bathimpact Issue 1

From the people who brought you

bathimpact The University of Bath Students’ Union Newspaper

Tuesday 5th October 2010

www.bathimpact.com

Thomas Reis

Volume 12 Issue 1

In this week’s bathimpact University changes As a new year starts, it’s not just freshers that will be wide-eyed around campus. Significant changes to the University have occurred over the summer months, from improved lecture theatres to increased social space and an entirely new East building.

See page 3 for more information on the recent changes to the University campus

New threat to University funding Freshers rave it up to Chase and Status: See our packed centre page spread for our favourite photos from this amazing week.

Accommodation chaos »» Overflow due to record applications sees 59 first year students forced to seek private accommodation.

Emails sent guaranteeing housing later reneged on by University

»» »»University urges un-housed students to contact Accommodation Services

Rebecca Stagg Features Editor features@bathimpact.com incoming first year students have been left temporarily un-housed as the University faced accommodation issues for a second year running. The students are currently staying in temporary shared rooms in university accommodation or staying with friends while they wait for a permanent single room to become available. The University expects this to take between 2-8 weeks.

Accommodation is only guaranteed to those First Years who apply before the accommodation guarantee deadline which was 13 August.

208 students applied after the deadline to go on the waiting list which closed on 27th August 2010. Most of these had either identified the University of Bath as their insurance

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choice when applying to the University, or been accepted through clearing knowing that accommodation could not be guaranteed. However, some students received emails telling them they would be housed, only to receive news later that they had no accommodation. Tom, a Fresher from Leeds told bathimpact, ‘It’s quite annoying as we received an email saying that we had been assured campus accommodation and then a few days later we were told that this was full. I suppose it will prepare us well for second and third year.’

In addition, some international students, for various reasons, were too late to apply for the waiting list, but these numbers remain unconfirmed as new stricter immigration procedures controlling applications to study in Britain make it difficult for the University to know until mid-

October which of these students have been successful or not in gaining a visa to come to the UK. As the private sector is currently ‘swamped’ according to our Students’ Union source, it is proving very difficult for the students to find housing as term starts this week.

When the paper went to print 105 of those originally without a room had been housed in university accommodation and 59 had found housing in the private sector; 13 decided to defer their place until next year.

The housing problem is thought to have been caused by an increase in admissions which has led to the University recruiting more students than they have accommodation for. bathimpact spoke to Del Davies of the University’s Accommodation department who said, ‘the situation is difficult. We have had an unprecedented number of students on

taught Post-graduate programs taking up their offer (normally many of these applicants defer or decline due to job offers or other opportunities elsewhere), all of whom had applied within the accommodation guarantee deadline. Although the university aims to house as many first year

59 Number of first year students now housed in private accommodation

students in our accommodation as possible, because we have had to honour our commitment to all those postgraduates who applied before the accommodation deadline, it has meant that some of those [Freshers] who applied after the guaranContinued on page 2

In George Osborne’s upcoming spending review, it is expected that he will recommend that HE (higher education) gets cut by 38%. These cuts will have immediate, negative effect on the quality of education offered by universities - on the quality of your education.

See page 4 for how you can get involved in the fight for your future

Cheating barstools After a number of revelations over the summer involving certain celebrities, Features asks why men cheat and what to do if you’re tempted at university.

See page 6 to read more and see a gorgeous photo of Tiger Woods

In the air tonight Sam Foxman gives a slightly too honest review of Phil Collins’ new collection of Motown hits in the album ‘Going Back’ for this issue’s Entertainment sections. There are no drumming gorillas in it though.

See page 24 for the article ‘Phil Collins: Musical Genocide’ along with lots more exciting Entertainment news and reviews.

Tuesday 5th October 2010

News bathimpact Editor-in-Chief Gina Reay editor@bathimpact.com

www.bathimpact.com

Letter from the Editor-in-Chief

Deputy Editor Hannah Raymont deputy@bathimpact.com

S

News Katie Rocker news@bathimpact.com

Opinion David James opinion@bathimpact.com International Julia Lipowiecka international@bathimpact.com Entertainment Rowan Emslie ents@bathimpact.com Sport Position vacant sport@bathimpact.com Publicity Officer Julia Lipowiecka publicity@bathimpact.com IT Officer Position vacant online@bathimpact.com Treasurer Rebecca Stagg treasurer@bathimpact.com Advertising Enquires Helen Freeman H.Freeman@bath.ac.uk 01225 386806 VP Communications James Huelin SUcommunications@bath.ac.uk 01225 386679

bathimpact Students’ Union University of Bath Bath BA2 7AY 01225 38 6151 01225 44 4061

The opinions expressed in bathimpact are not necessarily those of the bathimpact editors nor of the University of Bath Students’ Union.

Whilst every effort is made to ensure that the information contained in this publication is correct and accurate at the time of going to print, the publisher cannot accept any liability for information which is later altered or incorrect. bathimpact as a publication adheres to the Press Complaints Commission’s Code of Conduct.

Please contact them for any information.

Printed by Harmsworth Press Ltd.

Everybody needs good neighbours William Wan News Contributor

Chief Sub-Editor Position vacant subeditor@bathimpact.com

Features Rebecca Stagg features@bathimpact.com

bathimpact

Gina Reay Editor editor@bathimpact.com

H

ello and welcome to a brand spanking new University year, bringing with it a wonderful new bathimpact team. I’m Gina, Editor-in-Chief, and I’ll be ensuring the paper goes from strength to strength this year.

We’re aiming for more readers (please!) and more contributors, so if you’re interested in getting involved we’re recruiting writers, web designers, photographers and proofreaders so get in touch!

We hope you’ve all had a fantastic summer. First years, I assume you’ll all be recovering from Freshers’ Flu, you may faintly be able to recall the bathimpact team who brought you daily updates of Freshers’ Fun in our hilarious newsletter MintyFresh. If you want to see the photos that didn’t make the cut for the final issues, log onto our Facebook Page (search for Bath Impact).

So for our first issue we bring you loads of goodies. For all you awesome 2010 freshers, check out the double page spread of Minty pics (don’t be too embarrassed). In News, our team have been getting to the bottom of why overflow has seen first years housed in private accommodation. Opinion sees the famous Freshers’ Week debate between two of our most argumentative writers, Foxy and Rowan. Ents is packed with summer reviews and savage dress downs (Phil Collins, we mean you!). Rebecca Stagg is back as Features Editor with a jam packed section full of helpful advice to Bath’s newcomers. Julia’s tips for roadtrippers in the South West is the highlight of the International section. And finally Sport, kindly produced this week by Joe Dibben, has covered everything from international rugby to University teams.

Don’t forget to try you luck at our Puzzles Page too, look out for our new cartoonist!

This year will certainly be bathimpact’s best year ever. Look for us every fortnight in the Library, the SU, Fresh, the STV and on Parade. Enjoy!

CP, the Student Community Partnership between Bath & North East Somerset Council, the University of Bath, Bath Spa University, and their Students’ Unions, encourages students living in private accommodation in Bath to be good neighbours.

Neighbours are a source of useful information; they might, for instance, know when the rubbish and recycling are collected and where the nearby shops are.

By introducing yourself to your neighbours, and treating them as you would like to be treated, a good relationship can be built and maintained. If a student’s actions Continued from front page ...tee deadline have not been able to be housed immediately.’

One contingency implemented by the University was to ask staff to temporarily house international students until more concrete arrangements can be made, but to date this contingency has not had to be used as sufficient temporary accommodation has been found in University residences. In response to similar problems last year, some Eastwood rooms have been converted into permanent shared accommodation in order to better use space.

These are offered to incoming students as an economic option and are proving popular. Perhaps the greatest effort undertaken to address the problem has been two house-hunting weekends organised by the University’s Accommodation & Hospitality service and the SU. Normally reserved for Post-graduate students, the weekends were opened up to all first years still in search of somewhere to live. During these weekends the University paid for food and accommodation for all those attending for up to three days over a period of three weeks. Many students were housed in this period or found a room using information they gained during that time.

The Students’ Union President, Daniel O’Toole praised the work of the Accommodation & Hospitality Dept. saying, ‘they have done a fantastic job in dealing with this unfortunate situation.’ However when asked whether more could have been done to prevent the housing deficit he commented, ‘the University should have seen it coming.’

Whereas in previous years the University have been successful in keeping their promise to house all first year students, including those accepted to the University at a later date, more and more they are finding it difficult

bring their institution into disrepute, it can affect their chances of graduating.

With regards to Council Tax, students must inform the Council they are students, when they are moving in, and when they are moving out. As for parking permits, which are ‘very limited’, students with cars can contact the Council to check their eligibility.

Contact details for those interested in volunteer work, advice on saving energy, information on The Good Neighbour Award, and general safety precautions can all be found in the ‘Good Neighbour’ Booklet, which should have been emailed to all Bath University students in the last month, or at www.townandgown.org.uk.

to meet the demand for housing. With falling numbers of deferrals and fewer people giving up places it has become difficult for the university to predict how much housing they need.

This year saw a record number of applications for university places with the Guardian newspaper quoting up to 150,000 Further Education students being left without a place at any of the institutions they applied for. The rise in applications is commonly thought to be due to the difficulty in finding work in the current economic climate, leading many students to turn to Higher Education as the next step on their career ladder. At the same time, due to financial constraints as well as the constant ambiguity surrounding the top up fee rise, gap years are becoming less popular.

The University’s Master Plan (in which the institution sets out its goals and targets for the short and long term) includes provision for new student accommodation to be built on campus which would provide an obvious relief to increasing numbers. However, due to financial constraints there is noth-

News in brief There have been several recent changes to bus routes this year. However, for the first year there has been a ticket price freeze on the majority of routes, a move welcomed by the Students’ Union and attributed to their campaining for competition between bus companies.

Visit http://www.bathstudent. com/buses/ for more information on routes and fares, plus where you can get hold of bus passes.

The Southgate Centre, Bath’s newest shopping area, has been completed. The opening of Debenhams on 2nd September marked the end of a huge project, with more than 50 stores launching over the last year. This means many new opportunities for students, with 1,500 jobs having been created and even more being advertised in the run up to Christmas.

New research undertaken by CFEB, an independent organisation set up by the Financial Services Authority, shows that 71 percent of parents of undergraduate students have concerns about providing financially for their son or daughter while they are at university. If you or your parents or guardians are having problems with university costs, budgeting or planning your finances, contact Student Information and Funding on (01225) 385538, email studentmoney@bath.ac.uk or visit them in 4West for information and possible financial help. ing new planned for the near future, leaving it unclear how the University will deal with this issue in the coming years.

If you are a first year student still looking for accommodation please contact the Advice and Representation Centre for assistance in house-hunting.

Darius G

2

Lions going once, going twice

O

Jon Griffiths

ne of the recent additions to Bath city centre has been 100 individually decorated, life-size lion statues, which have descended on shops and landmarks around the city.

To some, the lions in Bath might seem similar to Bladud’s Pigs, despite them not really looking like pigs. To others, the lions might

place in particular. That place is Bath. The city’s coat of arms includes a lion holding a shield on which the River Avon, the hot springs, and the Abbey are alluded to.

On a less allegorical note, two bronze lions - dating from 1830 - can be found at the entrance to Victoria Park, and some shops, like Debenhams and Bath Aqua Glass, have the modern lions because

Tunited – Iron, Lion, Zion by Penny Stanley represent the slogan ‘Pride in our city’. But what does that actually mean? And how, in any way, are lions related to Roman Baths, the River Avon, Victoria Park, and Debenhams? Surprisingly, quite a lot.

If we consider the previous list as a collection of symbols, we see that together they represent one

they sponsored the project.

‘Lions roar goodbye’, a display of all the lions, will be on 9th and 10th October in front of the Royal Crescent. Sixty of them will be auctioned in the Assembly Rooms on October 15th, leaving the rest for auctioning in Komedia on October 17th.

bathstudent.com Not exactly clean - now even easier enough to eat off

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ou will all have seen that bathstudent.com has had a redesign over the summer months, with a new layout and several other changes.

On Tuesday 5th of October bathstudent was upgraded again, this time to allow students to log in with their BUCS accounts. No longer will you have to remember a separate password; bathstudent. com will run off the same username and password that you use for everything else from Webmail through to Samis and Moodle.

When you want to log in to bathstudent.com, simply click the log in link on the right hand side.

You will be taken to the familar single sign on page - enter your BUCS details and you will be sent back to the page you left. Nonstudents will still be able to log in by following the ‘Staff and Guests’ link.

This is part of a wider upgrade and improvement program for bathstudent.com, which has seen many things made easier and also improved functionality. If you have any questions, queries or suggestions, feel free to email webmaster@bathstudent.com.

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n a recent study, researchers at Leeds Metropolitan University found that apart from those houses with pets, student kitchen floors harboured the most bacteria of any households.

The study was carried out on behalf of Vileda, and demonstrated that the kitchen floor of student accommodation was the worst area for harmful bacteria.

Alan Edmondson, Leeds Met´s Faculty of Health spokesman, said: “The levels of bacteria on the student kitchen floor after one week were higher than those you would find on average on pub toilet seats.”

Although the floors were dirty, levels of bacteria found on the mops used in student accommodation were so high that in many cases, floors were actually more infested with bacteria after they had been mopped.

Lindsey Taylor, a spokesman for Vileda, said “... the amount of bacteria found on their kitchen floor after mopping was shocking.”

