff employed by Dorset HealthCare University NHS Foundation Trust who have experienced a mental illness at some time in their life or live with a mental health condition – will give a talk about their experiences; Bournemouth House (BG10), noon – 1pm. More information and to book onto this event.

Tuesday 7 October

  • Rick Dyer, Peer Specialist from Dorset Mental Health Forum will give a talk entitled ‘Switched off, Switched on, I have had psychosis’; Student Hall, Talbot House, noon – 1pm. More information and to book onto this event.

Wednesday 8 October

Thursday 9 October

  • Dorset ‘Time to Change’ meeting; Dorset County Council, Dorchester, 10am – noon. Please contact: David Corbin, Equality and Diversity Manager via email: David.Corbin@dhuft.nhs.uk if you wish to attend this meeting.
  • A talk on the signs, symptoms and support for those suffering from depression; Student Hall, Talbot House, 1pm – 2pm. More information and to book onto this event.

Friday 10 October

  • Abigail Balachandran, who suffered with Bulimia for 10 years and now works for I*EAT, a local eating disorders charity, will give a talk about her experiences;Student Hall, Talbot House, Talbot Campus. 9.40am – 10am. More information and to book onto this event.
  • Carer, Miranda Portwood will talk about her own personal experiences of supporting her daughter with anorexia; Student Hall, Talbot House, Talbot Campus, 10.10am – 10:30am. More information and to book onto this event.
  • Talk entitled ‘Understanding Eating disorders: the challenges and opportunities’; Student Hall, Talbot House, Talbot Campus, 10.40am – 11:30am. More information and to book onto this event.
  • SUBU is signing The Time to Change pledge to make a public statement of aspiration that as an organisation it wants to tackle mental health stigma and discrimination, Dylan’s Bar, Poole House, 1pm – 2pm.
  • Mark Storey, a peer specialist for Dorset mental health forum and a professional musician will tell his own mental health story via music; Dylan’s Bar, Poole House, 2pm – 3pm. In 2001 Mark suffered a life changing accident, in 2013 Mark found music again having lost his music career in 2001, and started writing about his lived experience of mental health. Having now created Mental Health Music, Mark’s songs are going round the world and are reaching people in a new way. You can hear him on iTunes or Amazon and YouTube or follow him on twitter @markstorey65.

TV Licensing Advice at Arrival’s Weekend: 13 & 14 September

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tv-licensingTV Licensing advisors will be on hand to give out information from their stand at BU on Saturday 13 and Sunday 14 September to parents and students about TV Licensing requirements in student accommodation.

The TV Licensing team will be available to answer questions about the law, new technology, or ways to spread the cost of a TV Licence. Students, their parents, or carers will also be able to buy a TV Licence if one is needed.

Recent research from TV Licensing shows tablet ownership amongst students has more than doubled in the past year with over 1 in 3, students now owning a tablet.

Richard Chapman, spokesperson for TV Licensing, said students would need a licence if they are planning to watch or record programmes at the same time as they are broadcast, regardless of the device they are taking to university.

“The short time between achieving your A-Level results and moving to university can be hectic and buying a TV Licence may fall by the wayside. We’re encouraging students and their parents to chat to the TV Licensing team at Bournemouth University to understand the rules around watching live TV in your new halls accommodation.”

If students find they need to be covered by a licence, the team will be equipped to take credit and debit card payments on the day, arrange a monthly or quarterly direct debit plan, or set up a payment card which spreads the cost of a licence with smaller regular cash payments. A TV Licence will cost £145.50 for the year, which covers a student to watch live TV on any device, including a phone, tablet or games console.

Students who buy a TV Licence at the start of the academic year and return to a licensed property over summer may be eligible for a refund of almost £37, providing there are three full months remaining on the licence.

TV Licensing enquiry officers will also be visiting universities across the UK from October to ensure new students living in halls of residence are correctly licensed for the academic year ahead.

