Onur Uz and Stephen Soanes (right)
Onur UZ
Picking the right University for you whilst striving so hard to win the competition is a difficult phase. Given the fact that the University competition in the UK is getting more competitive day by day, there are many questions that arise in the minds of prospective students. “Should I go for the course or should I take the prestige of the University overall into account?” and many more questions to follow.
There are also changes happening in the dynamics, especially amongst Russell Group Universities like them opening London campuses in addition to their main campuses. There are even overseas campuses opening up in the US, which now plays as a crucial role in the process of selecting the best University.
I talked to Stephen Soanes, the Student Recruitment Officer of the University of Warwick, to get a brighter view on the “University selection challenge” in the hopes of making this interview beneficial for our family and student readers.
Stephen Soanes
Firstly thanks for sparing time for this interview Stephen. Could we know you better in terms of what is it that you’re doing at Warwick University?
I am student recruitment officer here at Warwick for 2 years. Though I have been at Warwick on and off longer than that. I started studying here in 1998 for doing my undergraduate degree and then I came back to do my Masters in 2006 and straight after in 2007 I started doing my PhD here. And I am still here!
So as a student recruitment officer, are you always dealing with student bodies? What is the diversity amongst the people you deal/work with?
The majority of the people I work and deal with are undergraduates and masters student who are thinking of doing a PhD. We’ve got a real mix also, starting from teachers to doctors and creative people who are thinking of having additional qualifications that can be useful for their careers.
It is great that anyone can be students nowadays right? The accessibility of Universities is a big positive change here in the UK education system.
Definitely, and the types of qualifications are quite diverse too. Certificate programs, Postgraduate diplomas and more makes it a diverse series of selection.
There is such a strong competitive environment amongst the students who will start their Universities next year. Do you think this difficulty is a barrier or a motivation?
I think it really depends on the University we are talking about. Say we are talking about Warwick, now we can see the students are much more motivated by career. They seek out for challenge and diversity in teaching. In a way that I don’t think this was the case 10 years ago, university back then used to be about more fun, going out which of course still has its importance. But I think there is also a “career awakening” amongst students as well, they approach university in a more adult and serious way, which is great.
London question:
Well Shard Warwick is a business school enterprise. So I can’t really speak on their behalf. London has got a very big international sphere and it is increasing with the student bodies it recruits. In the workplace as well, you can see students working, volunteering, it is a good “life internship” in addition to education. So I think the trend of UK Universities’ London enterprises is about giving the students the flexibility to choose whether to go for a campus or a metropolitan big city university. And it is a fact the University experience is getting more international. It is not only opening campuses in London but in different countries as well like Australia, the US etc. And there is a demand from the students as well. The globe is opening up for students now.
I know it is a very wide and general question but what is the best to do during the University hunt? What should be in the considerations?
Depends on the course. I think especially in science-oriented subjects the definition and specific area of the course is appealing. Ranking is important indeed but also there are things to be considered which are as important too like I said, whether it to be a campus or a city university etc. Also the campus themselves, the environment, social scene, extracurricular activity availabilities… these are all very important points to go over I think.
Now this is going to be maybe a little personal, but in your university experience, is there anything you would do differently if you could go back there?
Well, I think coming back to the thing I was talking about again, about being serious at university, I think I would have wanted to be more serious and less serious! I would plan things with my degree but at the same time I wish I had more fun and just enjoyed being a student more. So I think it is about the balance! I also would like to highlight the importance of open days. They definitely should be relished as play a good exemplar role for prospective students to decide upon things. Like can they see themselves there? Sleeping in that halls? Eating lunch in that café? Etc. these visualisations are also very helpful, so open days should all be in diaries!
