Hi,
I will be going into my final year of Edge Hill come September and for me I would definitely say it is a good university.
Some of my favourite things would be:
1. That it is a campus based university this means everything is in one place making it a lot easier to get around and limits how many times you could potentially get lost.
2. That it is based in Ormskirk which is a little town which means its very close from the university (a 15 minute walk or a 5 minute bus ride). There is also a train station which goes into Liverpool and Preston with them taking 35 minutes.
3. There are lots of different cafes, restaurants and shops which you wouldn't see much elsewhere (Henry & Co and Bloom and Brew have lots of products from small businesses, Ormskirk Market which opened at the end of last year which has food of different cuisines).
4. The careers team at university are great they were a wonderful help at getting me an internship for the summer but can also be super useful if you wanting to get a part time job such as get your CV reviewed.
5. Uniskills - this is great for if you are struggling at stuff such as referencing, exam prep and they even have workshops as well which are online or in person I've linked them
here.
1st year you can expect welcome week which consists of both academic and social activities this consists of you getting to know your future course mates through icebreakers and also find out what you will be doing for that year on your course. There is the welcome fair which allows you to see all the societies and sport teams on offer where you can sign up. Then you have the evenings which is the freshers events in which there is something on every night with a different theme. For my course in first year and I think for many you have to pass your modules (get 40%) to make it to second year so this is somewhat of a chilled year in comparison to others. However, I would suggest making good habits that will help in 2nd and 3rd year for example doing extra reading if you are struggling, meeting up with module leaders etc.
For both 1st and 2nd year I had 3 days in and 2 days off with these being different days for each semester. For my degree I just do lectures and laboratory work however for some you will do seminars and workshops. My weeks usually consist of 12 hours with this being split across the three days. There are also placement handbooks sent in October and March which are great opportunity to get industry experience either in January and/or over the summer holidays. Which means you can suit it to what is best for you. There is also the option to self source your own placement if you find one of interest instead.
For 2nd year I would say the main difference is that the work you do and the effort you put in matters as this counts to your final grade.
I have lived on campus for two years and then will be living off campus but in Ormskirk so I won't be able to assist on what it is like to live off campus. However there are opportunities for commuters to meet for example there is a commuters breakfast which takes place on Tuesdays and Thursdays 8-9am (dates may vary / change).
Some tips and advice would be:
Get a diary or a planner this is a great way to keep on top of different of things such as social activities, and uni work because a lot of the time you will have multiple assignments due around the same time. In which this is a perfect way to make sure you aren't falling behind.
Use all the resources that are available to you e.g. personal tutors, module leaders, student support and the careers team.
Hope that helps, let me know if there are any other questions I can answer!
Rebecca
2nd Year Geoenvironmental Hazards Student