It is advised to ensure that mops are cleaned regularly, and that cleaning solutions, not just water, are used when mopping.

News

University changes »»Significant increase in social space »»Millions of pounds spent to improve University campus

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ver the summer holidays, a significant amount of work has been carried out around the University, with changes to the Students’ Union, the creation of a new “East building”, improvements to several existing lecture theatres and of course the new bus shelters.

The new building on the East side of campus, which is due to be completed early next year, will house offices for academic staff and a 320 seat lecture theatre, rivalling University Hall for size.

Over the next few months, departments in need of refurbishment will be moved into the East building, their original offices redone, and then moved back in once the work has been completed. Next in line is potentially Computer Science, after the Maths department – both originally housed in 1West – received similar treat-

£1.2 Million

University’s approximate spending on development work per week

ment over the summer and moved into 4West.

During a revamp of the Claverton rooms and surrounding areas, an unconfirmed rumour has it that asbestos was found while a worker was replacing a light. This necessitated a large-scale removal of asbestos, which has previously been a problem for the university - the old 4West building had to be deconstructed after it was found to be contaminated with it. The area is now safe and back in use, complete with improvements.

Norwood received a huge overhaul - one resident said the changes were “stunning”. Alongside the new Student Centre, there were over a hundred workers on the site. It was a massive task that had still to be completed as bathimpact went to press.

The newly redeveloped Level 3 of the Student Centre has been officially handed over to the Students’ Union. It includes a new ‘chill-out’ area, plus the Advice and Representation Centre, a combination of Arc and Aware which

aims to support students.

Plug and Elements reopened during Freshers’ Week. It is hoped that the new bar and larger kitchen will prove popular with new and returning students alike. The floor in Elements has been replaced, and a deep clean is planned. However, there were still a few issues with the offices, which only opened on Wednesday 29th September. There are now 42 plasma screens around Level 3 of

Over a hundred people worked on the Norwood and Student Centre contruction site, at up to 2am every morning the building, all viewing SubTV, which can be used by the Students’ Union to push the “communication campaign of the week”.

Unfortunately, Level 2 suffered some delays and the building work has overrun. It was opened to students on Saturday 2nd October, although many of the facilities are

has been written into the contract signed with the Union.

Many general teaching rooms have undergone refurbishment; as well as improving the rooms this has also involved replacing blackboards with whiteboards, a move which has received objections from some areas.

The STV Blues Bar is no more; instead it has been rebranded as the ‘Sports Café’, and has undergone several changes that make it feel significantly larger and is, according to one Sabb, “quite spiffy”.

This was done with the intention of bringing it into line with other café areas on campus and reflecting the location in the name.

The new layout for the bus shelters involved moving the cycle rack to the back of the existing shelter, and building a new shelter where the cycle rack used to be. This will enable all students to shelter from the poor weather, regardless of the bus they are taking, rather than everyone using the Wessex bus shelter. A third bus shelter has been built which is only being used for arrivals. A taxi rank has Owen Greenaway

www.bathimpact.com

William Wan News Contributor

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Tuesday 5th October 2010

bathimpact

Social space in the newly refurbished Student Centre not yet up and running. It contains the SU Reception, the Student Centre Shop and other food areas.

While access to the SU reception is restricted, they are still contactable on 01225 386612 or in 1E 3.9.

The Student Centre shop is no longer Students’ Union-run due to budget changes; prices at the shop are not intended to rise, as it

also been created, so students will no longer have to arrange to meet taxis at the STV and impede traffic there.

Changes are ongoing, and work continues in many areas of campus. Keep up to date on everything as new shops open by logging on to www.bathstudent.com and checking out the latest SU news.

Tuesday 5th October 2010

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bathimpact

Sabb Special Report

www.bathimpact.com

Universities face major funding threat James Huelin VP Communications sucommunications@bath.ac.uk

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ow much do you take your education for granted?

What is your degree really worth to you? You are lucky enough to be studying at one of the top ten universities in the country with one of the highest employability ratings in the world, but have you ever once stopped and questioned how you would feel if something was to take that all away?

We are in the midst of a raging debate that is threatening your education. A debate that is sweeping across universities nationwide. A debate that is fundamentally asking how much do you value your education?

I speak of the looming threat of Higher Education (HE) funding cuts. We have been given warning that in George Osborne’s upcoming spending review he will recommend that higher education gets cut by 38 per cent. These cuts would start to come in immediately and would have a detrimental effect on the quality of education that you might have expected to expect when you applied to this university.

Let me correct the common response that this is a debate on fees.

Yes, fees will have to go up for future years. But for you, for current students, these cuts will see the government contribution for an average course cost of £10k go from £7,000 down to £4,340. The average expenditure of a UK HE institution is 58 per cent on staffing costs.

The quality of your education is going to suffer if these cuts go ahead!

Bath is joining up with unions across the country as part of the NUS campaign against these cuts.

Before the General Election NUS asked 97 per cent of the candidates across every constituency to sign a pledge to say they would vote for students to find a fairer funding mechanism for UK universities (the 3 per cent we didn’t ask we’re basically the BNP candidates… and who gives a monkeys what they think?)

We are now in a position where 10 million votes were cast for candidates who signed that pledge and 150MPs elected who signed that pledge, this gives a massive mandate to parliament against these cuts. Now I’m not fussed where your political allegiance lies, but it is unacceptable for an MP to prom-

ise one thing and then change their mind once elected. Now that might be politics through and through, but it doesn’t make it right!

The NUS has been working hard all summer to send 20,000 students down to London to march on parliament to make sure they stand by that pledge.

The majority of the MPs who signed the pledge were Liberal Democrats who are now being asked by Nick Clegg to abstain from the vote later this year which will hand it to the Tories. We are marching to ask the Lib Dems to grow a back bone, stand by their promise and make sure they win on one of their longest standing policy ideals: A fair funding system for students!

Nick Clegg is slowly losing support from within his party on this vote with many candidates saying they will stand by their promise.

This is a start, but we need them all to stand by their promise.

If you think this issue won’t affect you, you are very much mistaken. We have already taken a 5 per cent cut across the sector and universities have felt the pinch. Bath will not go unaffected if further cuts are made!

The Students’ Unions in Bath and Bath Spa will be putting on free busses for at least 200 students to go to London to get their voices heard on Wednesday 10th November. It is very easy to bypass a landmark in our political history when you are living in it, but believe me, in 20 years you will be proud to be able to say you marched with us, that you shouted alongside us, that you chanted “FUND OUR FUTURE”.

To those who say it can’t work, that it won’t work, I tell you this: the last time parliament voted on how higher education should be funded, as a direct result of NUS lobbying we caused the closest vote in the Blair Government. Unfortunately we lost by 5 votes, but to put it in perspective, it was closer than the vote that took this country to war in Iraq.

NUS has moved on from the days of placard waving for unrealistic goals. We are very much at the table on negotiations on how we should be funded. This campaign WILL work, it HAS to work. But we need the numbers to give the campaign the legitimacy it needs to be noticed by parliament.

If these cuts come in you will see the quality of education you get go down, average student debt go from £20k to £43k. All of a sudden the ability of someone to go to university will be based not on the size of their academic potential but on the size of their wallet!

By no exaggeration this is the biggest issue the student movement has faced in decades and is likely to face in the next few too. We descended in our thousands last time, and we need to again.

Ask yourself, how much do you value your education? Will you be happy to get less for your money?

Join us on November 10th, join the fight on funding cuts. You came to Bath for a quality education. Make sure you get it! This country deserves better. This University deserves better. YOU deserve better!

Get involved: 1.

Join the Facebook group “Bath Joins the fight on funding cuts” 2.

Upload a photo to the petition to out local MP 3.

Invite your friends 4.

Sign up to the Demo

Features

The readers have spoken!

The bathimpact team would like to thank all students who participated in our feedback survey launched at the end of last academic year. We had a great response from many students who commented on aspects they liked and gave us ideas on how to improve - all of which we are keen to take on board! If you missed out and would like to let us know your views please contact us either via email at editor@bathimpact.com. In the meantime here’s some of the changes you’ve asked for that we will make happen this year.

There’s too much national and international news - you’re a student paper, give us student news.

•In the past we’ve tried to cover a broad range of issues in our news section - some stories seem too big to ignore! But this year we’ll be catering our news section to YOU – Bath students!

We’ll be doing our best to bring you the most important local and campus news, as a priority rather than focussing on big stories.

Sometimes your articles cover frivolous or ‘silly’ articles.

•We hope this year to pin down the more serious issues that interest students in order to bring you a broader range of styles in our articles.

Can you put a bathimpact bin by the bus stop/outside Fresh?

•Many of you have said you’d like to be able to pick up bathimpact from other locations on campus and only 2 of you said that you got your copy from the bin in the STV. This year we will be looking at the ways we distribute the paper and if possible we aim to provide more bins so that you can pick up a copy at a more convenient place on campus.

We are planning to continue handing out copies on parade as well as getting bathimpact onto the blue buses.

68%

of you liked content, style or subject of the articles covered

We’d like more articles on events going on in Bath and a bit more variety in the ents section.

•This year we aim, as always, to bring you as much variety as possible. Our ents section covers reviews and information on events ranging from book signings to the film festival.

Often the reason for our lack of covering events is simply due to the fact that we don’t always have enough reporters to go out and review things! If you want to get involved in any way please contact us at editorial@bathimpact.com •This year we aim, as always, to bring you as much variety as possible. Our ents section covers reviews and information on events ranging from book signings to the film festival.

Often the reason for our lack of covering events is simply due to the fact that we don’t always have enough reporters to go out and re-

view things! If you want to get in volved in any way please contact us at editorial@bathimpact.com

95%

of you said the layout of the paper was appealing

Have you thought about creating a joint media website with URB and CTV where people could upload their opinions and pictures?

•This is a great idea! We’ve been looking into creating this kind of site for a while and this year all media groups are planning on greatly developing our pages on bathstudent. com/media.

We at bathimpact are very keen to get going with this, particularly in terms of setting up a forum and comment boxes next to our articles

The bathimpact team working hard for you! so you can get involved and let us know your opinion on all issues student-related.

Unfortunately this year we have been unable to recruit an online editor who could assist with the techy side of this (any volunteers? email editor@bathimpact.com).

Keep checking our progress on bathimpact.com and bathstudent. com/media.

Tuesday 5th October 2010

bathimpact

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Features

www.bathimpact.com

For Freshers: A beginner’s Made in Bath guide to Bath, the best university in the world!

Finding it hard figuring out what to do post-uni? Wondering what ooportunities you’ll have as a Bath graduate? Each issue, bathimpact will interview an alumnus from the University of Bath giving you the chance to get an insight into life after Bath. This issue Siôn Lutley, now the Director of Development and Alumni Relations at the University, tells us how he got there...

Sian Barnett Contributor

a New York minute.

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s our good friends Gary Barlow et al sang, “Today, this could be the greatest day of our lives” so Freshers, listen up. Okay, I’m not so naive as to think that your first day here at Bath will be the absolute greatest of your lives, but it most definitely is the start of one of a new and unforgetable era for all of you.

First experiences at university are like the Orange Buses in the snow, inconsistent and downright unsteady.

Everyone has a different story to tell from their first day. So, I won’t even attempt to compile a list of things you should expect as it would run longer than the Bath Half, but just know this, - the unexpected should be expected.

What I will try and give you is a bit of advice from someone who has been there. On asking some of my fellow Bathonians what their top tip for Fresher year would be, the overwhelming response was to ‘get involved.’ So on that note, get out there Fresher! Peel yourself out of your enviously conveniently located beds and head on down to... well anything! There are so many societies, clubs and teams, all with something to offer you. I know it’s a cliché, but clichés are clichés for a reason...

The beauty of Bath, apart from the obvious, is that it gives you the ability for a complete social network. Unlike many other universities where you would have simply your defined social circle, we here at Bath operate within what some Geographers refer to as The Core-Periphery Model. You’ll find your ‘Core’ friends eventually, some of you will have them already - for others, it will take a bit longer to separate the wheat from the chaff. But, because of the nature of small-city-campus-living and the countless extra-curricular activities to be a part of, you’ll also develop a ‘periphery’ social group. But fear not Fresher - this is not where the fun ends. The real brilliance of a university like this one is that there is the manoeuvrability for peripheries to connect. i.e. eventually, everyone interconnects and you’ll end up with even more people to run into on your

2) Buy a doorstop - An open door = passing trade. Passing trade = more friends and invitations in those vital first days.

way from Fresh to Parade than you could ever imagine. (Though as one friend pointed out - this not always the best if you’ve had a particularly eventful evening at Second Bridge or Score the night before!)

I’ll let you in on a little secret, this is my first piece for bathimpact and I am currently on placement - it took me two years to get involved with something I already knew I wanted to do. Do as I say and not as I did; join up now. This is your year to do it. You have the luxury of time to experiment and discover things you didn’t even know you might be interested in that us old-timers no longer have. Your first year especially is about the experience. Don’t let your first two years whizz by (and trust me, whizz by they will) without having done anything with your time. This is backed up by my second most popular response of “Don’t take yourself or anything you do too seriously.” Yes, you are here to get a degree, and try not to lose sight

of that, but you should also ensure you are attending what some of us like to call “The University of Life”.

So go live it. And better yet, get a First.