For further information, or to buy a licence online, visit: www.tvlicensing.co.uk/studentinfo, or call TV Licensing on 0300 790 6113.

TV Licensing advisors will be at BU throughout both days on Saturday 13 and Sunday 14 September in the Common Room in Cranborne House and the Main Reception at Talbot Campus.

BU media success over Clearing 2014

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Staff and students from Bournemouth University gave advice and information in a variety of media appearances around Clearing.

BU was featured by several national newspapers, including mentions in:

  • The Guardian newspaper and online five times.
  • The Telegraph newspaper and online five times.
  • The i newspaper four times.
  • The Independent

Interviews with BU’s Head of Admissions Karen Pichlmann – who gave top tips and advice for anyone going through Clearing – were also featured on several regional radio stations.

David Stock, SUBU Advice manager, was interviewed in The Telegraph’s article ‘Strike a healthy bank balance’. He advised parents on how to help their children with their finances..

He said: “It’s best to set the foundations from a young age by getting them used to bank cards and budgets. Once they’re at university, they won’t have anyone nagging them to stick to their weekly budget, so instilling a good attitude beforehand is vital.”

Nicola Murray-Fagan, Head of UK Student Recruitment & Outreach, was quoted throughout The i’s article about how students should prepare for results day.

She advised: “Take the time to research your options and speak to your school or college careers adviser for advice on courses that will still keep you on the same career path.”

askBU’s Helen Elsey and UK Recuitment Manager Matthew Usher gave advice in The Guardian and The Telegraph on what students should say while making Clearing phone calls, while BU students and alumni shared their experiences of the Clearing and Adjustment process.

BU student Alex Curwen-Reed was quoted in The i, giving her tips on the Clearing process.

She spoke about how helpful the askBU team was during her Clearing process and said: “Don’t feel embarrassed about having to come through Clearing. I’m getting better grades than some of the people who got accepted in the first place, so don’t doubt yourself!”

Other articles featuring BU focused on applying for postgraduate courses, with advice from Framework Leader for Postgraduate Accounting, Finance and Economics Dermot McCarthy, and making the most of placement opportunities.

Placement Development Adviser Felicity Robinson said in The Guardian’s article: “I’d advise students to do their own objective setting, so they’re not saying ‘help, give me something to do,’ but being more collaborative in the process.”

By Harriet Gilbraith

Harriet is a student at Budmouth College in Weymouth, who is working at Bournemouth University in the Press and PR Department. She joined BU on a Sir Samuel Mico Scholarship, which provides 10 students from the college with work experience for four weeks over the summer.

 

 

International Ebola Outbreak

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WHOAs you have probably seen in the press, the World Health Organisation (WHO) have declared that the Ebola outbreak is an “international emergency” with confirmed cases and deaths in Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia and Nigeria. Official government advice from the Advisory Committee on Dangerous Pathogens (ACDP) at Public Health England (PHE) characterises the outbreak as low risk but potentially high consequence.

Medical advice remains that the risk to the UK is very low. The UK has an established, well-tested system to deal with any known or suspected imported case of this disease. As part of that, precautionary planning measures are being kept up to date and the UK’s Public Health authorities are working closely with clinicians, border staff and other agencies to ensure they are prepared to deal with any eventuality.

About Ebola

Ebola virus disease is a severe, often fatal illness, with a case fatality rate of up to 90%. It is one of the world’s most virulent diseases. Ebola outbreaks occur primarily in remote villages in Central and West Africa, near tropical rainforests. Ebola virus disease is rare.

The infection is transmitted by direct contact with the blood, body fluids and tissues of infected animals or people.

The risk of a student or member of staff becoming infected with Ebola virus during a visit to the affected areas and developing the disease after returning is extremely low, even if the visit included travel to the local areas from which primary cases have been reported.

