Anticipating Third Year | UNI LIFE #1

Hi, everyone!

Today's post is going to be all about my feelings of anticipation for going back to university as a third-year student. I like to think I am prepared for one of the busiest and stressful years of my life, as there really is so much to do. As well as the modules I will be studying to obtain my undergraduate degree at the end of the year, I have to; do my QTS skills test, write my dissertation, apply for and look around different universities for my PGCE course, and carry on working as a nursery nurse. Ah, the joys of training to be a primary school teacher!

I've also got to make sure that teaching is the career I want to pursue...

Last year I was very swayed to the social care career field as child and family health and well-being absolutely fascinated me and it was/is something I am very passionate about. My assessed placement was in a Child and Family Well-being unit in my local primary school and I absolutely adored it. At the same time as learning how to promote positive well-being and delivering social and emotional interventions, I still helped out in the classroom when I could and this just gave me my thirst for teaching again. Social care and education are two merging professions which means if I were to step into the field of education, I would still be able to take on additional safeguarding and child protection responsibilities, and perhaps a more pastoral role. 

Because of my interest in social work, I studied a variety of modules that would support this interest. I studied modules such as Child Protection, Family Dynamics and Exploring Disability. I also decided to focus my independent research project and dissertation on safeguarding. We planned out and learnt about how to get around all the ethics and wrote our literature review in a module called The Early Years Researcher. I did two core modules as well which were my placement module, as described in the previous paragraph, and another module called Individual Differences and Learning which really isn't as interesting as it sounds unless you're really into psychology (I'm more of a sociology kinda gal). 

This year...

I have decided that I am going into the education sector so have picked modules primarily based around education, with one that is predominantly more about safeguarding to support my dissertation. Looking at my modules, it's not going to be the most exciting year but I am aiming to finish the year with a first so I can get a first class honours degree and study for a PGCE at master's level. The modules I've chosen are Vulnerable Children and the Law, Curriculum Corruption and Construction, Leadership in the Early Years Education Sector, Understanding and Managing the Learner's Behaviour, and Independent Study (my dissertation). My independent study module is worth forty credits rather than twenty, which is why I am doing just five modules this year instead of six. 
 I am anticipating that this year is going to be a lot of work, stress and reading around subjects that may not always particularly interest me and keep me motivated but sometimes you've just got to get through these things and keep your mind on the final outcome of the degree. I'm really looking forward to the social aspect of university this year with stuff like freshers and different events that are going to take place.

But, I also have so much else on like my university interviews and UCAS applications for my PGCE, my professional skills test so I can actually do my PGCE, working at a busy day nursery and balancing that with finding a placement, building up a teaching portfolio. I have found that every year at uni gets more and more intense but I continuously prove to myself that it can be done. 

So why worry? 

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I really enjoyed writing this first post about my third year at university, which is the first part of a blog series I will be doing on a weekly basis called 'UNI LIFE'. I might try and think of a more original and snappy name for it at some point in the future but for now, it's all good.. As I get more confident I MIGHT even do a few uni vlogs and stuff like that for you to see, because I am sure you will all really enjoy watching me get stressed over my dissertation hahahahaha. 

Ok buh-bye now 

Liv xo