MEng (Hons) Automotive Engineering with Motorsport

Hello! This is what a typical week looks like for me as a student at the University of Hertfordshire!

At first, as a newly arrived second-year student, my week schedule was chaotic but trust me, once three or four weeks of the semester have passed you will have already got used to the pace and will have developed at least a basic schedule for your week, as I did. For me, it is all about the balance between university, part-time work, and social life.

Monday

On Mondays, as I have a part-time job, I usually go to work in the morning until lunch and then head back to university for two hours of face-to-face teaching in the early afternoon. After I finish lectures, I dedicate my late afternoon to revisiting lecture notes and working on assignments, sometimes ahead of their time, to avoid falling behind. My evening is usually spent in the gym and then resting.

Tuesday

Tuesdays are quite hectic for me, as I am out from 09:00 to 20:00. I spend the first half of my day at lectures and, after a short break in the afternoon, I head to work and stay there until 20:00. As you can expect, after such a long and exhausting day, all I can do when I’m back home is just to relax and get some good sleep.

Wednesday

My Wednesdays are flipped Mondays, since I go to lectures in the morning, refresh and then head to work, where I spend my afternoon. At evening time, I go through and catch up on lecture and tutorial notes, if I have missed something, and work on assignments. In Engineering, most projects require you to work in a group with other fellow students. The Learning Resource Centre (LRC) is where you will work on group projects as it is most convenient for gathering people. The environment is very relaxing and much of the time is spent chatting and having fun, so be ready to spend a substantial part of your time in the LRC!

Thursday

My whole Thursdays are spent at university as I have lectures from 09:00 to 18:00 and I am keen on attending all of them. Don’t get intimidated, there are regular breaks between lectures that give students more than enough time to refresh! As you can imagine, after my last lecture, I would rather do some exercise, so I will go to the gym and let go of excessive energy.

Friday

On Fridays, as my schedule is quite free, I take my time in the morning to meet up with fellow students and work on assignments. Getting through afternoon lectures is easy and feels like it happens instantaneously as everyone is excited about the end of the work week and wants to go out. And, as you can expect, that is exactly what happens on a Friday afternoon. I go out for a walk with friends, if the weather is nice, and in the evening, we go to a pub and celebrate the end of the work week.

Saturday

I value my free time and for that exact reason, I spend the first half of my Saturday studying and working on assignments. I avoid distractions, as the sooner, I finish, the sooner I will be able to go out and have fun. Afternoon time is usually spent shopping, going to a café with friends or at the gym

Sunday

My Sundays are almost identical to my Saturdays with the only difference that at evening I take 30 minutes, sometimes even less, to check my progress with my assignments, make sure I don’t miss any deadlines and plan out a schedule for the upcoming week. Then it is time for a good recharge before the week starts.

At first, all the things you must do as a student sound like a lot to handle, but, trust me, it will all come naturally, and you will eventually learn to handle your tasks with ease!

Hello! I am a second-year student in Automotive Engineering with Motorsport and in this guide, I will give you the basics you need to know about before you start studying at university!

Preparation

When you arrive at university, you will be overwhelmed with many emotions: some students get excited about all the new people they are about to meet, others feel intimidated by the new environment. Regardless of how you feel, try not to compare university to anything you have experienced before. I have already gone through this stage and I can tell you that university life differs a lot from anything I have experienced so far. If you feel nervous, know that you are not alone. You are on the same boat with more than 1500 other newly arrived students, so just open yourself up for this new opportunity and go out and speak to people. You won’t believe how easy it is to make friends, especially during Fresher’s Week and at The Forum.

Qualifications

Many people believe that you can only be a good Engineering student if you have taken A-Levels in Mathematics, but you will be pleased to hear that this is not true. I graduated from high school with a diploma in foreign languages and my knowledge in mathematics has always been average. Nevertheless, my performance in all mathematics and mathematics-related modules in university has been excellent so far. The teaching staff is so good and there is so much support at university, that you can rest assured you will receive the best help you can get if you struggle with studies.