Guidance from the World Health Organisation

  • Persons who come into direct contact with body fluids of an infected person or animal are at risk
  • Ebola symptoms include fever, weakness, muscle pain, headache and sore throat. This is followed by vomiting, diarrhoea, rash, and in some cases, bleeding.

Travel advice will be in accordance with that of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

The University continues to monitor the information from the World Health Organisation and Public Health England. Any suspected or confirmed case of Ebola will be managed by the University’s Communicable Diseases Policy.

 

World events

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bu-logoWhilst the world’s attention is focussing on unrest across the globe caused by political events and the spread of disease, BU is obviously concerned for how this is affecting students studying here who come from these regions.

If you would like to speak to someone about any worries or concerns you may have, you can contact your course leader, askBU, the University Chaplaincy and/or Counselling Service or the SUBU Advice team. Contact details for all university services are available on the Student portal under Help & Advice and Health & Wellbeing, or myBU for your tutors.

Listen up students – your local police need you!

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Loads of dwelling burglaries have been carried out on student houses and flats in the town.

The majority of these crimes are taking place because communal areas and front doors are left unlocked.

Police in Bournemouth are calling on you, the students, to carry out some simple crime prevention steps to make life harder for burglars operating in the area.

Detective Constable Adam Woolman said: “Every year burglars target student properties in Bournemouth because many are left insecure.

“Items stolen in the recent spate have included laptops, iPads, mobile phones and even coursework on memory sticks and hard drives”

“All we are asking is for students to make sure their property is secure when the last person leaves. Don’t make life easy for these crooks – make a note of your serial numbers and passwords”

“Has your laptop/tablet got a tracking app on it to help locate it if stolen?”

To lower the chances of becoming a victim of burglary, remember the following home security advice:

  • If you live in a block of flats that has a communal entrance, lock it when you leave and after you enter the block
  • Always lock the front door and any windows
  • Never let anyone you don’t know through a communal door
  • Do not grant entry to people via an entry phone system, if you do not know them
  • Remove keys from windows and doors and keep them near but out of vie in case of fire
  • Do not leave valuables in view of ground-floor windows or external doors

Support for BU Students

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bu-logoWhilst the world’s attention is focussing on a number of political events across the globe, BU is obviously concerned for how this is affecting students studying here who come from these regions.

If you would like to speak to someone about any worries or concerns you may have, you can contact your course leader, askBU, the University Chaplaincy and/or Counselling Service or the SUBU Advice team. Contact details for all university services are available on the Student portal or myBU for your tutors.

Careers & Employability support available to you

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Now that you are in your final term of university, no doubt you will be thinking about what’s next after your degree. We wanted to let you know that the BU Careers & Employability Service is here to support you in taking the next steps. We are a friendly team who can offer you advice on looking for a job, further study and all things career and jobs related such as completing application forms and interview guidance.

We appreciate that this is a busy period for you with dissertations, projects and exams, so with this in mind, our online careers system *MyCareerHub is a one stop shop available 24/7, featuring help and support for preparing you for life beyond university.

The help and support offered includes:-

• Calendar of Careers Action for Final Year Students
• Searchable database of Graduate Job Vacancies
• Ability to book careers advice, interview prep & CV review appointments with qualified careers advisors
• Access to forthcoming careers & recruitment events on and off campus
• Access to careers resources on a range of careers and job hunting related topics
• ‘Ask us a Question‘ Service
• Find out about further help and support offered here

Many students have told us that they find the job application and job hunting process daunting, so we have created resources specifically devoted to this including:-

• Help with writing CVs, Covering Letters, Application Forms
• Help with preparing for Interviews & Assessment Centres
• Opportunity to practice Psychometric Tests

• Opportunity to Practice Online Video Interviews
• Information Guide to finding Graduate Vacancies
• Job Hunting related to your Degree

Don’t forget!

