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St Mary's University College
TSR Wiki > University > Choosing a University > University Guides > St Mary's University College
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| Location: | , UK | |
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| Website: | www.smuc.ac.uk | |
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Contents |
Facilities
A beautiful and community minded place to study. St Mary's is a little bit smaller than other universities or colleges so you get to know people really quickly. There is always loads going on around campus and the Students Union organises social activities throughout the week, which is a great way to meet new people and experience student life. The size of lectures and seminars means that you get to know the people on your course and your tutors really well. The tutors at St Mary's all have an open door policy which means you can go up to their office and see them whenever is best for you and chat to them about your coursework etc which is really helpful especially when you are finding your feet in the first year.
Twickenham and London
The location of St Mary's is one of the best things about it. The campus at Strawberry Hill is in the leafy borough of Richmond Upon Thames, close to The River Thames, Richmond Town Centre, Kingston, Twickenham and Teddington. As well as that, however, Central London is only half an hour away on the train which gives you the best of both worlds and London living. There is loads to do if you are out and about with restaurants, bars, cinemas, shops etc right on your doorstep. You can head up to London for sight seeing, and visiting museums, galleries and theatres.
Libraries
The LRC (Learning Resources Centre) is in the middle of campus and is open Monday to Saturday during term time. The LRC holds approximately 115,000 items and over 13,500 journals in electronic and printed form. Other resources for your studies include e-books, exam papers, DVDs, CDs, newspapers and other subject resources. The library is always being updated with new materials and resources so that the study materials are the most relevant for your course. You are also able to use individual study areas and group study rooms in the library if you are preparing presentations with other people from your course or want to study on your own in the library.
IT and computing
PC facilities are available either in the main building or the i-learn cafe on a 24/7 basis which is really handy if you prefer to work on essays or coursework in the evening or away from your hall of residence. There is also an 'i-learn cafe' adjoining the LRC. It is a relaxed, social environment somewhere between an IT lab and a coffee bar. It is a place where you can use PCs, chat or work in groups with few restrictions. It has a coffee vending machine, as well as comfortable seating for students working together in groups.
Sports
The University College is arguably London's top-performing sports institution, it provides a comprehensive sports development programme that focuses on recreational opportunities, performance sport, coaching and events.
Sport St Mary's organises a wide range of excellent facilities and programmes for students, staff, sporting partners and the wider community. There are 26 student sports clubs and several compete at the BUCS Premier League level including hockey, rugby union, rugby league and cricket. St Mary’s students have consistently gained selection for student home nations sides and the British Universities team, with a number competing at the World University Games. Facilities As a St Mary's student, you have access to a wide range of sports facilities. Regardless of whether you are studying a sports-related course or not, all students are encouraged to lead healthy lifestyles and participate in sports. Special discount student membership rates are available for the strength and conditioning suite and running track.
Welfare
St Mary's is a caring University College community that has a complete network of services in place to ensure you are fully supported throughout your period of study. You are given assistance to help sort out any minor hassles - and the occasional major headaches that may crop up along the way. The Accommodation Office at St Mary’s deals mainly with arranging student accommodation in halls of residence, but we can also offer advice to help students find off-campus accommodation.
The Student Counselling Service is a confidential service for anyone experiencing emotional difficulties or distress. It is available for all students and staff attending St Mary’s University College.
Pat Culshaw is St Mary's Dyslexia and Disability Co-ordinator (DDC). She works closely with the other members of the Student Services team, providing support across many areas. The Dyslexia and Disability Service, available from Monday to Friday, is private and confidential and any information disclosed will only be passed on to other staff with your written permission
Healthcare
The Health Centre is a branch surgery of The York Medical Practice in Twickenham and offers a nurse-led health service with general practitioners (GPs) in attendance. The service is available at St Mary's each weekday morning during term time, from 8am to 1pm. All students, either resident on campus or living within the locality of the practice, are welcome to register as patients.
All the usual services that you would expect to receive from your GP practice are available at St Mary's. In addition, the practice nurse offers personal advice on all aspects of student health information, including:
•Treating minor ailments •Repeat prescriptions •Various clinics •Advice and help on any health matter The University College practice nurse is also trained in asthma management and travel health. All general nursing matters including sexual health screening, family planning, dressings, removal of sutures, blood tests and health promotion advice is available.
Transport
Travel direct to Strawberry Hill station from Waterloo station using the Kingston loopline operated by South West Trains. The journey takes about 35 minutes and there are usually four trains an hour. These are listed with the final destination of either Strawberry Hill or Teddington on the Waterloo departures board. You can use an Oyster card for this journey
Careers service
The Careers service is based on campus at St Mary's. It provides a wide range of careers resources and services, including careers advice for the St Mary's community and quality recruitment solutions for employers. It is part of The Careers Group, the largest careers service in the country.
Religious Facilities
The Chaplaincy is at the heart of St Mary’s, providing a focus for the community life of the University College and offering pastoral care and support for all students. St Mary's has a Roman Catholic ethos by tradition and Mass is celebrated on the campus each day. The Chaplaincy has an inclusive mission and welcomes all students from many faith traditions and none.