And in the spirit of aiding this, I have compiled a list of the top tips from your Bath peers of what to do and what certainly not to do throughout your first year here in this little old city we love to call our own. So go live it.

And better yet, get a First.

1) Sign up NOW! Get involved in as many clubs, societies and activities as you can. Even at a very sporty university such as Bath, all the sports teams have something to offer for all standards. Gain a whole new set of friends in

3) Club together when it comes to food. Join up with your housemates and do group online food orders (much cheaper than Fresh, and much easier than lugging half of Sainsbury’s up Bathwick Hill), and cook together.

Cheap and social. Simples.

4) Don’t be scared to introduce yourself or break the ice. Everyone else is secretly wishing someone would!

5) Set your internet homepage to BBC News - it is terrifyingly easy to become completely cut off from the ‘real world’!

6) Sign up to discount websites moneysavingexpert.com, myvouchercodes.co.uk, handbag.com and my personal favourite - studentbeans. com. Great deals all round.

7) Stay away from Sporcle.com during exam times (but revel in it otherwise!). Easily the most addictive website craze to spread around the library last January.

8) If you’re not a fan of Score, take advantage of Orange Wednesdays and the deals at The Little Theatre Cinema (St Michael’s Place, off Westgate Street) for cheaper evenings at the movies. (Don’t forget your library card too!)

9) If you can face it, sit at the front in lectures - exponential increase in learning rates (and saves your eyesight!) Make yourself speak up. Go on - I dare you.

10) Don’t make your way around half of your halls/course/club - you WILL see them around in the Library/ Fresh/on Parade at some point!

Hi there Siôn. First of all, which subject did you study?

I arrived in 1989 to study Economics and graduated in 1992.

Where did you live during your time here?

I was on campus in my first year; in Wessex House which used to be accommodation similar to Norwood.

Strangely enough, I now work in the office directly above what was my old student room more than 20 years ago! After that I lived in Oldfield Park, I think most students have to live in Oldfield at some point!

Once you graduated did you go straight into work?

In fact, at that time there was a position on the Sabbatical team for a representative of Rag [the Student Union’s charity group] so I went straight on to be a Rag Sabb which then led to my career in fundraising.

I’m guessing that you were involved in Rag whilst a student then?

Yes. I was heavily involved in Union activities; you could say that I wasn’t the most diligent of students! At that time Rag was a bit larger and the SU didn’t really have an entertainment side to it like it does now; in fact the year that I was a Rag Sabb was the first time the SU managed to open a student bar, up until then it was just the university who ran a bar on campus. I was also involved in running Freshers’ week and I was Entertainment officer one year.

After your sabbatical year where did you work?

I moved briefly up to Leamington Spa to work for a charity called NCH which is now Action for Children where I was working in fundraising. It was a great first job, I was given a car and a small salary and I was basically visiting different student groups trying to recruit people to fund-raise for us.

After that I was able to move back to Bath when I got a job with the NSPCC who I worked for for seven years. I think most Bath graduates want to move back to Bath at some stage.

What does your job entail these days?

There are two parts to my role. I keep in touch with over 75000 graduates trying to reinforce the alumni community and also I raise funds for important initiatives the University

needs from scholarships to new buildings. The key thing is, we come to university for 3-4 years and meet friends for life. At the Dept. of Development and The Alumni Relations Team we try to keep the link with uni life available to past students.

Why would people get in touch with you then, why is it important to keep in touch with your university and what does it mean to be part of the alumni community?

There are many ways in which you can stay involved with the university once you’ve left. It’s not just about donating money. Many former students who are now successful entrepreneurs for example, offer their services to the University by running seminars on business. We can keep graduates in touch with each other and organise reunion events. Alumni money has helped fund many student projects and clubs. 200 students will receive will receive alumni-donated scholarships this year and 300 will next year. We produce an alumni magazine called BA2 twice a year and regular e-newsletters which provides information for Bath graduates, and students too, on what is happening at the university as well as what some of our alumni are up to.

So what does it mean to be a Bath graduate? Is there something that sets us apart?

Last year 3000 top international graduate employers were surveyed on which universities they wanted to take graduates from and the University of Bath ranked 27th highest in the world. We’re really up there. Our great reputation is a lot to do with our placements years which prove to employers that our graduates capable of much more than just being about to type up an essay.

Finally, what advice would you give to someone who is looking to follow a similar career path working in fundraising or with a charity?

Try to get as much practical experience as you can as a student which means volunteering in way, both at the university in student groups or in the wider community. This way you’ve got something which shows you stand out from others. Obviously it’s important to have a good degree but I would say that most employers are looking for a more rounded graduate rather than just someone who can get a First.

6

Tuesday 5th October 2010

bathimpact

Features

www.bathimpact.com

I’m autistic - so what?

Simon O’Kane Contributor

A

utistic spectrum disorders vary extensively, ranging from classical autism, where those affected find it extremely difficult to communicate at all, to mild Asperger’s syndrome, which often goes undiagnosed. Like all people, autistic people are unique individuals; hence autism manifests itself in many different ways.

My diagnosis is high-functioning autism, which falls somewhere in the middle of these extremes. Most autistic people lack either the communication skills or the confidence to be able to talk about what it’s like; I therefore feel somewhat duty-bound to do so.

I consider myself lucky to have been placed in mainstream education when back in the 90s this was rare for people with my type of autism. I was incredibly needy towards a few adults in my life and rather distant from others, but I grew into one of the more academically able pupils in my primary school.

I never made any true friends in primary school, but got on well with a few children; in secondary school I made a couple of lasting friendships, although I keep in touch with others. In sixth form I grew less reliant on special support staff, became more socially adept

and was somewhat liked, but I could never break into the core of a friendship group.

At university, my outlook became much more positive. The change of environment, entering a new crowd who didn’t know how odd I used to be, did me the world of good. I dived headfirst into the BUSU societies; singing, roleplaying and fundraising became new passions in my life. My involvement in these activities, combined with my enthusiasm for my course and eagerness to befriend random students, meant I would soon regularly attract the comment “you know everybody.”

I took my own notes in lectures and the amount of mentoring support I needed tapered down to one hour a week, although I still needed special exam arrangements.

Although being autistic disables me

in many ways, it enables me in others: it means I seldom get embarrassed, I can speak confidently in front of people and I’m not afraid to say what I think. It also helps me feel confident in who I am and resist the pressure of conforming to stereotypes. Autistic spectrum disorders have been linked with exceptional memory and talent in mathematics, science and engineering. Downsides for me include poor concentration, some odd behaviour in public, a tendency to over-analyse absolutely everything, feeling guiltier than I need to, always having an obsession with something and an annoyingly persistent lack of any love life whatsoever.

One of the reasons university was such a positive experience for me is that the University and Students’ Union were so supportive. Disabled stu-

dents should contact Student Services in 4 West as soon as possible if they have not done so already. The Advice and Representation Centre in the new Student Centre will provide any student with advice and support with anything, while Nightline (01225 38 3999) is always there to listen. Disabled students and their friends are encouraged to join the Access group, which meets regularly. Personal tutors/project supervisors should also be there to help.

I’m proud to be part of a society that has worked hard to integrate disabled people and rejected the far simpler (yet far more costly in the end) option of throwing them on the scrapheap. If we do not accept people who are different, we miss out on different points of view, hidden talents and innovative solutions.

Never have I ever...

...been cheated on. Gina Reay, bathimpact’s Editor-In-Chief gives us some helpful hints and tips on how to deal with cheaters. Whether you are one, you’re with one or you’re thinking about becoming one (yes, she’s covered it all!) then read on and find out how to avoid the pain and shame.

W

ayne Rooney, Tiger Woods, Peter Crouch… what do they all have in common? Let’s just say balls aren’t the only things these boys have been playing around with this summer. Yes, that’s right guys and girls, they are cheaters. This year has seen raving revelations about the infidelity of several Alist sports players and boyband stars, so should we girls be feeling a little worried? I mean, if Cheryl bloody Cole can get screwed over, then what hope is there for the rest of us? And what’s more, when even the loveliest of celebs are being accused of it (Ronan Keating, I mean you!) what hope do we have of sussing out the cheaters?

What is it that makes someone cheat? Genetics? Addictions? Big balls? (You may laugh but scientists do often claim that this is an infidelity factor!) We’ll probably never know. All we can hope is that

we can avoid the polygamous types (or premiership footballers as they are becoming better known). Insecurity in a relationship is never good, but suspicion will always lift its ugly head, certainly for students, whose our lifestyle can often revolve around excessive drinking, crazy sex and the odd lecture here and there.

We have read all the self-help

Shamed - ok, it probably won’t end up this bad if you cheat...

guides and all the trashy magazine articles on how to know if the boyfriend is cheating, but don’t they all seem to contradict themselves?

Is he not attentive enough? Too attentive? Has his sex drive gone down? Can he not get enough of it? Has he developed a new passion for experimentation? Does he come home smelling of another girl’s perfume? Does he come home smelling too much of his own aftershave? THEN HE’S DEFINITELY CHEATING! Change the record, Cosmo!

But how are we supposed to know if he’s been out having rampant sex with a porn star or simply, like he says, popped to the gym or out for a few beers with the lads?

One thing is certain. The key aspect in a healthy relationship is trust. If you find yourself snooping the bed sheets for clues (Sharecock Holmes?) then it shouldn’t surprise you that there is evidently not an aw-

ful lot of trust in the relationship.

This can be a destructive element and is something you should talk about as a couple. Stalking his every move never turns out well and logging on to his Facebook account or text messages is an invasion of privacy (only to be used as a very last resort!)

On the other hand, if you’re finding yourself tempted to cheat and the thoughts of a crazy, sexfuelled night with a new lover are starting to turn you on, perhaps there are problems in your relationship that are forcing you to look elsewhere? In this case, think twice about your actions, especially after a few WKDs. No one deserves to be betrayed and (speaking from experience, what, I am a sex columnist) you really do not want to experience the guilt after waking up the next morning knowing that your beer goggles have led you astray. Oh the shame.

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Tuesday 5th October 2010

8

bathimpact

Opinion

www.bathimpact.com

Cheers freshers. Now I’m going to have to become a lap-dancer Why first years are devaluing our degrees and making it difficult for the rest of us ‘Tugjob Tina’ Chief Lap-dancing Contributor

T

hank god for that! The fifth in line for the throne, Princess Beatrice, had finally got her student digs sorted after months of struggling through the classified ads.

She’s settled on a squalid and modest £4.25m Belgravia town house, equipped with a ‘media/ playroom’ and a 24ft patio garden that’s perfect for those student parties. The Queen’s granddaughter will also have the house kitted out with £300,000 worth of security equipment and round-the-clock bodyguards to keep all those jealous peasants away from her priceless Swarovski’s. Beatrice darling, it’s not much but I suppose it’ll have to do.

But while Beatrice continues her BA in the ‘History of Ideas’ (yes I can’t believe that is a real subject either!), prospects for the rest of us look a little less rosy. The student placement service UCAS recorded a 23% increase in university applicants this year, making this the most competitive year for students to bag a spot in higher education.

“Does one have spare change for the bus? Mummy’s broke.”

This is ‘Rightup Rita’, or to give her full name, Dr R Waitely M.A., F.Coll.P, Dip.M.S. (Ed.)

And whilst I congratulate all those who won a place at Bath this year, all of you freshers have effectively put my entire career livelihood life at risk!

Graduates are currently spending four years in full time in education, only to walk straight onto the dole queue at their local jobcentre plus. And I personally am dreading the moment when I am stood behind the counter saying to customers, “Yes I have a PhD. Would you like fries with that?”

For example, poor Grant Bosworth had been in school for twelve years and then went onto to study

business management at the University of Leeds. He had high ambitions of cosmopolitan-living and knocking shoulders with the movers and shakers of London. But alas, he has had to take a job on a factory production line, checking the solder on electronic circuit boards. If the solder isn’t quite complete, he’ll dab a little extra on it.

He couldn’t find a job, despite his qualifications, as an increasing number of identical students were graduating just like him; and unfortunately he is not the only one with job issues. Now ten per cent of all students remain unemployed a

year after they’ve graduated, with Computer Science and Architecture graduates being the worst affected.

However, to all those students quivering in their boots at the prospect of graduating this year, there is an ingenious solution to your recruitment worries. The only way that Bath students can avoid the ever impending doom of unemployment benefit and appearances on Jeremy Kyle is to become a lapdancer.

As it emerged in the news this week, one in four lap dancers has a degree, and it’s not hard to see why so many graduates are turning to this somewhat lucrative profession.

Strippers can earn over £232 per shift, taking home an average yearly income of £48,000 – after paying fees and commission to the club where they work. And university studies have shown that it is career aspirations and economic choices that are enticing so many graduates, not drug use or coercion.

So when you are next scouring the net for job listings, make sure you get a job that pays, take your clothes off and lap dance.

bathimpact’s Top 5 Worst Paid Jobs

1.

If you would like to earn a collossal £11,930 a year become an Arcade & Funfair Attendant.

Disneyland doesn’t look so great now does it

2.

Fancy cleaning carpets or valeting cars? Well to all you prospective Launderers think of a different career as it only pays £12,410 on average per annum

3. Tour Guides are our next worst paid occupation at £12,561 as a yearly average Next time you hop on the Bath Sightseeing bus, make sure you tip well 4. Supervising small children is the next worst paid job as fulltime Nursery Workers earn an average of just £13,194 pa.

