Hi! I’m Darshan, and have just finished my first year studying Business Management with Accounting BA (Hons) at Westminster Business School. I joined the School in 2015 after taking a foundation year at Kaplan, a partner of the University of Westminster. My foundation year was great – I studied Business, Law, and Social Sciences and passed with distinction; and because I was doing so well, Kaplan chose me to be a Student Ambassador, which I really enjoyed. I’ve just finished my first year at Westminster and I can honestly say I found it easy. There were no exams (just coursework and presentations) and as long as you attend lectures and seminars and make sure you do the work set then you shouldn’t have a problem!

During my first year on the Business Management with Accounting BA (Hons) I studied everything to do with general business & looked mainly at the macro environment. To give us a good overview, I was taught various aspects of business from law, to IT to basic accounting. I got 80 for the basic accounting module so I’m really looking forward to doing a lot more on the accounting front next year (I have chosen the Accounting pathway). This year has been amazing for me and has flown by – to help you have the same experience, I’ve thought of a few tips to get you started!

#Tip 1

Make friends and get involved! During your first year at university, regardless of the course that you take, you will complete a lot of group work. If you have friends they can help you – they will be your first point of contact when you don’t know something. Don’t be the one person in the corner. The social life here at Westminster is amazing so there’s no excuse not to get involved. The campus is in central London and the Students’ Union (SU) put on great events. There’s also a lot lined up for us when term starts which makes it a lot easier to settle in. For example the SU organised a great workshop based event that was more practical and got people together working on projects – this really helped me to make friends. Also, make sure to take advantage of the FANS who are there specifically to support new students. they told me pretty much everything about the university and it was a welcoming experience.

#Tip 2

Budgeting! For those moving here please consider your costs and then really think about managing your budget – we all know that London is expensive. There are various ways that you can help yourself here: I got a part time job as a Student Ambassador, which is great and I’m always looking for extra work and recently joined an agency at Wembley and Arsenal stadium. I would say also take advantage of the discounts available such as the Student Oyster card, and NUS extra card. There are plenty of freebies to exploit and lots of free places to visit. Also when you’re thinking about living, I would suggest that you go for zone four – somewhere that’s pretty easy to get to university but still in zone four. This will definitely make things cheaper! Also, here’s another student blog about budgeting in London, which you might find helpful.

#Tip 3

Become a Student Ambassador. I found the student ambassador job via Blackboard (you will get access when you start) and actually applied for the  job in December ,which was after the official deadline. Thankfully I was offered the chance to interview and was pretty quickly offered a position. The job itself is great – people have a lot of respect for you and when I was at Kaplan they would come up to me in the Union and ask me for help with their questions. You also develop a lot of skills such as communication skills and the skill of learning how to be flexible in the workplace – one day you could be showing people around on a tour, the next you could be giving a short presentation. It’s great for building your confidence and of course it pays as well! Back in July won Student Ambassador Award, something which I feel really privileged about. I wasn’t expecting this at all as most of the other nominees were 2nd, 3rd, 4th years and even PhD students. I almost even didn’t attend the ceremony as I wasn’t at university that day, but I did and sat right at the back. When I saw my name come up on the screen I was very surprised and I remember being very nervous when I went to collect my award from the Vice Chancellor!

#Tip 4

Take advantage of the great sports societies! If you are into sports, definitely take a look at the UWSU Dragons – they run all sorts of clubs from Badminton to Capoeira to Rugby. I play cricket and train with them during the summer. We take part in all sorts of tournaments which is fun.

#Tip 5

Don’t worry if you’re nervous! Everyone’s a bit nervous when they start their course and so everyone’s in the same boat. Sure you might get lost to begin with (I got lost so many times in my first week) but you’ll soon feel more confident about living in London. I also found it didn’t take too long to get used to the different culture.

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Jeni Stokes

Latest posts by Jeni Stokes (see all)

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