The Chaplaincy team is committed to providing friendship and hospitality to all. The aim is for greater involvement of all students in making a lasting contribution to the growth and development of community life at St Mary’s and beyond.
Social
Bars, pubs and clubs
Entertainment is organised by the SU President on a weekly basis in the Students’ Union bar and hall. This includes a 'pub to club' night with bus travel to Kingston, karaoke, a quiz night, and a disco each Wednesday for all the clubs and societies that is normally a themed night for those who enjoy fancy dress.
Each year there is various organised activities. Freshers’ week helps create a welcoming environment for all new students, and RAG (Raise and Give) week is when students raise money for a number of charities. We also organise an annual ski trip each year that students really enjoy.
There is also an annual Christmas ball, a sports dinner, and a summer ball and Thames boat trip to celebrate the end of the academic year. These are some of the biggest events when students come together, and in doing so reinforce the strong sense of community that we are proud of at St Mary’s.
Events
Bowling nights Christmas Ball Election day Festivals (SMarts and SIMMStock) Freshers Week Karaoke Pub to club
Quiz nights RAG Week Ski trip Summer Ball and funfair Sports dinner Thames boat trip Themed discos
Clubs and societies
You are welcomed as a member of St Mary's thriving Students’ Union as soon as you arrive at St Mary’s. The Union offers you a variety of clubs, societies and social events, so there are lots of opportunities to get involved.
There are over thirty clubs and societies for you to get involved in, but if you can't find something you're interested then you can always start your own club or society! Clubs:
Athletics Basketball Cricket Football Gaelic football Gymnastics and Trampolining Hockey Hurling Mixed Martial Arts Netball Rugby League Rugby Union Volleyball Windsurfing
Societies:
Afro-Caribbean Cheerleading Christian Union Community Arts Dance Drama Phoenix Film History Interfaith Society Islamic Society LGBT Mature Students Newspaper RAG Ski University Choir
Accommodation
Accommodation policy
St Mary's can arrange student accommodation in halls of residence on campus and in St Mary's Hall (located in central Twickenham, about a fifteen minute walk from campus). They try to offer students a room in halls for their first year. Allocations are made on a first come, first served basis.
Students moving into halls in September 2011 will receive accommodation information, including details of the hall they have been allocated, by late June/early July.
New students intending to live in a shared house or unable to get a room in halls can join the Facebook group we have set up to enable students to find housemates.
Facilities
The cost of the accommodation includes a refectory meal package (available during term time only) which includes breakfast Monday to Friday, brunch on Saturday and Sunday and a meal every evening. All meals are taken in the campus refectory, which has an extensive menu to suit a variety of needs.
Facilities and Support Resident students also have use of a kitchen as a self-catering facility for periods when the refectory is closed. The kitchen includes microwaves, toasters, kettles, cookers, fridges, freezers and storage space for groceries and cooking utensils.
As well as a kitchen, the hall offers a dining room area, a common room and a garden. Free high speed broadband internet is available throughout the building. Bedrooms are cleaned weekly and all communal areas are cleaned daily.
A resident staff warden lives next door to help students settle in and to ensure that you make the most of campus life.
Residences
•All accommodation is strictly non-smoking. •All halls have meals in the refectory included in their accommodation fees except St Mary's Hall, which is self catering. •Free internet is available in Cashin, Clive, Cronin and De Marillac halls as a bonus – students are not charged extra, and internet availability is not reflected in the accommodation fees for these halls. •In all other halls except St Mary's Hall (see below) internet is available for a small fee through Keycom, who will have a stand at your Freshers' Fair, while free internet access is available in the Learning Resources Centre (LRC) / i-learn café 24hrs a day. •In St Mary's Hall internet is only available if you have a USB dongle from a mobile phone company. •The Accommodation Office has set up a number of Facebook groups to help new students meet fellow residents moving into the same hall in September 2010 – see the Hall Facebook Groups page for more information.
Private sector
Support and encouragement is offered equally, whether you know exactly what you want to do when you graduate or have no ideas and want our help to generate some.
St Mary's can help you to find and apply for work experience, part-time work, vacation work or internships, graduate training schemes, alternative gap year options, and funding for further study. They can also guide you in preparing excellent CVs and applications as well as help you to practice for success in interviews and at assessment centres.
You can make use of the comprehensive services by talking to information staff who will help you use the extensive careers library (including reference, take-away and electronic materials) Alternatively, speak to a careers adviser in a quick query session (ideal for CV and application feedback, or as an initial career planning discussion), a longer more in-depth careers discussion or a mock interview.
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Student union
When you come to St Mary’s you are welcomed into a unique community, and students have the support of the St Mary’s Students’ Union. The University College is renowned for its sense of community and the Students’ Union plays a big part in that.
The Students’ Union (SU) has a number of roles. It provides a formal representative structure to allow students to air their views about their university college experience and to input those views direct to the St Mary's authorities through its board and committee structure.