5. The final worst paid job in the bathimpact list is Retail Cashiers and Check-out Operators, earning just £13,807 on average per year

Freshers’ Week was bangin’. Literally.

Why bathimpact contributor Sam Foxman thought Freshers’ Week was the best time of his life. And he’s barely a student!

M

y Freshers’ Week this year started in the Parade Bar. A fresher introduced herself to me as, “A fresher, but not so fresh.” I’m not sufficiently wellversed in innuendo to have any idea what this might possibly mean, but I’m pretty sure it meant something excellent. Freshers’ Week is, for all involved, a chance to meet new peo-

always true of being exposed to a new environment and a new set of people. Pretty soon (remarkably quickly) people will have decided who their friends are and they’ll know who they’re spending time with. Nights out can be cliquey and day-activities dominated by organised sports and activities or established associations.

In this one week of the year there

you like, who you don’t like, and who you’ll probably end up being friends with anyway because you live with them.

Most people don’t mind the occasional drink. My tipple of choice is a single malt, neat, if you’re offering.

But to deride Freshers’ Week as being exclusively about 18-year-old’s guzzling cheap drink and rutting like an-

of activities - inductions, carnivals, barbecues, fairs, town-tours - during the day and a number of alternative activities - dancing, films, quizzes, karaoke - during the evening. That these tended to be less popular than the Sports Hall based alternative is not to detract from Freshers’ Week. If anything, it suggests that people are being given the show that they want

tertaining, informative and does its best to be exciting. It’s not easy to get the best acts down to Bath, but Zane Lowe and Chase and Status are pretty impressive acts to have dragged down to our little campus. The managers, captains and crew aren’t just out there to get as many freshers as drunk as possible or to go on some sort of fresher-molesting frenzy; they

Freshers’ Week proved to be a great success, with events such as the Beach Party, Clubbers & Ravers and Toga Night, and featuring live acts Zane Lowe, Chesney Hawkes and Chase & Status ple and to have fun without any parallel in one’s University career.

A lot of the people that you’ll have met in Freshers’ Week you won’t meet again. Some you will. Some you’ll wish you never had. But that’s

are no real barriers. Westwood plays with Eastwood. The Woodland Court kids come out and slum it in the mud and the obscene normalcy of the Sports Hall. It’s a level playing field and a perfect way to get to know who

imals is profoundly incorrect. If you were to listen to some of it’s detractors you’d think that Freshers’ Week had been dreamed up in the disturbed mind of an alcoholic sexual deviant. But there have been a number

to see. Freshers’ Week is about having fun and welcoming people, not drink and it’s consequences.

Freshers’ Week’s volunteer staff work to give incoming students an introduction to Bath which is en-

help with the night’s events and the day’s activi ties to provide a Freshers’ Week experience which otherwise wouldn’t be possible. Cheer up, cynics. This week you get to start working.

Tuesday 5th October 2010

bathimpact

9

Opinion The GoCompare singer is a moron. Make me laugh instead www.bathimpact.com

Adverts need to be entertaining. Why do you think they call it “Virgin, the mother of all broadband”? bathimpact’s Top 5 Jack Penrose The solution? Ads need to be Contributor

L

ook at your ad, now back to mine. Now back at your ad, now back to mine! Sadly it isn’t mine, but if it stopped relying on inane jingles and poor ‘star quality’ to endorse its product, it could become like mine...

TV adverts’ primary objective is surely to persuade us to invest in their product. However, these days I think TV ads are in a terrible state, so they need to be entertaining as well.

Let’s look at some of the current great ads, as in the ones that don’t just advertise the product, but are also entertaining. As the

£1.4bn

ITV’s advertising revenue

first line of this article suggests, I am a fan of the Old Spice adverts (The Man your man could smell like), because they are supremely entertaining and subliminally persuasive.

I think the recent revival of Foster’s advertising has almost

“Aleksandr compare meerkats not car insurance. Only mongoose could not understand.” made people forget how tasteless their beer is. You know the one I mean, with the two Aussies in a beach hut answering calls from “Tom from High Wycombe” about how to deal with ‘space invaders’.

I would also suggest that the third best ad on TV right now has to be the Heineken advert, where a group of girls have a bit of a hysterical scream about the room of wall-to-wall shoes in a rather effeminate fashion, only for them to stop to hear a group of men acting

in the same way about Heineken beer.

What about the other side of the spectrum? For every good ad, there are several bad adverts. I only have to mention Webuyanycar.com, moneysupermarket.com and Retardex (seriously? Naming a dental floss Retardex? That slipped through the net? I just want to have been in the room when that was approved!), and suddenly I can fill people with rage.

more entertaining, as although most people can recite the tune of webuyanycar.com, I think they would rather avoid it due to the irritation that the ad causes them. I would suggest that companies and brands compare more meerkats in their TV adverts rather than leaving people with awful offerings like Confused.com, after all, it seems that nowadays, threequarters of Americans feel confused by TV adverts. So it’s important for ads to entertain as well as persuade, or you just leave people dumbfounded.

Worst Adverts

1. Quite unsurprisingly, our number one spot must go to that frustrating, agitating, irritating, slit-your-wrists-distressing, curly moustached opera singer from the GoCompare adverts.

2. Second place must go to those thieving pickpockets from the CashMyGold adverts - somehow encouraging grannies to part with their priceless family heirlooms for a tenner each ain’t quite fair.

3. We buy any car, we buy any car, we buy any car, we buy any car.

See how annoying that is!

4. Whilst the Churchill dog may keep nodding and smiling, his adverts are worse than a dog’s behind.

“Oh no no no no”.

We miss Howard from the Halifax ads. He’s the real victim of the credit crunch.

5. And finally, to end our bathimpact advert wall of shame, it’s those positively patronising Confused. com adverts. If you’re dumb enough to have to use this website, then frankly you’re dumb enough to get ripped off. They saw you coming.

Er, excuse me? Freshers’ Week was lame, and don’t you forget it Why Freshers’ Week was a total bust and shame on you for enjoying it.

Rowan Emslie Ents Section Editor ents@bathimpact.com

A

nother year, another week of oh-so-forced ‘fun’.

Trudging down to the sports hall night after night, being subjected to the embarrassing mu-

ers’ Crew for not playing drinking games that they know the rules for and being engulfed in a seething mass of drunk people attempting to grind on each other (but mainly falling over) – none of these things sound like a good time to me.

It’s because they aren’t. The

The truth is that all of you freshers will have had one night out that is far better than the entire aggregate of freshers’ week very soon. So what is the actual aim of this week of staged debauchery? To get to know one another? Can people really get to know one another if they

‘Get to know’ means ‘enjoy a night of forgettable copulation’ lation’.

You’re swamped by a sea of other people, all strangers, who aim

to the ridiculous cacophony within the Sports Hall. Then when you’ve finished your dozen round of VK Blue, you head to the dance-floor and pick up the first person who happens to catch your eye. Only to have to do the walk of shame across Parade the following morn-

If you actually enjoyed Freshers’ Week 2010, check out previous editions of MintyFresh and the bathimpact facebook page for all the news, gossip and photos that occurred throughout the week sical stylings of various has-beens.

Wandering around meeting everyone without ever remembering who they were before going back to the group of people you happen to live with, getting attacked by overeager and belligerent Fresh-

only people I know who enjoyed such events were the people who, a month or two later, admitted that they had a good time only because they had never really been allowed to have a good time before. I blame the parents.

are forced into the same single location, surrounded by 3000 other drunk, confused people? Of course not, it’s practically impossible to get to know anyone in there – unless, for you, ‘get to know’ means ‘enjoy a night of forgettable copu-

simply to get drunk and become fresher of the night.

Even the events are almost identical every year, pre-lash in your kitchen with a bottle of Sainsbury’s Basics Vodka, regretfully chat-up you flat-mates before you trek over

ing. What this university needs is for new and creative events to be put on, so that the Freshers’ Week experience is improved for the next unwitting herd of bewildered teenagers. Don’t let them suffer the same fate!

Tuesday 5th October 2010

bathimpact www.bathimpact.com

Welcome to Puzzle Corner!

Crossword

11

Puzzle corner

Every issue we’ll bring you some puzzles, and something to laugh at while not feeling guilty about not working - puzzles make you think, so they have to be good for you, right?

We’re always on the lookout for people who want to contribute, so if you enjoy making sudokus, crosswords or any other kind of puzzle, or just like drawing cartoons, come along and have a go.

Sudoku Easy

Across

Hard

1.

5.

6.

12.

14.

15.

16.

Tentative explanation (10) Proof (8) Foil; dog-like animal (3) Egyptian writing material (7) Capital city of Australia (8) Object with magnitude and direction (6) Turn (6)

Cartoons

Each Sudoku has a unique solution that can be reached logically without guessing. Enter digits from one to nine into the blank spaces. Every row must contain one of each digit. So must every column, and every 3x3 square.

17. Confuse; problem (6) 18. Finger; number (5) 19. Sugary; nice (5)

Down 2.

3.

The face that launched a thousand ships (5) Tip (4)

4.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

13.

14.

Schooling (9) Second to last (11) Sending and recieving a signal (12) Military alphabet (8) Cost of borrowing money (8) Thing preceding (8) Shallow (11) Copy (5)

bathimpact’s brand new and extremely talented cartoonist, Darius G, shows you some of his most hilarious scribbles.

Enjoy.

Tuesday 5th October 2010

bathimpact

13

Sabbs Corner

www.bathimpact.com

The future’s bright, the future’s Orange

A brand new year, a brand new Sabbatical team working hard to improve our Students’ Union. Here, in the exclusive bathimpact page,VP Communications James Huelin, VP Activities & Development Ann Howell and VP Sport Andy Crawshaw talks to us on why 2010/11 will be the best year ever

H

i everyone! My name is James although everybody calls me Julie (It’s an old school nickname with a very short but boring story behind it). I am your Vice President (VP) Communications this year. Before being elected as a Sabb I studied an undergrad degree in Civil Engineering and a Postgrad in Management. I worked in the Plug Bar for six years and was heavily involved in the Students’ Union as an academic rep (nominations for which open this week - *hint hint*), as an NUS delegate and a member of the Council Senate and Students’ Union committee.

I’m sure many of you will be wondering what exactly a Sabb is. A Sabb is an ordinary student that is elected by you, the students, to ensure that your needs are met and that you are well represented. We are trustees of the Students’ Union which means we set the strategy and direction of the union and make sure that we are always listening to what are members want us to work on and then doing our best to make sure we meet those needs.

It’s been a busy summer for me!

I’ve been on many NUS training events. Let me tell you this. Some students have no idea how lucky they have it at this university. The things we take for granted like a 24 hour library, some level of feedback, an inter-semester break are all things that other Sabbs across the country are fighting their universities to get, and we have enjoyed them for years! Heck, we lobbied our Vice-Chancellor for more social space and we got a brand new £5.5million student centre!

The other project that has con-

sumed my summer is the campaign for fairer funding. If you read the article you will no doubt see how passionate I am about making sure that Bath turns up in force at the national demonstration. As VP Communications I do a number of things. I head up the three media groups (so bathimpact, URB and Ctv, the student newspaper, radio and TV station) and work closely with the Web Co-ordinator to make sure the website is doing everything it should be. But probably more important than that, I actually look at how we break down the demographic of people that attend this university and look at how we can talk to you more effectively but even more crucial to that, how we listen. If we’re not listening to you

If I get to the end of the year and more students are engaged with the Students’ Union, even if they are moaning about it, then I will feel like I’ve done a good job we don’t know how you want to be represented!

So what will I be doing this year?

I want to work on the way you guys can get involved in shaping your entertainments on campus. You’ll notice that we’ve got a brand new night called Theory. When you come along you’ll also notice that the whole venue as been given somewhat of a spruce! It would be really cool to have some way that you guys can feedback to us on what you thought of the nights and give your more ownership of them.

There are a number of other things I would like to see happen this year, my main goal is to try and have more people aware of what the Students’ Union does. If I get to the end of the year and more students are engaged with the Students’ Union, even if they are moaning about it, if they are doing it through proper channels where they can feedback to us what we are doing wrong and we can then have a clearer mandate on what needs changing then I will feel like I’ve done a good job because at the end of the day, if we don’t know what’s wrong, how can we know what to improve?

Always orange: The Sabbs enjoying Freshers’ Week 2010!

H

ey guys! I’m Ann and I’ve just graduated from Bath with a degree in Physics!

Originally from Kendal in the Lake District, I like to play my flute, I enjoy musicals way to much as well as Sailing, Swimming and a good night out! I love being in Bath so much and I loved my time being involved with the Students’ Union so I wanted to continue and become your Vice President Activities and Development!

My role includes overseeing the running of the Societies, Arts and Volunteering areas of the students union as well as the development opportunities such as SORTED training courses, Joblink and the Bath Award (an award you can obtain that accredits and brings together all the skills gained through participating in extra-curricular activities).

This year I am looking to make the Activities Awards a night to remember with an awesome venue and fantastic guests of honour! I also want to increase the number of international students that get involved with Societies and Volunteering. I am organising an International Student Taster Week (the first week of November) with the Societies Exec to enable this to happen. I am also keen to provide more opportunities for students in societies such as trips abroad, festivals and high profile guest lecturers for example.