• You can find the Careers & Employability Service in the Edge Student Development Centre (outside the library) Find out more here
• You can pick up a FREE Prospects Employer Directory from the Edge (outside the library)
• You can find us on Social Media – Twitter & Employability Blog
• You can use the services of the Careers and Employability Service including myCareerHub for up to 3 years from graduation regardless of whether you are staying in Bournemouth or returning to your home town.

We hope that this has given you a good idea of the help and support available to you, and that you will find it useful, not only during your final term but beyond graduation as well.

BU Careers & Employability Service

*You will need to login with your BU username and password

BA Business Studies launches alumni panel of successful graduates

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BU’s Business School has launched an alumni panel of highly successful BA (Hons) Business Studies graduates.

The aim of the panel is to develop and strengthen the Business Studies course by sharing industry experience and trends with students and academic staff.

The panel consists of eleven alumni who graduated between 1989 and 2013.

They recently joined current second year students at their Pre Placement Seminar to share their experience of the world of work, and give advice to students about how to make the most out of their placements.

After the seminar, the panel met with academic staff to talk about industry trends and the skills graduates need to be successful in the workplace.

One of the Alumni panel, Holly Bathurst from Siemens, said: “I thought it was a great start to something extremely positive for the Business School and it will be interesting to see how it shapes both the students learning and their engagement with the working world!”

Gbola Gbadamosi, the Framework leader for the Business Studies course, added: “This panel and the event is a refreshingly alternative that represents a win for all stakeholders.

“For students, it provides a rare opportunity to engage with both recent and long standing alumni. For staff, to rekindle their industry engagement, reconnect with industry trends and catch up with the progress of their former students.

“For the alumni, they were able to reconnect with their peers, older and younger alumni and give back to their university.”

Comedian Phill Jupitus shares tips & advice with BU media students

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Comedian Phill Jupitus was at Bournemouth University to share his experiences of the media industry and give advice to students.

Phill – a comedian, presenter, actor and poet – is well known for his work on TV panel shows like Never Mind the Buzzcocks and QI and as a breakfast DJ on BBC 6 Music.  where he worked with Jo Tyler, who is now a Lecturer in Radio Production at BU.

Phill spoke during an interactive event, where students from across BU’s Media School asked questions via email and social media, as well as in person – covering everything from his career ambitions and achievements to how technology is changing the industry.

Phill said: “The fact that you can get yourself out there and have control over what you put out there is positive.

“Anyone can get stuff out there now, people can make shows and build their careers off posting You Tube clips.

“I think podcasting is amazing. It’s a fantastic way – especially if you want to go into radio – of playing around with ideas and learning how to put things together.

He added, however, that: “the negative is that it’s a time of immense confusion…It’s an ever-changing world and I don’t envy you for having to deal with that.”

His advice for students wanting to go into the industry included remaining passionate about their area of interest, making good connections with commissioners and developing a thick skin.

“There’s an awful lot of luck involved but you do need to have a thick skin and immense determination,” he said.

“I think a lot of it is about developing relationships with the commissioners – just watch TV and have a look at what they want in terms of content.”

He added: “Keep on top of the industry – if you want to be in it, you have got to know it. You have to be a bit of a nerd about whatever it is you’re going into.

“The people that you work for can see how much you genuinely care about an idea.”

Jo Tyler, a Lecturer in Radio Production at BU, has worked with Phill on a number of projects, and used to produce his breakfast show on BBC 6 Music.

She said: “Having worked with Phill over some parts of his broad career, it is a pleasure to have him in person to speak directly to students about cross platform working and the future of a career in media.

“We used a more interactive Q & A format to allow students to lead the event. Phill has in many ways become a media mentor for BU, providing professional advice linked to producing, childrens’ TV, music, radio and poetry.”

BIRST – the online radio station run by BU’s MA Radio Production students – will feature a programme about the Q & A with an exclusive interview with Phill and recordings of his performance as a special guest at the Freeway Poets event at The Winchester Pub.

To find out more, visit the BIRST website.