The SU also adds value to your student experience by providing extra-curricular learning, cultural and social activities through its sports clubs, cultural societies and events and activities.
It creates a hub for the St Mary's student community where you can socialise in the SU bar and hall on campus in a contained and safe way – a place where friendships are made and important networks are formed, allowing students to support each other through their university college years and beyond.
You are represented by the Students’ Union President and the Athletics Union President, who are elected by the students to work for them as full time sabbatical officers, ensuring the Union is responding to students' needs and demands, and providing the kind of SU service you deserve.
Having been students themselves, this helps them to share their experiences, to be responsible for St Mary’s students and help create a great experience for all.
Prices
Environment
Architecture
Strawberry Hill was originally a small cottage located in two or three acres of land by the River Thames.
Horace Walpole, a son of the politician Robert Walpole, rented the cottage in 1717 and subsequently purchased it.
He began to enlarge the house and added to the land, which now amounts approximately 35 acres.
Walpole did not follow the eighteenth-century fashion of classical building, but sought his inspiration in medieval styles. Some of his contemporaries imitated his design and so this house and the idea it embodied take their place in the history of architecture as Strawberry Hill Gothic.
The house subsequently became known as Strawberry Hill House, and is known colloquially as Walpole House.
The new £8.25 million sports facility project will create a single centre by linking the new facility to the existing games hall and original 1960s sports block, which will be refurbished at the same time.
In addition to giving a huge boost to sport at the University College it will also facilitate the work of academic programmes in sport, health and physical education, as well as enabling St Mary’s to do even more for the external community though a number of partnerships.
Local area
A leafy London suburb, Teddington is situated between Twickenham and Kingston. A peaceful town, it is mostly residential with a high street running through the middle harbouring an array of bars, a mixture of smaller local shops and more established stores, and some of the best restaurants in the area.
Kingston is a bustling market town and major shopping district situated on the River Thames. Popular retail stores line the high street and there is a large shopping mall, The Bentall Centre. Further towards the river, clusters of smaller, boutique shops and coffee bars surround the historic marketplace and town hall. At the other end of the high street, the Rotunda, a local landmark, includes a bowling alley, fitness centre, a 14-screen multiplex cinema, restaurants and bars. The riverside is a popular attraction, particularly in the summer. A variety of lively bars, restaurants and traditional pubs line the riverfront and, along with the nightclubs in the town centre, create the vibrant nightlife Kingston is known for.
A leafy, suburban neighbourhood, Twickenham is a mixture of period houses, formal gardens and parks surrounding King Street, the town’s centre. Twickenham offers many traditional pubs and restaurants, many of which have an ethnic flavour. Church Street runs adjacent to the river and is comprised of cafés, boutiques, small bookshops and a church.
Flood Lane and Church Lane lead down to the river where you can enjoy a drink in one of the riverside pubs or cross the bridge on to Eel Pie Island. Many musicians began their careers or played sets at the Eel Pie Island Hotel and recorded material at Pete Townsend’s Eel Pie Studios. Musicians who have played at Eel Pie Island include Pink Floyd, the Rolling Stones, Black Sabbath, Eric Clapton and The Who, making the area known as the home of jazz and blues.
Marble Hill Park in East Twickenham is a charming local park and the setting of Marble Hill House, a Venetian villa built for a mistress of George II and now a local landmark. Just a short stroll along a peaceful riverside road into secluded woodland gardens is Orleans House Gallery, a stunning 18th century house and gardens which now serves as an art gallery, hosting regular exhibitions and workshops.
The rugby capital of the world, Twickenham Stadium is the home of the Rugby Union. Seating 82,000, it is the fifth largest stadium in Europe and hosts the Six Nations matches and the Rugby World Cup, as well as the annual varsity match between rival universities Oxford and Cambridge. The prestigious matches attract fans from around the globe who celebrate in Twickenham’s pubs and bars, creating an unrivalled atmosphere.
The stadium has a state of the art fitness centre attached, as well as a world renowned rugby museum. The stadium is also regularly used as a venue for concerts such as Bon Jovi, U2, Iron Maiden and R.E.M.
Teaching quality
Quality Recent results show that up to 52% of undergraduate students achieve a 2:1 or First Class Honours degree.
The experienced and dedicated lecturers, many of whom are respected international scholars, are committed to their subject and to teaching. With good staff/student ratios they get to know you very well.
Applying to St Mary's University College
All applications for admission to the BA (ITT), BA and BSc courses are made through the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS). Applications are made electronically and will be arranged with you if you are attending a school or college.
If you are not in education you can apply online as an independent applicant. UCAS will be ready to receive applications at the beginning of September. The closing date is 15 January.
St Mary's undertakes to treat all applications received by UCAS on or before this date on an equal basis. Applications after this date will be accepted if there are places on a programme.
When completing your application you should include St Mary's UCAS Code which is SMARY S64. You should also indicate the programme you are interested in.
Other St Mary's University College Articles
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