We have spent the summer redefining the structure of the various exec committees - giving them more direction and more specific content in their roles. Along with Jess in the Activities Office I have been writing area exec development plans to add to the structure and direction of each exec. A new code of conduct

has also been written which includes new core requirements that societies must follow as well as a warning system that leads to disaffiliation for societies that do not follow the code. Budgeting and financial information has also been updated and added to bathstudent as well as event planning procedures and all sorts of important forms. Budgets have been sent out and society web pages analysed as well as the Bath Award booklet re-written and many

I

’m Andy, I have just graduated with a degree in Chemistry and Management, and am now VP Sport for the year.

I oversee the Sports Association and all 49 sports clubs we have at Bath, from their budgets to their facility use. I ensure that the clubs run smoothly and efficiently with the help of the staff and the Sports Association Executive Committee.

Within the SA exec all areas are covered giving each area of what the SA does and stands for a student face at the front of it, whether this is finances or intramurals or even the Facebook page!

This year is a big one, having just gone through a painful process of a

ideas for promotion derived.

I think you’ll agree, Freshers Week was phenomenal! Soooooo much fun! Lots going on – some great nights – great Captains and Crew and of course a bunch of fantastic Freshers! Well done to Backstage and the media societies for their excellent contribution to Freshers Week! I am sad to see the week end but I am sure for everyone that the year to come will be the best year of our lives so far! new kit deal I will be making sure that the clubs are spoken to, to try and improve the kit offer and ensure they get what they want. There is also going to be an announcement by the university over the future funding of sport at Bath, which is sure to give people a lot to talk about! I want to ensure that once again all students are given an opinion and that it is valued by the university. Alongside that there are a few other things such as promoting the coaching opportunities to people, and potentially an small scale awards ceremony in the summer term.

As I mentioned, I have spent a lot of time on the new university kit deal this summer, where the Students’ Union Sports Association and Department of Sports Development and Recreation have teamed up to use the same kit supplier - Surridge.

It has been a long process and I think we are pretty much there. The other big thing I have been doing is working on a strategy that is working out how we are going to get back up to 2nd in the BUCS rankings. There are already ideas in place and even a bit of money to back those ideas up.

To hear from the other three members of the team, Dot, Matt and David, see next issue’s Sabbs Corner

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Tuesday 5th October 2010

International Welcome from the ISA

bathimpact www.bathimpact.com

Munich Calling Laura Craine Foreign Correspondent

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ongratulations and Welcome!

On behalf of the International Student Association, it gives us great pleasure to welcome you to the University of Bath. You are now part of an internationally rich and diverse student body of approximately 2500 international and exchange students representing over 100 countries.

Reading this now probably means you’ve just gotten through your first week in Bath and for most of you, the unfamiliar taste of British food and weather! Nevertheless, we hope Freshers’ Week has also been an experience in making friends, checking out new places and living independently.

Throughout your time here, the International Student Association (ISA) provides friendship and support for students at this university. It is organised by friendly students and

staff from the Advice & Representation Centre who know Bath well and are eager to help solve those important little (and big) questions that may have you concerned.

As a student at Bath, there are several ways the ISA works with you. We provide weekly drop-in sessions to have our “ears on the ground” so to speak, allowing a chance to talk to you and be more involved in areas that are in your best interests. We also hold campus wide activities such as the annual Festival On The Hill, showcasing the best our cultures have to offer. By working closely with the International Office and Advice & Representation Centre, we are here to ensure your time abroad is as fulfilling and enjoyable as it can be !

Best Wishes, Your ISA committee

Get to know the Committee Chair: Timothy Yek, Malaysia 3rd Year Integrated Mechanical and Electrical Engineering email: tlyy20@bath.ac.uk “We’ve set ourselves quite a few goals this time round, namely encouraging further interaction between the cultural clubs, larger more elaborate socials, plus better support in terms of academics. And if there’s anything at all that we can help you in, please don’t hesitate to get in touch!”

Equality and Diversity Officer: Ankit Bharadia, India 2nd Year Mechanical Engineering email: ab479@bath.ac.uk “This year in ISA, I will be responsible for developing campaigns and events promoting equality and diversity amongthe students of this university. I will be listening to your concerns,feedbacks and report any issues to the higher panel.”

Events and Campaigns Officer: Lisa Solovieva, Russia/Canada 4th Year Social Sciences email: ls282@bath.ac.uk “I’ll be responsible for organizing various exciting events for international students and making sure you get the most out of your time at uni. One of the main events will be the ‘Festival on the Hill’ - a great way of celebrating and bringing together our wide variety of cultures on campus.”

Publicity Officer: Marija Petrova, Latvia 4th Year International Management with French email: mp321@bath.ac.uk “My job is to make sure you are aware when all of our activities, socials, and other events are taking place! If you need any information, always feel free to contact me!”

IT Officer: Rita Li, China 4th Year Business Administration email: ryl22@bath.ac.uk “Being a final year Business Administration student, I have already had two 6-month placement experiences, which I believe will be valuable in helping you to understand the UK employment process.”

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irst things first: DON’T book train tickets to move abroad when you’re drunk.

It means you second-guess yourself and give yourself a 2 hour layover in Cologne because you’re worried you won’t know which platform to get on and you’ll miss your very expensive German train.

Due to my drunken booking, it took me 8 hours and two ma-husive suitcases to get from Brussels to Munich.

Within 5 minutes of stepping off the train gracefully, for someone carrying almost twice her bodyweight, I almost got mugged by a very inebriated older gentleman. At this point I was cursing myself for choosing to study German and wish I’d taken Spanish

drinker and it’s almost the end of Oktoberfest. Remember how hard to please you were as a five-yearold but when you stepped into Disney Land Paris your eyes lit up because you’d never seen anything more amazing? Add to that dodgy facial hair, beer bellies and leather trousers and you’ve got Oktoberfest. Over 6 million people visit in the three weeks it runs and they consume over 7 million

litres of beer (beer is served in litres here. That’s 2.1 pints for all you island folk).

Because it’s the 200th anniversary of Oktoberfest they’ve gone all out this year with fairground rides, monster trucks and a horserace in full Bavaria costume. The most spectacular thing, though, are the beer ‘tents’. They’re not tents. They’re buildings! These crazy Bavarians have put up 14 temporary beer-halls in the middle of a field so patrons can get pretzelled (see what I did there?).

Each ‘tent’ has hundreds of long tables side-by-side occupied by people swaying and swigging beer from 1-litre-Maß, spilling it everywhere. As soon as the music starts, everyone gets up on the benches and sways some more, prost-ing each other and spilling more Maß. I can only hope that my placement year in Munich will continue in this fashion: being showered with beer and swaying most hours of the day.

Over 6 million people visit Oktoberfest and they consume over 7 million litres of beer so I could have been swept off my feet by an Argentinean tango dancer. Alas, I was in Munich. Me: Vegetarian, non-beer-drinker and allergic to cold and rain. Munich: Pretzels, beer, rain, pork, sausages... oh, and Beuscherl, a plate of lung, heart and spleen.

Fast-forward a month and my weighing scales have confirmed that I’ve become an avid beer

Vote for Your Academic Rep

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ake charge of your degree!

The Academic Representative elections are being held next week, and it is your chance to either become an academic representative or cast your vote for the fellow student you want representing your course.

Academic Representatives form the core of the University student feedback, and help bring about improvement in the quality of the student experience and development of learning and teaching within the institution. Matt Benka, VP Education describes the experience as “an extra step to enhance not only your own degree and student experience, but also the experience of other students on your course.” As Academic Representative your key responsibility is sitting on your departmental Staff Student Liaison Committee and the Academic Council, where you will represent the opinions of other stu-

Become an International Section Contributor

The section deals with anything and everything international, and is written by both home and international students. dents on your course while discussing various academic issues.

Nominations for Academic Reps are open between 4th-8th October, and the online voting takes place between 11th-15th October. Whether you are an international or exchange student make sure you take part nominate yourself or vote for a fellow student. Your involvement is a chance to directly influence your academic experience at Bath University.

To nominate yourself or vote for a fellow student on your course and in your year, please go to: www.bathstudent.com/ academicreps/elections

If you are interested in writing a travel column, recommending some tourist sights in UK, promoting your cultural society, writing about your experience in Bath as a foreign student, or your experiences abroad during your travels or placement get involved!

Email the International Editor, Julia Lipowiecka international@ bathimpact.com

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Tuesday 5th October 2010

bathimpact

International

www.bathimpact.com

For a relaxing holiday...

Mallorca or the Midlands?

Martin Price Contributor

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or most people, this question is a bit of a no brainer. Why swap continental sea and sunshine for what is effectively just a road trip accompanied by rotten British weather? Well, two reasons actually. Money is always an important factor for students . And the second reason is that this miserable country is actually rather extraordinary.

Last Summer, my girlfriend and I spent a week in Calas de Majorca; all-inclusive, and roughly £500 each including flights and spending. It was a relatively cheap way to holiday and it managed to completely fulfill our desires to get away on our first proper holiday together, amidst sun, sea and sandy beaches. I would

Why swap continental sea and sunshine for what is effectively a road trip accompanied by rotten British weather? recommend the place to anyone; a stunning coastline and restful surroundings, and not too far from Magaluf if you are itching for a big night out.

But come the end of semester and the beginning of Summer 2010, we didn’t have the funds to do the same again. Instead, we opted for a perhaps less glamorous week away; a road trip from the South West to the Midlands, with a bit of Wales in between, staying with family where

The rolling hills of Brecon Beacons over sunny Mallorca? possible.

We started from our homes in East Devon, leaving one World Heritage Site (the Jurrassic coast) for another – Bath. But as you are probably aware of the delights and spectacles that Bath has to offer, I will swiftly move on.

The drive from Bath to Warwick was an incredibly scenic and beautiful one, endless A-roads curving their way around vast open meadows. The weekend was spent in a place called Bascote outside Warwick, which was a quiet, quaint village, with three gorgeous pubs at its core serving great local beer and quality food. The pubs in this country are undoubtedly one of the greatest things about British culture, and these seemed amongst the finest.

Straford-Upon-Avon, famously the home of William Shakespeare, was our pit-stop on the way to Herefordshire. With a beautiful canal and parkland to the east of the town, and the world famous Royal Shakespeare Company theatre, it’s well worth a visit. In Herefordshire, we stayed in a village called Weobley, where Tudor buildings and long walks are

admittedly about the only things to see and do. Driving through the fabulous Brecon Beacons to visit the award-winning caves at Dan-YrOgof was a particular highlight, on the way encountering some of the best roads I’ve ever driven along.

That day finished up in the unique and quirky Hay-On-Wye, the worldfamous booktown. Hereford itself was a pleasent city with a beautiful Cathedral, but it unfortunately had little else to shout about.

But would I choose all that over swimming pools, 35 degree heat, and fancy cuisine? Probably not too often. Perhaps thats not at all suprising given that I have lived in Devon all my life and therefore theres nothing new or novel about the British countryside, great local pubs and English summer rain. But putting £50 each into various local economies rather than giving £500 to a budget airline and European hotel chain is not only much better for the purse-strings, but also rather satisfying. So if you’re not accustomed to the wonders of Britain and are holidaying on a budget, look no further than your own back yard.

Tips for Road Tripping in the UK • Stay with family and friends where possible - free accommodation and hopefully free food • Crash free on a couch - use www.couchsurfing.com to access profiles and ratings of thousands of generous hosts • Camping needs a bit of preparation but can be cheap and you won’t need reservations in advance. Check www.ukcampsitesearch.co.uk for listings of campsites and the facilities they offer • Hostels and Bed & Breakfast can also be an affordable option. Stay in places that offer breakfast to keep food expenses down.

• Use Toureagle trip planner to generate a customized trip plan that includes towns and activities you want to include on your road trip: www. toureagle.com • But don’t be afraid to go off road... getting stuck can turn out to be a fun experience too!

• Try brown-signing - driving around the countryside looking for brown signs, which will direct you to English Heritage and National Trust properties and other tourist attractions.

in the Southwest The Atlantic Highway Follow the A39 southwest from Bath for stunning views of the dramatic coastline. Stops to include are Selwory village, Exmoor National park, surfers’ party town Newquay, and the windy dunes of Bude.

Cornwall Take in scenic seascapes, Celtic ruins, subtropical gardens, and charming whitewashed cottages on a drive along the Cornish peninsula. Highlights are the fishing village of Cadgwith and Polperro, the Eden Project in St. Austell, the Penwith Peninsula with over 400 Celtic sites and the South West Coastal Path.

The Cotswolds The Cotswolds are known as the Heart of England: picturesque views of flowing hills and the charming towns of Gloucester, Cirencester and Tewkesbury offer the essence of traditional English countryside charm.

Sex, Drugs and Rock’n’Roll- a night out in Cambodia Eva Perrett Contributor

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Marijuana, Heroin, Cocaine, Girls?” Walking along the roads of Phnom Penh, my friends politely decline Cambodia’s finest trafficked goods. We aren’t the pusher’s most likely clients with most of us working for anti-human trafficking NGOs and me interning for the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. Although quantities of trafficked drugs are high, prices are low and much can be covered in the name of research, we prefer to stick to the delights of ridiculously cheap Asian beer and happy pizza - Marijuana is a traditional part of Cambodian cuisine, legal to eat.

