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Reading up about topic before Uni - help!

I'm currently in year 12, and am wanting to apply to University to study European Studies and Spanish & Italian. To increase my chances to of getting in and hopefully making studying slightly easier once there, I want to start reading up about the topic now, but I'm at a bit of a loss as to where to start. As European Studies isn't something I've studied before, I don't really know what sort of books I should be reading or what I should be researching.
Could anyone offer me any guidance? :smile:
Thank you!
Reply 1
Best thing you can do is have a look at some of the modules offered by the unis you're applying to, and read around some of the most common topics, because European Studies really can comprise of anything!
I emailed the admissions tutor and asked her could she recommend any titles. She recommended a couple but advised me that it wasn't really necessary to start reading up now and that I should just enjoy the summer and worry about the reading when I actually start university. In hindsight, that was sound advice.
As above, you'll be doing so much reading whilst you are at uni that you may aswell enjoy your time off before you get there. Plus, you wont know until you are actually there what is or isnt relevant anyway, so could end up reading loads of stuff thats no good.

Really, its good to be enthusiastic, and its great that you are but I very much doubt it'll give you much of or any advantage long term, enjoy your summer before the work kicks in! :smile:
louisedotcom
As above, you'll be doing so much reading whilst you are at uni that you may aswell enjoy your time off before you get there. Plus, you wont know until you are actually there what is or isnt relevant anyway, so could end up reading loads of stuff thats no good.

Really, its good to be enthusiastic, and its great that you are but I very much doubt it'll give you much of or any advantage long term, enjoy your summer before the work kicks in! :smile:


I agree, this will be the first time in a long time where you are not in some sort of education or another. Have some fun. Do stuff.
Reply 5
Yeah, there wasn't really anything I could've done before uni started to be honest, just keep reading the odd thing in your language to keep it up to scratch, but as for the rest, I doubt anyone else will have read anything really so I wouldn't worry!
Reply 6
Thank you all so much for your advice! I definitely appreciate - would much rather spend my summer doing stuff rather than reading! Thanks! :biggrin:

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