lilGem (Offline)

be prepared to be getting up relatively early every day of freshers as biology dont believe in freshers week tbh. we had monday and tuesday to relax-ish with intro talks and stuff and then our course actually started on the wednesday. so you dont really get the full freshers week off so be prepared to not get too drunk or turn up to everything half dead :P

you'll love it im sure (:

the coursework for each module in first year is worth 50% overall and the exam is 50%. lab reports are the coursework in general. we never do lab reports in the lab. they tend to be worth anything between 15-25% of the module grade. so for biodiversity we did 2 25% reports whereas genetics had 2 15% and 1 20% i think. you get set one every 10 days or so in the first semester, some are formative (practice) and some summative (coursework assessed pieces). its recommended you complete both types. you're expected to produce graphs and tables, conduct statistical tests (but you'll be taught these) and write a detailed introduction and discussion relating to the wider implications of the study/investigation/experiment you completed using books and journals - lots of referencing!
one exception was in the human physiology module which had a single lab report completed in the lab. however this module has now been merged with chemistry so may be different for your year.

UEA is lovely. seems huge at first and the map is a bit pants cos of the walkways which have different levels but you'll soon work it out. you get a proper tour during freshers. be aware that floors 02 and 01 are different to floors 2 and 1 (so stupid). 0 is ground floor, 01 is -1, 02 is -2, 1 is first floor, 2 is 2nd floor etc. also that room numbers e.g. 0.100 is different to 0.1000. its one of the stupidest systems ive ever seen for numbering as we tend to ignore 0's in numbers. never ignore the 0's!!

be prepared to carry your stuff up a crazy amount of stairs as theres no lifts. im in britten house (ensuite on campus) and on the 4th floor. no lift and so moving in was interesting to say the least. but there are helpers, thank god, that help carry your stuff in, 2 girls helped me move in and i couldnt have done it without them. im actually supposed to be helping this year.

be prepared to be getting up relatively early every day of freshers as biology dont believe in freshers week tbh.

yeah english and psychology for example are only in 2 or 3 days a week and do f*** all tbh. in genetics it was focussed on GFP and E. coli and transformations as well as Drosophila (fly). in biodiversity it was just looking at things under the microscopes for the most part. cell biology and biochemistry practicals are mostly looking at enzyme kinetics and rates of reactions by reading absorbance. evolution practicals were brine shrimp/sea monkeys and a computer lab.

some people chose the cell biology, microbiology or molecular biology and genetics, ecology, and plant science degree courses from the start (you could choose them on UCAS though i think this selection has been reduced with regard to degree titles as such) but the first year is common to all of them (excluding ecology). most people don't bother to specialise because in 2nd year you can take the specialised modules regardless and it gives you more flexibility.

well the normal biological sciences course had 100 people on this year but the only module which only has these students in is Biodiversity. other degree courses do some of the same modules e.g. biomedicine do the Genetics lectures too and so do biochemists so theres 250 people in the lecture. you get to meet a lot of people and work with people from other courses but i wouldnt say i know more than about 20 people on my course particularly well.

biosoc havent done many socials this year ): but they hope to do more next year. the labcoat social is awesome and i recommend you go! it was in march i think this year and everyone goes out in their labcoats and gets very drunk, its pretty cool.

you can bring a lab coat with you but most people buy them from the uni for £10 during freshers introduction talk things so you can try different sizes first. they originally said they'd be £20 but only invoiced us for £10 so i cant complain :P

i had lectures or labs every day. friday i was in from 9-12 and then 2-5 and that was my busiest day. i had 18 hours of lectures/labs/etc a week in both semesters. in first semester i had a 3 hour genetics lab, and a 2 hour and a 1 hour biodiversity lab.

you choose your second yr modules just before easter and they are confirmed in june.

just be prepared to work hard and the labs are so much better than at school. i hated lab work before i came here and i do sort of like it now which is a massive improvement for me. choose your lab partner well! as for the genetics lab you have the same one for the entire semester.

feel free to ask any other questions (:

yeah sure go ahead.

hey you're really lovely! your revision sources really helped me. I was wondering if you'd happen to have anymore!

aw she sounds lovely. This is at Exeter, right?

Aw thats so nice, who exactly is she?

ah that's good! good luck :-)

Better safe than sorry! How come not Sheffield?