We are searching for a club playing Western music to contrast my previous encounter with Phnom Penh nightlife. Although Khmer

style clubbing is certainly an experience not to be missed, it was perhaps not something I would repeat in a hurry. Not only could I comfortably see over everyone on the dance floor - that includes all the girls in killer heels - but I also managed to display an abysmal talent for Khmer dancing. Which is pretty special to say the least. All dances include a twist of the hands movements, for which Western hands were definitely not designed! The highlight of

that particular night was when the live band suddenly brought a guitar riff à la Jimi Hendrix. To which Khmer clubbers respond, without a moment’s hesitation, by line dancing!

The next day’s hangover is cured either by lounging in one of Phnom Penh’s many bars with tiny pools or by serious retail therapy. Whilst not really offering a shopping mall experience, Phnom Penh certainly has some awesome markets. My favourite was the “Russian market” just next to my flat, which sells everything from motors to silver and food. The plethora of brand clothes straight from the factories and not quite so genuine DVDs invite to a fun-filled afternoon of haggling.

This is where the few lines of Khmer definitely come in useful. The trick is to pretend that you understand

more than the response to “How much?” and so avoid paying massive skin-tax. To strengthen the tired shopper and supply the ever-eating Cambodians with snacks, the Russian Market has a huge food area in

the centre. For those not interested in the Khmer delicacies of deepfried tarantula or frog, both which are actually quite tasty, there are fresh spring rolls and the standard fruit shakes.

I decide to go back and change for tonight’s “Battle of the Nations” at Beer Pong, organised by some of my expat friends.

Shouts of “Hello Lady, moto?” follow me out of the market. The fact that a Barrang - a Westerner - would prefer to walk in rather than take a moto-taxi seems incredible.

By the time I get to my apartment, the pounding monsoon is rapidly turning my street into Asia’s very own Niagara Falls. Resigning myself to a delay in my evening plans, I attempt to enjoy the shockingly bad acting and sound effects that mark Cambodian TV.

Tuesday 5th October 2010

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Arts, Societies & Volunteering

www.bathimpact.com

Say hello to the Arts! Societies @ Bath: Get involved

Simon King, your new Arts Officer starts Societies Executive Officer, Naomi Mackrill introduces his bathimpact column by explaining why you to the wonderful selection of societies here at Bath now is the best time to get involved. an interactive calendar of all things i there all and welcome to

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ello to everyone. My name is Simon and I am your new Arts Officer. This is the first thing I’ve written for bathimpact, so bear with me! What I do as Arts Officer is chair the meetings of the Arts Executive Committee so that we can organise amazing Arts events, such as Show in a Week, an amazing chance to get involved with both our performing societies and our Backstage team, and the Arts Extravaganza, later in the year. I’m really looking forward to getting involved with the running of these

events, which I have had great fun taking part in over my past three years here at Uni. We’ve got so much stuff happening for both new and returning students in the Arts here that there’s really no excuse not to get involved!

Be sure to speak to any and all of the Arts societies at the Activities Fair in the Founder’s Sports Hall. There’s all sorts for you to get into; from performing in plays, musicals, concerts and dance shows to juggling to painting and knitting. If there’s anything you’ve thought “Oh, I wish I’d learned to do that,” now is the chance to try out. If you want any more information, or to join any of the many societies, just head on to bathstudent.com.

The Arts Societies are a great way to learn new skills, meet new friends and make the most of your time here at University! I hope you have a great term and if there are any questions about the Arts, you can come and chat to myself or any of the Arts Executives (we will occasionally be seen wearing grey societies hoodies) or email the societies committees.

Hope you have a great year!

What’s to come?

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f you want to see what some of our performing arts societies are about, you should check out the Bath University Student Musical Society (BUSMS) production Epilogue. Written and composed by students, it is a murder mystery musical (apologies for the alliteration) set in a theatre.

It will be performed in the Arts Lecture Theatre at 7pm on the 7th, 8th and 9th October. The week following the BUSMS show is the Bath University Student Theatre (BUST) production of Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest. A classic comedy that tells the story of one man’s double life, playing upper class toff Earnest Worthing when he is in London and doting guardian Jack Worthing when he stays in the country.

Things start to go wrong for Jack when first his friend, and then his love, find out about his country house and decide to visit. Hilarity ensues as Jack Worthing truly learns the importance of being Earnest. It will also be shown in the Arts Lecture Theatre on the 15th, 16th and 17th October at 7.30pm, with mati-

nees at 2.30pm on 16th and 17th.

There is also a ticket deal for seeing both shows if you buy your tickets in advance from ICIA. If you’re looking for something less theatrical, the Bath Chamber Choir, are holding a Start of Year Service on the 10th October in St John’s RC Church, South Parade, Bath to celebrate the new academic year and welcome new students to the University.

There are even more student and professional events coming in the next few months, so check out the ICIA Website: http://www.bath.ac.uk/icia/ events.

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the societies column which will hopefully become a regular feature! We’ll use this space to help keep you up to date with the main events that are occurring in the societies calendar!

First, let me introduce myself.

My name is Naomi and I am the officer on the Societies Exec this year.

The Socs Exec is a committee that works closely with Ann (VP A&D) to ensure that all your societies are running smoothly and to provide a link between you and the SU - a link that works in both directions! I hope you’ve had a small taste of the societies on offer to you throughout Freshers’ Week thanks to the wonderfully successful Carnival Day and Activities Fair and have remembered to sign up to the ones that caught your eye on bathstudent.com. All societies are run by students who give up their time alongside their degrees with support from the Students’ Union, a role you may be considering before the year is out!

Being part of a society can really

enhance your university experience.

Some of my best memories from my first two years are thanks to the societies I’ve joined, and if you’re anything like me you’ll be glad of the opportunities to do something other than study! There’s such a variety available that I’m almost positive that there is something on offer for everyone, especially if you include volunteering and the arts.

To find out about all the societies on offer then make sure you spend a few minutes browsing bathstudent. com/socs. Here you will also find

happening in the societies area. We also have a brand new Facebook group “Societies @ Bath University” which we hope will become a very interactive tool for promoting and monitoring the societies area. Join in, promote your societies events and have your say!

If, after all the taster sessions you’ve yet to find anything that tickles your fancy then all is not lost! All the societies we offer have been set up by students who wanted something they enjoy and you could do the same. All you need to do is find 29 other like-minded people and you could set up your own society.

If you think this is something that you’d like to do then make sure you speak to Ann for all the information that you need.

As this is just the beginning of the year there’s not much else for me to say except I hope you recover from freshers’ flu soon and enjoy the taster sessions your societies have been working on over summer. Take care everyone!

Volunteer today!

Volunteering outline the numerous opportunities to get stuck in this year in Bath

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ust volunteering for a few hours a week can make a huge difference to the local community and is a great way of building up skills and impressing future employers.

Students who want to give something back during their time at university can find out about all manner of volunteering opportunities in the aptly named Volunteer Centre. The centre can be found at 1E 3.17 and acts as an umbrella body for masses of volunteering opportunities, which can be tailored to fit with studies and other commitments.

Opportunities are widely varied, a great way of making new friends and lots of fun. Student-led volunteer groups organise a range of projects, from fundraising events to Christmas parties for local children. Many voluntary community projects rely heavily on the support of volunteers in order to carry out their work, so when students do give their time to an event or cause their input is truly valued.

With a variety of groups such as Student Community Action (SCA), School Tutor and Mentor schemes, the Duke of Edinburgh Award and of course Bath RAG, it’s so easy to get

involved.

Bath RAG, which simply stands for raise and give, are the key fundraising organisation. It has already raised masses of cash for charity and wants to further swell the coffers of a variety of good causes this year.

Up soon on the calendar is a charity street collection in Oxford, known as a raid. Full training and free transport are provided so if you fancy a fun day out in Oxford shaking a collecting bucket contact RAG. Organisers are currently working on RAG’s fireworks display which takes place on Saturday, November 6, a charity duck race and the popular fashion show. Most of

the events aim to raise vital funds for local charities: Julian House, the local hospital, hospice Dorothy House and Sue Ryder Care.

Find out more at Bath RAG’s weekly meetings on Tuesdays at 1E 3.6 at 6.15pm or go to www.bathrag.com.

Find out more about volunteering at www.bathstudent. com/volunteer or email volunteers@bath.ac.uk

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Tuesday 5th October 2010

Section

www.bathimpact.com

U n i v e r s i t y

STUDENT

bathimpact

o f

B a t h

S t u d e n t s ’

media BLURB

1449AM URB fill bathimpact in on what’s to come and how to get involved in student radio Relive your Freshers Week

Musings of a Media Officer Our new Media Officer Simon Budden talks to bathimpact about his new position and the importance of Student Media

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U n i o n

reating a campus spirit and sense of community has been something that both the Students’ Union and University has sought to foster for a number of years. While there are many different factors to achieving this, student media is key.

The need for Student Media to play a larger role in University life is clear. Be it connecting students to the decisions taken by the University, informing them of the problems surrounding issues or providing entertainment.

Critically though, Student Media must be used to strengthen the relationship between the students and their Union both highlighting the work that the Union does and

holding it to account to its members.

To achieve this, Student Media needs to work more closely together in the content we produce for print, radio and television, to set more direction to what we do and increase its quality. Additionally, online is an area that we hope to develop putting all our content in one attractive, easy to consume place.

Of course all these ideas and plans do depend on one thing participation. The more people that get involved with Student Media, then the better content we will be able to produce.

Obviously that rule applies to any society, group or club, as well as the Students’ Union in general.

But having met many students over the years who regret not getting involved with the Students’ Union’s activities earlier, I can say that its better to get involved sooner rather than later. In particular, with Student Media.

No matter what your experience or skill level in anything, there is a way you can get involved. Be it as a commentator, a radio producer, a web developer or engineer. And from the current economic climate, more and more the industry is looking to student media for new recruits.

CTV Zap CTV Station Manager Tom Reis outlines his hopes for the year.

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i! If you don’t know who we are yet, where have you been all Freshers’ Week Campus television has been furiously busy capturing all of the Freshers’ antics and have been bringing you the very best from the week. Check out our videos on bathctv.com today!

Particular highlights have included Dot on the spot doing inter-

views, some fantastic club nights and of course a whole load of crazy freshers. As the wildness of Freshers Week subsides Ctv is only becoming more potent with a range of projects planned: we will be producing a variety of Soc Docs (Society Documentaries), we will be promoting the Sabbatical officers latest projects and keeping you updated with campus news. We also hope to begin a range of other ideas including Come Dine with Ctv, a sketch show and a political debate programme.

Ctv has also been entrusted with the imperative task of promoting the ‘Fund our Future’ campaign, to prevent the 38 per cent cut in university funding. The march on London will be on 10th November and will demonstrate the power of the student voice. With the help of Ctv, an already national protest will be even more widely publicised.

If you’re interested then why not drop in to the Ctv office on level four of Norwood or contact us on ctv-manager@bath.ac.uk? We’d love to have your support and with all the fantastic projects we’ve got coming up it’s a great time to join!

University of Bath Students’ Union

Ctv

C a m p u s Te l e v i s i o n

Now that Freshers Week is sadly over and the hard work has to begin, you might be feeling a little nostalgic for the week of craziness we’ve all just experienced. Thankfully, at 1449AM URB, Freshers Week is gone but not forgotten! During the week we made daily Fresh and In Focus podcasts featuring interviews with the acts and recordings of you all out and about. So whenever you want to reminisce about the fantastic time you had in FW2010, just head to www.1449urb.co.uk and click on Podcasts.

What’s new on URB? It’s a new academic year and a new schedule on URB. 6-7pm is the time to tune in for essential information. Every Monday we’ll be bringing you a guide to what to do on campus and in Bath – everything from student theatre productions to local gigs, films to festivals; on Tuesdays and Thursdays, Spotlight on Societies will be introducing you to the extensive range of societies available to join in Bath; and on Wednesday tune in for all the latest news, current affairs, sports and more specifically related to University of Bath students.

Tune in, don’t miss out!

Get involved with URB Do you want to force your music taste on all the students of Bath, DJ some of the best events on campus or just like the sound of your own voice? Then why not join 1449AM URB, the University of Bath’s very own student radio station! If behind the scenes is more your thing, there are opportunities in all areas, from marketing or engineering. Whatever your interest, there’s a place for you at 1449AM URB! Sign up on bathstudent.com or just visit our studios in the Student Center.

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Tuesday 5th October 2010

bathimpact

Entertainment

www.bathimpact.com

This is Ents Section, 2010 Vintage

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his section of the paper is your route to free stuff: gigs, cds, books, theatre trips and more. All you have to do is get in touch with me and promise to write four hundred or so words on it. Easy enough. The nice thing about gig tickets is you tend to get two so you won’t have to go and mosh in a pit of complete strangers.

This year we are trying to get more diversity in our coverage (it has been rather music dominated in the past) so we are especially eager to hear from any of you who

want to get into visiting any of Bath’s charming little playhouses or feel particularly strongly about supernatural creatures - for some reason we’ve been sent boxes of books featuring vampires and werewolves. I’m sure at some point we will probably get some books that aren’t about monsters, particularly if you request such things. As ever, come to the contributors’ meeting (on today in 8W 2.15) and chat to me about what you might want to read/take these Twilight type books off my hands.

Reviews can be negative or positive so please don’t be afraid to write a scathing article regarding whoever it is you have a particular hate for: Sam Foxman’s review of Phil Collins doing motown classics is a good example of this. Actually, a few of the reviews are quite negative but this is nothing I can change: it’s all about your opinions on things, it’s important to remember that this section is not an advertisement.

