Term 2 Done!

General

Right, well, I’m not quite done with my second term. Technically I still have a day left, and two essays to turn in. But the good news is that I’m completely finished with all of my five essays that were due in the space of two weeks. The more impressive part is that I finished them all early.

Well, Actually, two of them I pulled all-nighters to finish–but the other three I had done by yesterday morning and two of them are due today while one is due tomorrow. But I’m going to be that student and turn them in early. Ha!

Actually, as much as I hate to admit it because of the money spent on tuition, the strike has been really helpful. It’s allowed me time to work on my school work without having to stop to drive an hour to uni, go to lectures/tutorials, drive back while stopping at the grocery store on the way and to get gas, etc. So Instead of losing five hours for a lecture or a tutorial, I could just use that time to focus on my work.

The Strike

That being said, I did speak a little more with my academic advisor who was kind enough to give me a telephone meeting due to the strikes. He’s very involved in them, and was giving me a bit more information about it. I really do support the strikes, and I think that it’s important that educators are acknowledged and compensated for the insanely important job they have.

I’ve been trying to find out who to email and demand a tuition reimbursement from (as an act of solidarity with the teachers, which has also been encouraged), though I’m not quite sure where to go for that.

Planning

Any way, regarding my academic plan, he says I’m on the right track.

I emailed the language department about getting into French, took the placement test and they agreed that the most appropriate placement for me would be Level 2 French next year – which I am thrilled about.

Disability; RE: wrist

Ah yes, you might have forgotten about this, or thought it had all cleared up. It has not. Last summer I developed repetative strain working long hours in an ice cream shop six days a week. Since I adopted the ‘play through the pain’ mentality, thinking it was just developing muscle essentially, I screwed up my wrist even more. While I was still in Wales I saw a specialist who said I needed to get more tests done. However, this was literally the week that I moved to Yorkshire.

I finally have been to the doctor to do something about it, though mostly for academic reasons. I still work with a wrist brace on, and regularly need my brace on for support while I’m driving. I no longer sleep with the brace, but sometimes need to wear it generally about my day. I can write with my hand, though not for long. I can’t take notes in class by hand, and I”ve been really struggling with trying to create flash cards for exams in May with my hand as it is.

It’s exams that have me going to the doctor finally. I needed a note to say that I wouldn’t be able to take the exams without the aid of a computer. There is no way in hell that I can sit there for 2-3 hours (depending on the class) and pump out 2-3 essays during that time by hand for the exams – and then repeat it five more times for each class.

I got my note, went to the disabilities office, which I was instructed to do. I was told that because I hadn’t had the injury for more than a year there wasn’t anything they could actually do about it, but rather that they could send a recommendation to the department head, and that I needed to contact them as well.

I emailed the English department and Philosophy department to ask if I needed to make an appointment with someone or if I could just come on in. The philosophy department told me I just needed to talk to the english department, and the English department told me I had to get ahold of my student support officer at my college. That to me makes no sense because my college has little to do with my degree or my exams.

Any way, I’m going around in this loop for the time being.

However, medically, regarding my wrist, I’ve had to have blood tests which I’m waiting for the results for, and have just had a referral to go in to get an ultrasound on my wrist. I’ll keep you all updated on that one, as I know you’re on the edge of your seats with anticipation.

Strike Action: It happened

So far my tutors and lecturers have been really great about letting their students know if they’ll be on strike or not.

Well, that’s what I would have optimistically said this morning as I left the caravan into the bitter northern snow flurries in my car clinging to it’s eighth of a tank of gas, and even what I hummed to myself as the flurries increased along the A1(M) toward Durham.

A moment of pause as I went to pay the parking metre–what if they were on strike? Nah, they wouldn’t do that. After all, I’ve been in regular contact with my tutor about other projects. We have a good rapport; he knows my living situation in Yorkshire, 30 miles away, and that I work to sustain myself and that university life leaves minimum hours for me to earn money to pay for petrol and food. He knows that I can’t be driving all willy-nilly that distance for no reason.

The locked classroom door and students waiting outside of it until ten past the hour told me otherwise.

No tutorial.

That’s fine, there’s a lecture I have later in the afternoon. Just because our lecturer hasn’t emailed us the class hound out like they normally do before a lecture doesn’t mean it won’t happen, right?

…right?

University Strike

Across Britain, there’s a university strike going on, and Durham is one of 60 universities participating in this strike. It has to do with new regulations or founding rules which would eliminate something ridiculous like a third of pension entitlement for university staff.

Rightfully so, many teachers and lecturers are striking.

I support their right and decision to strike. That’s totally fine. Fight for what you believe in!

However, it does make things difficult for me, as a student who does not actually live in Durham. As someone who has to drive 45 minutes to get to lectures and as there is no policy which requires teachers or lecturers to give notice that they’re striking, I’m having a hard time figuring out if it’s worth the price in petrol (which due to a new car to replace my un-MOT-passable car, is nearing £10 a trip to Durham and back) to get there and find out the lecture is cancelled.

My tutors have been fantastically communicative, and let us know in advance whether or not the sessions are on. Only one of them so far has cancelled, which is fine as they are the more valuable aspects of my education. Some of my lecturers have let us know, but others haven’t.

I see the pros and cons for their decisions, and I understand why they might not be as communicative as I’d like for them to be. But it’s pretty rough from my perspective.