Reading

As a student in engineering, you will not be required to read too many articles or books. Do not get me wrong, there will be a lot of work and you will really have to put effort into studying if you want to have good grades. For most of the time, you will be working on various software programs, you will spend a good portion of your time in laboratories and at the Learning Resource Centre (LRC) and you will also, depending on how good you are at maths, have to invest some or a lot of your time into solving exercises. Group projects are also an essential part of your experience at university.

Assignments

The nature of a job as an engineer in almost any company requires you to work well in a team. University is really good at preparing you for that and therefore most of your assignments will require you to work well in a team. Some people are naturally good at that, others, like me, are not that good at it, but you will learn fairly quickly. Be prepared to spend the majority of your time working on assignments with fellow students. The environment is really relaxing and, oftentimes, working together is so fun that you don’t notice how time flies.

Assessments

In engineering, you will be assessed mostly through group or individual assignments, practical lab works and exams. The ways of assessing you are very similar to how your performance at a company will be assessed: some of them test your ability to work in a group and others test your performance under pressure. Either way, every type of assessment has benefits that will prepare you for a career as an engineer.

Time Management

Managing your time wisely is crucial for succeeding at university and later on in life. So, a piece of advice I could give to you would be to learn to regularly check your schedule and plan out your activities at least a week in advance. It’s very helpful that you can download the lecture timetable on your mobile device and easily keep track of your engagements and work other activities around them.

Hello! This is my guide to all engineering facilities, how I use them and how you can benefit from them.

As an engineering student, you will spend most of your time on College Lane Campus, like lectures, tutorials, practical lab works, and assessments are all held at the School of Engineering and Technology. There are plenty of facilities available to you, however, speaking from personal experience, I can tell you that the one you will use the most will be the Learning Resource Centre (LRC).

Learning Resource Centres (LRCs)

Most of the modules will not require you to read too many articles or books other than the ones you already use in class. However, you will have a lot of assignments that consist of working on a project in a group with other fellow students. There is one LRC on College Lane Campus and another one on de Havilland Campus. Both LRCs have study rooms with projectors and desks, which make them very convenient for group gatherings. Both LRCs are identical, and you will use the one that is closer to your accommodation, regardless if it is on-campus or off-campus. If you, for any reason, wish to go to the LRC located further away from you, there is a shuttle bus that can take you from one campus to the other in less than five minutes. If the weather is nice and you wish to walk instead of taking the bus, it’ll take you less than 15 minutes to get from one campus to the other.

The LRCs have many computers, equipped with all software you use in class, and there are laptops for loan. There are study rooms you can book, especially useful for group gatherings, there are desks you can study at, or if you prefer silence, the last floor of each LRC is for silence study. If you study better at complete isolation, there are silent rooms, designed for just a single person (they are perfect if you don’t want to get distracted by anything). If you want to take a break, each library has a café, which offers a range of snacks, as well as coffee.

Online Library

If you prefer to stay home, instead of going to the LRC, the online library is a perfect option for you. You can access the University’s online library, where you can find any book that you can otherwise find at the LRC. Most books related to engineering have online copies available, so if you feel more comfortable studying at the comfort of your home, rest assured you can do so.

Support

During your studies at university, you can be sure that there will always be dedicated support at your disposal. As an engineering student, you will have several modules in mathematics and if that is something you struggle with, you can always use the Math’s support service, which is found at College Lane LRC. In addition to that, you can always speak to your lecturers in class or after class, or you can email or go to a drop-in session, if necessary. Same goes for all other modules as well, no lecturer will ever send you back. In fact, they may invite you to attend their drop-in session, where they will have a better opportunity to help you.

In terms of preparing yourself for starting and developing a successful career as an engineer, or if you want to get a part-time job, you will need to write a perfect CV (Curriculum Vitae) that will make you stand out from the others. For this purpose, you can use the Careers and employability service, where you will get advice and help from professionals in the branch. You can book a session, during which you will be able to discuss you CV and Cover Letter, if you wish to apply for a placement or a graduate scheme, and get advice on how to improve them.