Something else I’m looking to introduce is articles about people’s passions: are you a massive fan of

West African afrobeat? Tell us why you have a passion for obscure Japanese cinema - maybe it’ll lead other people onto something they enjoy. Or at least something they can laugh at. I’m keen not to simply thrust my own personal tastes onto unsuspecting readers so please don’t make me.

The other thing is for those of you who don’t want to volunteer for the bathimpact team there will be a page worth of previews and tips as to what is going on in Bath and Bristol (an easy and cheap train

journey away) for the next fortnight. I remember always wanting to know what was going on so hopefully this will be a useful resource for you all. Pretty much everyone ends up falling into the same routine of clubs on various student nights so it’s good fun to have other slightly stranger options.

Anyhow, enjoy this and please feel free to call or email me or approach me when I’m wandering around campus (I’m lanky, floppy haired and will always be in skinny jeans).

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Entertainment

www.bathimpact.com

What’s On - To get you in the know Please let us know about any great things coming up / how any of our suggested events went.

THEATRE/COMEDY

The stage at the Royal Bath Theatre

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here else to start but with the grand old dame that is Theatre Royal Bath. Always worth having a look there as it tends to be on the edges of a lot of the big theatre tours, each month there is plenty on offer. Ents Section particularly recommends going to check out the multi-award winning Enron which runs from the 5th-9th of October. Any show that so successfully annoyed American conservatives can’t be a bad thing…

The Rondo Theatre, also in Bath if a little more out of the way, has an interesting line-up for the next few weeks. There is a short run (7th-9th of October) of Henry V directed by the acclaimed director Andy Burden. The production has been praised by The Guardian and Mr Burden himself has been highly praised by several theatre owner/

managers, normally a pretty good indication that he is a director who has both been around for a while and hasn’t been eaten alive by the cutthroat world of drama. At least not yet.

Of course University of Bath’s very own BUST and BUSM have upcoming shows. First BUSM will be putting on their first extrvaganza of the year - Epilogue - from the 7th to the 9th of October in ICIA Arts Theatre on campus. It promises intrigue, murder and fine tunes so do go to support thm. Next BUST will be performing Oscar Wilde’s classic play The Importance of Being Earnest from the 15th-17th (including two matinees) at the same venue.

The cast includes some very experienced comic actors and could well be a very enjoyable evening.

I

f Indie is your thing then Moles is always a good shout.

Just a bus journey from campus, this Bath club often hosts live music from some up-and-coming indie-kids touring the country and is right next door to Ents Section favourite pub The Porter. Coming up on the 30th of September is O.Children, a band that has been compared with Interpol, Editors and Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds.

Their music tends towards the anthemic and should be a good show for anyone who wants stadium rock without feeling a bit lost in, say, a stadium.

Komedia is also quite a good place to find live acts in Bath. Normally it is a venue more focused on stand-up comedy but it does sometimes offer some slightly more unusual entertainment. Coming up in the next couple of weeks is The Magnets on the 7th of October.

This is an a cappella group that has been a stalwart of the Edinburgh Fringe Festival over the last decade(ish) so should probably be worth a look if you fancy straying from your usual weekly routine of nights out.

For those of you who fancy venturing out of Bath to the wild streets of Bristol there is a great upcoming gig at the O2 Academy: Groove Armada are coming to town. If you like Basement Jaxx then you will like these guys – it’s dancy, it’s high energy and it’s ex-

MUSIC

tremely catchy. It is on the 12th of October but it will almost certainly be a popular gig so book your tickets soon.

For those of you who like their nu-rave, Klaxons will be performing at the Bristol University Students Union on the 21st of October bringing their energetic, synth-led pop in a promotion of their brand new album Surfing The Void which was released last week. This should be another pretty popular gig so, again, make sure and get online for those tickets if you do fancy getting neoned up and flailing with all the electro kids.

If you fancy going to see one of the most hyped british bands coming through at the moment then you can also head down to the Bristol Students’ union to go to see

Crystal Castles. They’ve been getting ridiculously huge amounts of love from industry types for years (they probably can’t move for flowers and chocolates) and, with the release of their second album ‘Crystal Castle II’ they are back out and touring the country. Definitely worth seeing if you like strange electro music or Canadians.

On the lighter side of things is Corinne Bailey Rae, bringing her brand of dreamy pop to the Bristol Academy on the 13th of October.

This is probably a better one for a date than Crystal Castles, although her new album was inspired by the death/overdose of her husband two years before so perhaps it will be a bit of a weepy evening. Nonetheless it’s probably going to be a nice enough gig so enjoy!

Groove Armada: making it ok for white people to gesture like that since 1996.

EXHIBITIONS

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Fritz Lang: you’d be glum too if you were the architect of one of the finest dystopias ever.

he Fashion Museum in the Assembly Rooms in the centre of Bath is a good place to head until the end of the year as it is currently showing a selection of black and white photographs taken from the Sunday Times Fashion Archive, all of which celebrate the world of fashion in the 1960s. Designers, models, clothes and more will all be displayed so head down there for a bit of sartorial nostalgia.

Going a bit further back is another exhibition which showcases the incredibly intricate flapper-girl style dresses of the 1930s. It’s all in one place and it’s quite interesting so why not check it out one of these lazy weekeneds?

The Arnolfini Gallery in Bristol is an incredibly vibrant arts centre, showcasing everything from modern dance to classic films. Ents is

extremely excited to see that they will be showing the complete and uncut version of Fritz Lang’s masterpiece Metropolis. Shortly after its release in 1927 about a quarter of the film was cut and subsequently lost. In 2008, a version of the film that is about thirty minutes longer (and is thought to be complete) was discovered in Argentina, this version then previewed only this year after reconstruction. All in all pretty exciting that somewhere near us is playing the thing! Ents will definitely be heading down there to enjoy the most expensive silent film ever made, as Lang takes the viewer into a frighteningly well realised dystopian super-city of the (now not so distant) future while exploring the social crises arising from the form of capitalism that rules this grim reality. A bonafide masterpiece.

There is another interesting exhibit going on at Folk House in Bristol called ‘Out of My Head’ - a series of paintings by artist Christine Marie Antoinette. She has been exhibiting since 2003 and originates from four different countries; she takes these different influences and filters them through her subconsious, using the art as a way of circumventing her conscious mind. This method of working comes from the idea of art therapy and is quite clinical, quite psychological in approach. Ents is curious about this particular event it could well be hippy babble, could be fascinating. Let us know!

Anyone who attends any of these events please do get in touch with us here at Ents on ents@bathimpact.com

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Entertainment

www.bathimpact.com

Linkin Park return with a horrorshow fourth album.

Hannah Raymont turns her critical glare to the Nu-Metal band’s ‘political’ album

RICK RUBIN rewarding himself for a job well don. For Johnny Cash, not Linkin Park

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ith barely a ripple on the sound waves since the heady days of Hybrid Theory, this fourth studio album from nu-metal ‘royalty’ Linkin Park promises to put Messrs’ Bennington, Shinoda and co. back on the music map.

Rick Rubin, the mastermind behind such ground-breaking albums such as System Of A Down’s Toxicity is on board again, co-producing with Shinoda in A Thousand Suns , which has been hailed and slammed in equal measures by critics everywhere since its release in mid-September.

Just by the artwork alone, A

Thousand Suns is unashamedly a political album, adorned by black and white flames, bearing a striking resemblance to Rage Against The Machine’s debut (another Rubin production). It focuses on the effects of war and nuclear warfare, so in that sense it is a welcome departure from the tirade of emotional ramblings overlaid with irritating sound effects that makes up most of their previous work. However, upon listening , A Thousand Suns seems only really to appeal to die-hard Linkin Park fans and has very little indeed to offer to anyone else.

Opening track ‘The Requiem’ sets the mood for the rest of the album, with more experimental vocals and sound effects but…er… that’s it. It is a rather confusing album and it’s difficult to see what Linkin Park were trying to achieve with this. They claim to have been “destroying and rebuilding” their band but it seems that they have a bit of a hash of it to say the least.

A Thousands Sun consists largely of standard length songs interjected with short sound bites and odd piano samples, as if they have spent most of that time “regen-

Suit up: Linkin Park might be better off if they become investment bankers. It’s certainly more of a reinvention than this last album erating” their band merely playing around with keyboards and old tapes, inserting appropriate vox pops where necessary. However ‘Waiting For The End’ is stylish and very Jay-Z-esque indeed, and ‘Blackout’ gets off to a good

enough start but the music clashes horribly with lead singer Bennington’s lyrics and then listening to the rest of it is akin to torture, and ‘Wretches and Kings’ is just… well, giggle-inducing if anything.

It’s okay though, as Bennington

has branched out into acting in the event that A Thousand Suns doesn’t fly off the shelves – look out for him in the upcoming final SAW horror film, SAW 3D.

‘First Final Farewell Tour’ – that’s pretty funny for big Phil C. But evidently his ability to mock others for refusing to abandon a faded star doesn’t translate to self-awareness.

It would be ironic if it wasn’t so overwhelmingly tragic.

He’s quoted as saying “I want the songs to sound exactly like the originals.” They don’t. They don’t even come close to the originals.

My advice to anyone considering buying this album is this: if you want to make a stupid, costly mistake that inflates the ego of someone who’s far too old to be doing the sort of thing you’re asking him

to do, I’ll give you my number and we’ll hook up. The vocals are absent of any passion and because he’s trying to replicate the noise produced by some of the most outstanding throats of the 20th Century, he has become basically an up-market (but ultimately pretty rubbish) impressionist. This isn’t Motown. It’s a terribly conceived vanity project by a weak impressionist which offends one’s ear and sense of musical history in equal measure.

To try to sell this to people, for actual money rather than magic beans or monopoly money is an outstanding display of hubris. The band’s pretty good, in its defence, but why they agreed to participate is beyond me. Every track is worse than the one that preceded it, not because it’s necessarily either actually worse or actually better, but because throughout the process (from about mid-way through track one) you’re begging for the thing to end. But it doesn’t end. I listened to this last night. I’m re-listening to it now as I write this. And I’m only on track seven, of eighteen. Help me. If anyone reads this… please… make it stop…

Phil Collins: Musical Genocide Sam Foxman Genesis Hating Impact Contributor

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o Phil Collins thought it would be a good idea to take on Motown. His pitch must have been quite outstanding, because someone thought it would be a good idea for him to record eighteen entire tracks of this brutal assault, not just on a genre, but on almost two decades of music. Phil’s record of attrition against music has been well documented, but this latest attack is unprecedented in its scale and in its relentlessness. From start to finish this is an absolute disaster.Phil Collins has been described, mostly in conversation, by me, of the Napoleon of awful music.

Motown, it seems, is his Russia.

Phil Collins, much like the bible, began with Genesis. Much like the Bible, he appears to be choosing to close with an apocalypse. Granted the progression has been a bit less smooth and the apocalyptic conclusion reached with less grace – a Genesis reunion followed from what appeared to be a relatively dignified (and funny) bowing out.

In 2003 he had decided to go on his

Napoleon: at least he never stooped to cover songs

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Entertainment

www.bathimpact.com

Eat, Pray, Love - more than a Julia Roberts vehicle

Gina Reay falls in love with the title character of Elizabeth Gilbert’s hugely succesful

Julia Roberts: She adopts teeth from the developing world and rehabilitates them in her mouth

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at, Pray, Love. Three wonderfully generic words with a hundred meanings, each and every one of which you will understand in detail after reading this magnificent book. These three words epitomise a journey to happiness. Elizabeth Gilbert or Lizzie as we come to know her, has broken down a life-changing year of her life, displaying it on paper so brilliantly that we can see, hear, touch, taste (boy can we taste!) and smell every single fraction of her experience.

Lizzie undergoes a journey of self discovery, cliché I know, but after read-

ing this book those will be the words on your lips too! After a nasty divorce she finds herself in a state of deep, dark and unchanging depression to which she feels the only option to escape from is by ending it all. After what she describes as a religious epiphany she realises she can snap out of it. So she finds a way to gradually heal herself, through the three actions connoted in the title. She eats, in Italy (naturally).

Prays, in India. And finally loves, in Bali.

The brilliance of this autobiographical masterpiece is that its popularity

“

You’ll be head over heels in love with Elizabeth Gilbert.

”

has spread through word of mouth all over the world. Boasting over 6 million in worldwide sales, Julia Roberts will soon be taking on Lizzie’s role in the film version of the book which will no doubt be just as successful. But will Roberts’ acting live up to Gilbert’s writing? Although sometimes slightly self indulgent, her diary-like style and brutal honesty sculpt the work cer-

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hether you’re looking for the perfect breakup song, want to hear a tune about a serial killer teenage girl, or are just curious as to

and Bali, eating the food, practising the religions and meeting the locals (all completely celibately of course). This book concentrates on and emphasises the famous phrase, you can’t expect someone to love you, if you don’t love yourself. Well after reading this book, you’ll be head over heels, over the moon, completely, utterly and ridiculously in love, with Elizabeth Gilbert!

Elizabeth Gilbert: This avenue of trees is where she has the majority of her most profound thoughts.

All singing, all joking

Simon Budden chills with young and old as he takes in some comedy Act: Mitch Benn & The Distractions Venue: Komedia

emoniously, giving it a self-help ‘if-Ican-do-it-you-can-too’ quality which is obviously the main reason for its success.

