Back in England

After nine weeks in Exeter, I can now reflect on how things have changed since the time I was in the end of my second year and was getting ready for a year abroad in Australia.

Well, for starters, the weather is as changeable as always and Exeter is still dotted with hills. There are some new buildings and shops, but, overall, Exeter seems quite unchanged. At least I live in a different part of the city, so I can explore new alleys and shops. The new flat and the landlords are by far the nicest I have ever had. The only downside is that it is a long way to the university campus – it usually takes me half an hour of brisk walking to get there.

As for the university, another phase of building and renovation has been completed, including a new, state-of-the-art gym. Despite the extensive building works, the amount of green is not decreasing and I still find it easy to come across squirrels and seagulls. What I love about the university is that there are tons of students walking around the campus wearing tracksuit or stash, and, with the completion of the new gym, their numbers increase. Furthermore, since “the Forum” was opened in 2012, the life on campus has become extremely busy. On the one hand, it is quite nice that you can easily run into your friends on campus. On the other hand, it is almost impossible to find a place to sit down and you have to wait long queues everywhere during lunchtime, which can be very frustrating.

The level of service quality, particularly in the areas of career and academic support, have improved greatly. There are many more events and workshops to choose from; they are better organised and promoted. I am trying to make the most out of these opportunities and so I fill my calendar with various events ranging from skills training sessions (e.g. persuading, influencing and negotiation) to employer events (e.g. P&G Business Game). I spend my (very scarce) free time usually on volleyball and squash courts or at the gym. As a result, I spend the vast majority of my time on campus.

This year, I am taking the following modules: Strategic Management, Finance for Managers, Events Management, Spanish Intermediate 2 and Dissertation. Since we are final year students, the professors’ expectations are much greater than in the past years. Now, there is more emphasis on applying theories to different contexts and examples; on drawing conclusions and making recommendations; and on the synthesis of new theories or the alternation of existing ones. It is impossible to underestimate this year – the expectations are very high and this year’s marks have the greatest impact on my degree classification. The atmosphere around here is very different to what I was used to. The students are much more motivated and involved, which is reflected in the tutorials, seminars and group work.

So far, I have managed to always get a first-class average (i.e. above 70%). Since I am absolutely determined to do so again this year, I am expecting to get a fist-class degree. Since a degree in „Business and Management“ offers a variety of career opportunities, I will have to make some tough decisions in the next few months. My amazing, inspirational professors are making this task ever so difficult as they manage to turn everything that is boring or too complicated into something extremely interesting. Company representatives, who are often visiting our campus, are also more than capable of promoting their organisations. Currently, I am pondering a career in consulting, audit, marketing and maybe finance.

All in all, I am proud of being an Exeter student and that I was here when the university went through some major changes, which led to significant improvements in the services provided and in the university’s reputation. This is reflected by the progress made in university rankings,  and by getting the „Times Higher Education University of the Year“ award as well as the highly valued EQUIS accreditation for the Business School. I greatly appreciate the ambitious environment at the university, which makes me even more motivated to pursue my dreams.