The "Ask a Durham Student" Thread :)

Ah thanks so much for the info! That's good to know. I'm doing post A-level French and Spanish. I have already had a think about modules. Can I ask if you did any preparatory reading before you began in first year and do you think it may be useful to strengthen any specific skills before starting? Also another question (sorry haha), do you have any MLAC-specific tips on writing dissertations?

Oof sorry for the mega late reply

I really don't mind! No one really filters people out based on whether someone is international or not - I have a good number of amazing friends who are international students and I don't look at them any different than everyone else. Hell, my best friend is international from Serbia and he's mega cool (also, I'm an immigrant from a decade ago and no one treats me differently ngl)

This depends, obviously, on who we're talking about, but I don't think I've seen anyone being negative/rude towards int students. Some people could be racist but, as I said, I have not heard of anything. I'd be more worried if you were a woman (like me) than an international student in Durham tbh

Ok I'll answer these one at a time so I don't miss anything aha. Btw I'm also doing French and Spanish (currently on my Year Abroad so feel free to ask me anything)
1. I didn't do any prep reading, you can get by perfectly without doing so, it would put you at an advantage though for coursework later on in the term. But barely anyone did it, mainly because you'll have so much time to throughout the term anyway. Plus lecturers don't expect you to do it, seminars cover books you study relatively slowly at first.
2. For specific skills, I would probably just say thinking analytically whenever you're reading/watching/listening - I think A-level does really well at preparing you to say what examiners want, but for university lecturers you need to say WHY it's worth pointing out so it's going a bit beyond just simple critical terms. Also essay structuring, because the bulk of the year is based around essays. But honestly, they go through this all in the first term and you'll be fairly well-covered after A-levels anyway.
3. Honestly I can't think of anything that's relevant only to MLAC for essays, apart from perhaps just knowing the context surrounding each work you study. That kind of knowledge can always be really useful for analysing, as well as perhaps showing how the arguments you discuss have changed (if that makes sense)

I hope this all helps and let me know if you have more questions!

I really want to do the charity fashion show in first year. How likely is it that a first year gets picked to be a model, and what’s the general aesthetic they’re looking for?

I was just wondering when/how does room allocation work?

Hi - I'm currently in the process of selecting modules for Modern Languages and Cultures.

I thought I would browse the reading lists, just to get more of an idea about the content. Then I see that there are like 60 sources (books, journals, chapters) for one module. Surely we won't be required to read all of these? Are some of them just research resources/recommendations for written work? Is there something I'm missing here?


Thanks.

Having some trouble with picking my last module for Modern Languages and Cultures. I'm choosing between two and I'm not entirely sure which will be best suited to my interests. There are aspects of each that I like but also some parts that I'm unsure of too.

Should I just email the department for some advice?

People feel obligated to house-search in October/November, but there's really no need. I signed my house in February last year, and it was fine. It's best to wait until you've really got to know your potential housemates, as there's nothing worse than signing up for a house with people you'll come to hate at the end of the year.
Rent differs depending on the area. Central areas (Viaduct, Church Street, Whinney Hill, Claypath) are the most expensive, with rent averaging at £130pppw. Suburban areas (Gilesgate, Neville's Cross) are cheaper, with rent ranging from £60-100pppw. In either case, find a house with bills included. My Gilesgate house cost £95pppw for four people, bills included. Not a bad find for Gilesgate, but we could've easily found cheaper houses. Even if you hate walking, you can get a £1 Arriva student day card and travel by bus. If, God forbid, another lockdown happened, it wouldn't really matter where you'd live because the library would be closed/limited in how many students it could allow in.

I'm a Fresher and already the houses for Year 2 are disappearing so fast. We've found a house in Gilesgate and really want it, but now my parents have googled "Gilesgate" and found it to be "a sh*thole full of druggies and people running around with machetes"... this is not helping!!
Surely it can't be that bad??? The house is near the Queens Head pub, and 15 mins walk to the Bailey, so not that far out? Similar distance to College.
PLEASE HELP as I want to sign the lease, but my parents need to guarantee the deal!!!