The third autumn at University

Some of the student societies and projects have been literally waiting here for me - on the first day of my arrival I was explained what is happening in each and I started working straight ahead. One of these societies was our Czechoslovak society, which we have been establishing for a long time.

This society was finally officially affiliated by the Student's Guild during the first weeks of this semester. We have been attempting to have it affiliated since 2012, however it did take it’s time. On the other hand, I can not say that there would be nothing happening in the meantime, when the society wasn’t official - there were regular meetings and socials, only without the Guild’s support (which means budget and facilities). Now, as a committee member I can make sure that we not only meet, but that we also make our society and culture known among other nationalities. So far we have organized two regular socials, one festive meeting celebrating the Czech and Slovak national holiday on the 28th October, and we also co-organized the Halloween party that was done mainly by the Russian society. This event helped us to do networking with other European society committee members.

The Czechoslovak society has brought me one quite strong experience this year, which I would like to share here. It showed me how not linear our lives can sometimes be. It is an autumn Wednesday evening and we are having a meeting by a long table, discussing the agenda. We are just planning the extracurricular cultural events for the first semestr: would the council prefer to celebrate Halloween, or the Czech All Soul’s Day? What is our budget and whom should we target by these events? Ondra Sitta comments on it and I reply… Wait, this scene now happening in Exeter University in 2014 has already happened in 2009 in the Open Gate School, at the Student Council! I have gone through a completely real déjà vu, when the Czechoslovak society returned by 5 years back to the OG. Although the experience was nearly identical, the context of our everyday reality has changed. Ondra is not a uniform wearing student any more, he is a marketing company employee instead, and I don’t meet him on my way to the school cafeteria, but on the way through the Exeter town from Uni. Time flies. Luckily every encounter with people from the OG take it back.

Another society that awaited me here in Exeter is my beloved Out of Doors Society, where I got the position of Event Officer for this year. Although it is not an academically challenging society, it is still one of my favourite ones, because it allows me to meet various students with similar interests. And it does have an academic impact - on the last walk I found a study buddy for Economics of Politics, with whom we will share notes. There’s no need to comment the OODS any further - the pics below tell all.



As to volunteering, I have chose the Enactus organization this year. Their main goal is to provide volunteering projects that are based on the academic knowledge of the students. One of the most known projects would be business consultancy of local stagnant businesses to help them create strategies for promotion and income generation. The project I chose however doesn’t touch local business - it is about development of rural communities through implementation of biochar. Farmers will create this type of green charcoal from any agricultural waste and can use it as a fertilizer to increase crop yields, as a fuel for burning or as a water filter (this aspects still needs some research). Now me and my team have a lot of challenges in front of us: during the school year we have to conduct all the necessary research, testing and furnace prototype building, and then we have to specify our business plan. Ideally, we would like to go to Ethiopia this summer, if everything is arranged by then.

Apart from volunteering, I spend most of my time by studying and I have to say that this years study really satisfies me intellectually. Maybe it is because I have finally crossed the line of the elementary subjects, maybe I have learned how to perceive my studies contextually. Most of all I enjoy the study of political theory, where we do theoretical principles in one module (like the Game Theory) and also the historical theories in another module. And to deepen this perspective, we also read philosophers like Hegel, Marx or Mill, so that we get the complete understanding of the concepts, which are also mirrored in our study of contemporary neoliberal economics, where we analyse the schemes mathematically and graphically.

Since I came, I haven’t had time yet to get bored - when I am not studying or reading (we do get a lot of reading this year - 300 to 500 pages a week), I am volunteering for one of the student organizations. Having so much to do, time flies unbelievably fast. It feels like my third week here, definitely not my third month! I guess it’s because I really enjoy it here this year.