For those culture-geeks like myself, this book gives vivid descriptions of all four countries that accommodate our beloved protagonist. Rome is described with fondness and incredible charisma as Lizzie takes care of her post-divorce weight loss by indulging in every Italian delicacy that exists and learning the language to go with it. In India, my least favourite section I must admit (however I’m sure this would not be true, were I not religiously apathetic) Lizzie learns the steps to religious devotion in attending her Guru’s Ashram. For the spiritually aware, this chapter serves to benefit. As an initially cynical member of the Ashram, Lizzie learns how to get in touch with God through meditation and prayer.

Finally Lizzie finds herself in Bali, the most moving chapter which I will leave you to form an opinion on independently. This final section exhibits Lizzie reaching her final destination on the road to recovery.

If you haven’t been on holiday this summer, do not fret, just pick this up and you’ll be transported to New York, Rome, Venice, Naples, Tuscany, India

what ‘The Very Hungry Caterpillar’ would sound like as a rock opera, then Mitch Benn & The Distractions could be for you.

Led by musician and comedian Mitch Benn, best known for his part in BBC Radio 4’s weekly satire show The Now Show, the group’s

Came up on a google for culture and current affairs. Ents probably wouldn’t understand Mitch Benn

talent extends as far as being able to play just about any style of music.

The consequent guessing of which genre will be mimicked next adds to the enjoyment of the show.

The songs themselves though are unfailingly funny and are the

“

Mitch has an answer or a song to brighten everything.

”

real stars of the show. With one for just about every situation it would seem that Mitch has an answer or a song to brighten everything and leaves you wondering just how talented he is. Which in case you’re wondering, goes as far as taking suggestions from the audience and knocking out a couple of verses during the interval.

However, being best known for his role in The Now Show means that the audience in attendance is best described as Radio 4. While this is by no means a negative, it does give an indication of the atosphere (and means anyone under the age of 25 sticks out like a sore thumb).

Though once the show begins, any age differences are quickly forgotten and the only prerequisite for enjoying the show is that you have a vague understanding of popular culture and current affairs.

Of course, if mixing music and

comedy plainly isn’t your thing, then I doubt you’ll be converted.

Equally though, a night with Mitch Benn and the Distractions makes a welcome change from the usual haunts and at the very least it’s still worth a listen or two on Spotify.

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Sport

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Springbok world domination comes to an end Jack Penrose takes a look back at this year’s Tri-Nations

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f you’d have told me last year that the South African rugby team would finish bottom of the TriNations and lose to both Australia and New Zealand in their own backyard, I’d have laughed.

Now, 2009’s Tri Nations champs and Lions series victors managed only one victory this year, and they head to Europe for their end of year tour with not a lot of confidence, and a long injury list. It could well be a bleak winter for South Africa.

So, what of the Tri-Nations this year? The contest that pits the three best teams in the world against each other three times each, home and away, was a fantastic spectacle for the neutral rugby fans. To cut a long story short, New Zealand were undefeated with 6 wins in total, including a couple of hammerings against the Springboks and one against their Bledisloe enemy too (Australia). We saw perhaps some of the most entertaining and innovative rugby from the last couple of years, my favourite game was definitely the 41-39 victory for Australia right in the Springboks favoured hunting ground, with a beau-

tiful 55 metre kick sailing over in the dying seconds to claim victory. Australia showed massive improvements after their shock loss to England in June, claiming the second spot in the Tri-Nations, with two victories.

As for South Africa, well, maybe they need another East Freeman to inspire them to do better, as their fall from grace is just staggering!

Why have they fallen so hard? I have already mentioned injuries, but suspensions have cost them dear too – Bakkies Botha, possibly the best “enforcer” Lock in the world, was taken out pretty early. On this issue, a lot of people connected to the Springboks have complained that they were targeted unfairly on their discipline, as well as many refereeing decisions going against them. (they received a hoard of yellow cards, and conceded a penalty count that would have even embarrassed the English team of 2009), but I say this to the Bok rugby team - it’s karma! I still think Mark Cueto’s disallowed try in 2007 against South Africa was a try, and South Africa got off lightly in the Lions series last year with a controversial try al-

lowed by the same Television Match Official (Stuart Dickinson) for South Africa, and Schalk Burger only getting a yellow card for the most blatant eye gouge I have seen on TV. Maybe they have a right to complain, but the problems of South African rugby run deeper - they always have done: the issue of quotas in sport is still very sensitive, and National Governing Bodies in South African rugby do not get paid well and are at the mercy of the government as well (as is seen by a “National enquiry” approved by President Zuma into the Tri-Nations debacle).

More recently you can also look at the recent worldwide law changes in the game, making a conservative and attritional style of rugby less efficient (as employed successfully by the Springboks last year), whereas the Aussie and All Black free-flowing attacking game was not only better to watch, but more effective as well.

That cannot be ignored, and neither can the fact that South African “Galacticos” like Bryan Habana and Victor Matfield were below par. Once you add all of those reasons up, it seems

DISAPPOINTMENT: It’s been a difficult winter for Bryan Habana and World Champions South Africa. pretty obvious that South Africa are in free fall, and they face a difficult tour of Europe this autumn to boot.

It is also worth mentioning that this Tri-Nations wasn’t dominated

by South Africa’s disappointing campaign - the Australian team showed the most improvement and are now a force to be reckoned with, while the All

Blacks were quite simply supreme. It could be a long autumn for the Northern Hemisphere sides. It’s also worth mentioning that the last Springbok team that punched below its weight had a disappointing Tri-Nations and Winter Tour in 2006, and a year later they won the World Cup, even I’m not going to write them off just yet...

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Sport

www.bathimpact.com

New VP Sport reveals ambitions for the year Joe Dibben talks to new VP Sport Andy Crawshaw about his plans for the months ahead So Andy, what has been the big news over the summer regarding sport at our university?

Are there any new clubs or systems?

The biggest news must be that regarding the new kit deal. For the past 3 years, as most of you will know, Kukri have been the official supplier of sports kit at the University of Bath.

For the start of the 2010/11 year that honour has now fallen to a company called Surridge. Myself and the SA team have been working (probably too much) on this deal over the summer to ensure the kit is good quality and that you guys get the best deal possible.

Added to this the other big change people will see is the £20 fee to join a sports club, this price increase was needed to ensure that clubs and individuals get the best support they can.

This year is your first as VP Sport after taking over from previous incumbent James Christmas. Has he given you any tips for the year ahead?

I had a 2 week handover, along with the rest of the team in June, and from July 1st I was flying solo. ‘Santa’ was very good in telling me all he knows, and ensuring I have as easy a settle-in period as possible. It helped that I knew a lot of the staff and how

the SU and SA worked having been event manager for FW09 and being events officer on the SA exec last year. I know that following in his footsteps will be hard, but it is a task I feel able enough to do, and feel that I will ensure that student sport stays at the top both within the Union and the University.

Are you looking forward to your new role, and what are your main aims and ambitions for the upcoming year?

Having already spent 3 months in office “looking forward” to my new role is probably not the right term as I did all that after getting elected.

The summer months do seem to keep going on and on, but then, all of a sudden, Freshers’ Week is here, and I now can’t wait to meet all the new students and work with all the new sports club committees.

Sport is an integral part to life for most students at the university, at both a recreational level and at an elite level. How do you plan to find the balance between your commitment to elite sport and recreational sport?

That commitment has always and hopefully always will be there. No student will ever be turned away from

49

NEW VP SPORT: Andy Crawshaw sport, they may not make a team, but there will always be the opportunity for them to do so, sport at the University of Bath should never be considered ‘elitist’ many people do think that you have to be an international athlete to get into a first team, whilst there are some internationals in the teams there are plenty more who are not. We have 49 sports clubs that have over 60 league teams that play every Wednesday, with many more clubs that compete at tournamentsat the weekends. For the recreational player, there is obviously the IDFC and a few other intramurals going on, this year I am hoping to expand the intramurals to sports such as hockey or netball. Obviously this will need the help of the respective clubs

and a student who is willing to push it along. There really is something for everyone, you just need to look in the right places to find it.

What would you say to freshers, or indeed any student, to encourage them to join a university sports club?

Sport isn’t just about the competition; I can’t believe I just said that… but it really isn’t, sport for many people is a chance to get fit, a chance to make some new friends, a chance to learn a new skill. If there is anyone who doesn’t want to play sport then ask yourself this, WHY? “I’m not good at sport” – have you tried all of the sport we have on offer?

“I don’t like competing” – you

don’t have to play sport competitively many people join a club for the social aspect and just wanting to go to the occasional fitness session.

“It’s too expensive” – You pay £10 to join the Sports Association which gives you access to lots of free stuff, on top of that if a court is available you don’t have to pay any money to book it. Courts are bookable up to 5 days in advance! If you then want to join another club its only another £20, and that gives you access to so much more! If you don’t want to join a club then join the gym. “£209 is too much for the gym” - £17 a month, £4 a week. You will probably spend more than that on drinks whilst you are out. So why not choose to not go out as much and use the money for the gym?

“I don’t have the time” – fair enough if you cannot commit to a full time training regime, many people cant. There are classes available in the STV, at times that wont clash with lectures. Failing that, just go for a run!

There are countless more excuses, with even better responses. There isn’t really any excuse to not even give something a try. So why not go pick up a racket, pick up a ball, go for a swim, try something different, and more importantly just have fun.

One university, one Sports Association, but...

clubs!!!

1. American Football susaamericanfootball@lists.bath. ac.uk 2. Archery susaarchery@lists.bath.ac.uk 3. Association Football susafootball@lists.ac.uk 4. Athletics susaathletics@lists.ac.uk 5. Badminton susabadminton@lists.bath.ac.uk 6. Basketball susabasketball@lists.bath.ac.uk 7. Boxing susaboxing@lists.bath.ac.uk 8. Canoe Club susacanoe@lists.bath.ac.uk 9. Cricket susacricket@lists.bath.ac.uk

10. Cycling susacycling@lists.bath.ac.uk 11. Fencing susafencing@lists.bath.ac.uk 12. Floorball susafloorball@lists.bath.ac.uk 13. Gliding susagliding@lists.bath.ac.uk 14. Golf susagolf@lists.bath.ac.uk 15. Gymnastics susagymnastics@lists.bath.ac.uk 16. Handball susahandball@lists.bath.ac.uk 17. Hockey susahockey@lists.bath.ac.uk 18. Jitsu susajiujitsu@lists.bath.ac.uk 19. Judo susajudo@lists.bath.ac.uk

One thing is for sure this year - with so many clubs on offer, the SA has something for everyone at all levels! Get in touch here...

20. Karate susakarate@lists.bath.ac.uk 21. Kickboxing susakickboxing@lists.bath.ac.uk 22. Kite and Windsurf susakitewindsurf@lists.bath. ac.uk 23. Lacrosse susalacrosse@lists.bath.ac.uk 24. Latin and Ballroom susalbdc@lists.bath.ac.uk 25. Lifesaving susalifesaving@lists.bath.ac.uk 26. Motorsports susamotorsports@lists.bath.ac.uk 27. Mountaineering susamountaineering@lists.bath. ac.uk 28. Netball susanetball@lists.bath.ac.uk 29. Pool, Snooker & Darts susapubs@lists.bath.ac.uk 30. Riding and Polo susariding@lists.bath.ac.uk 31. Rowing susarowing@lists.bath.ac.uk 32. Rugby susarugby@lists.bath.ac.uk 33. Sailing susasailing@lists.bath.ac.uk

34. Shooting susashooting@lists.bath.ac.uk 35. Skydiving susaskydiving@lists.bath.ac.uk 36. Snowsports susasnowsports@lists.bath.ac.uk 37. Squash susasquash@lists.bath.ac.uk 38. Sub Aqua susasubaqua@lists.bath.ac.uk 39. Surf susasurf@lists.bath.ac.uk 40, Swimming susaswimming@lists.bath.ac.uk 41. Table Tennis susatabletennis@lists.bath.ac.uk

42. Tai Chi susataichi@lists.bath.ac.uk 43. Tennis susatennis@lists.bath.ac.uk 44. Trampoline susatrampoline@lists.bath.ac.uk 45. Triathlon susatriathlon@lists.bath.ac.uk 46. Ultimate Frisbee susaultimatefrisbee@lists.bath. ac.uk 47. Volleyball susavolleyball@lists.bath.ac.uk 48. Wakeboard susawakeboard@lists.bath.ac.uk 49. Water Polo susawaterpolo@lists.bath.ac.uk

impactsport Andy Crawshaw, VP Sport discusses his plans for the year ahead All you need to know p27 SPORTS ON SHOW: (clockwise from right) basketball, kickboxing, latin and ballroom, archery, snowsports, surfing and (centre) rowing were just some of the activities making an appearance on the Parade last Wednesday afternoon.

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Sports Day on Parade

he adverse conditions didn’t dampen the spirits of hundreds of students as they turned out in force for the Sports Day on the Parade last Wednesday.

The Sports Day was a perfect opportunity for sports clubs and societies from throughout the university to publicise themselves to the student community, ahead of a new year of sport at the University of Bath.

It was also a great opportunity for the new intake of freshers to see some of the great sports organisations at the university in action There was a wider variety of demonstrations and stands on offer, from kickoxing to archery, and snowsports to ju-jitsu- clearly nobody was perturbed by the dreadful weather!

If any of you have missed out on the Sports Day or the Sports Fair, you can join all Sports Clubs online at bathstudent.com.