The Bucks Student: Edition 88 by Bucks Students' Union

A ‘band’ new interview

We have a fresh new look!

October 2020 - Edition 88

2 The Bucks Student

Welcome In this edition:

Page 7 - What is wellbeing month?

Sabb updates . . . . . . . 3-5 Find out what the sabbs have in store for the first term

Black History Month. 6 Wellbeing Month. . . . . 7 Take a minute for yourself and your wellbeing

Activities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Did we mention they’re all free?

Leadership Academy. 9 Events calendar . . 10-11 An easy way to see what’s coming up at Bucks

Rusty recommends . . 12 The Family Rain. . . 14-15 An interview and photoset with the band

As you’ll have hopefully noticed by now - The Bucks Student newspaper has evolved again! Adapting to the evolving current situation, you’ll find your normal newspaper content packed into a slightly smaller package so you can easily read it online if you’re not on campus, or pick it up and slot it in your bag for later if you are. With this new format, we will also be releasing the newspaper every fortnight during term time, so keep an eye out every other Monday for new editions. The newspaper has never been easier to contribute to. With a faster release schedule, you can pick and choose which editions you contribute to. So if you have any content, articles, images, interviews or achievements you’re proud of, drop an email to editor@thebucksstudent.com to get started with contributing to the newspaper! It can be a great thing to add to your CV, as well as great experience if you are in any of the creative or marketing industries.

Blackboard guide. . . . 16

For all advertising and media enquiries please contact the Students’ Union Communications and Marketing department.

The University offer a helping hand to get started online

Simon McDowell simon.mcdowell@bucks.ac.uk

MyBucksCareer . . . . . 18

Oli Gunson oli.gunson@bucks.ac.uk

If you’re thinking about placements, we’ve got your back

Nellie Hughes nellie.hughes@bucks.ac.uk

Student success. . . . . . 19 Page 14 - An interview and gig with ‘ The Family Rain’

Articles in this newspaper do not necessarily represent the views of Bucks Students’ Union but are that of the specific author. View this edition online at bucksstudentsunion.org/media/ newspaperarchive. © 2020 Bucks Students’ Union

President update

October edition 88 By Tamsin Grainger

President update Hey all, I hope you are all staying safe and well in these difficult times. Welcome back to Bucks - we are so happy to see students safely returning to campus and working so hard to still make this year amazing. I have now been in the role of the Students’ Union President for nearly 4 months now and what a busy 4 months its been.

Tamsin Grainger - President

Over the summer I had the pleasure of talking to the Minister of Education regarding Bucks and the initiatives we have in place. I worked hard to have an increase of graduate jobs offered at the University as I believed now was the time to be providing more opportunities for our graduating cohort with the current circumstances. To follow this up, I worked closely with the University to help create the new graduate support package which offers graduates the opportunity to further their studies or apply for an enterprise grant to start their own business. Myself and the other sabbs have been working extremely hard with the University to ensure that your return back to campus is as safe as possible. With the rules regularly changing, I am sure you can appreciate this was not an easy task - but our Students’ Union team worked tirelessly to produce as many safe fresher’s events as we could. Starting of course with our first ever online Freshers’ Fair, which allowed you all to see

what amazing clubs, societies and services we have to offer. To follow this, we had two weeks of amazing freshers’ events from cocktail making, murder mystery, social bubble house and many more that allowed you to safely socialise with friends and get to know the Students’ Union. We are now heading into our wellbeing month with lots of amazing speakers and activities for you to get involved in. On top of that, make sure to keep an eye on our What’s On page as we have lots of exciting opportunities on there such as trips to Rush trampoline park and wakeboarding all free courtesy of the Big Deal. I want to say a massive thank you to all the students who have worked so hard to follow the guidelines set by us and the government, I know it isn’t easy but you should be so proud that you are working hard to keep yourself and others around you safe. Remember, if you ever need anything or have any questions you can always get in touch with me on my social media @BucksSUPres or you can email tamsin.grainger@bucks.ac.uk. I am here to try and ensure you have the best possible experience at Bucks and love to hear your thoughts and suggestions for how I can deliver that.

VPEW update

The Bucks Student By Tash Neal

VPEW update Hello Everyone, Welcome to your second Sabbatical Officer update of the year! I can’t believe we are halfway through October already, but I hope you have all been settling into life at Bucks.

Tash Neal – VPEW

This term has already been jam packed so far with the launch of the Wellbeing Month and the Break the Stigma campaign, as well as celebrating Black History Month. It has been so fantastic to see so many of you get involved with the Break the Stigma campaign and hopefully you have learnt something about the stigma of different mental health conditions. We will be launching our awareness campaign on Monday 19 October to campaign to improve knowledge and break down assumptions that are made about different mental health conditions. We hope that by challenging some of these taboos associated with mental health conditions you will all feel more comfortable speaking about them. Don’t forget we still have plenty going on throughout the rest of October and beginning of November so make sure you are keeping an eye on our What’s On page and sign up.

I am excited to be able to say that we have now started working closely with Student Minds to discover more about their newly released Mental Health Framework and learn news way to support students and mental health during University. I am also working with the University to address how we can support students who may be affected by digital poverty. Good luck with the beginning of your studies this year. Don’t forget to get in touch if you need anything! Speak soon,

VPSI update

October edition 88 By Tom Featherstone

VPSI update With this being the first official edition of The Bucks Student this year, I would firstly like to welcome all the new students to Bucks, I hope that you have settled in well to the University and the Bucks community. Times are strange now but hopefully we will get through this soon and be back to a full strength.

Tom Featherstone – VPSI

Movember ambassador Josh Fake

Movember ambassador Honor Fletcher

This summer has been a strange one. Moving into the role in early June, I really didn’t know what to expect. As a student I had built up an idea on what the role of VPSI does and what the job was going to be like. Then again, I had just completed my degree from my dining room table on Blackboard collaborate so I’m not sure what in reality I should have been expecting. As you read in the last issue, myself, Tash and Tamsin spent most of the summer sat In meetings talking about COVID (yes they were as fun as they sound). Since term has started these have slowed down ever so slightly as we move on to the day to day running of the Students’ Union. With my role focusing in on the running of the sports teams and Societies, I have spent my time working alongside the rest of the activities team to move into a COVID secure environment, we have got it down to only a handful of societies operating online. This is all working within the rule of six that Boris has handed us.

Another project that I have been working on over the last couple of weeks is Black History Month 2020. We’ve been looking into many different options and ideas of different events to run over the month to celebrate the Black community at Bucks and the wider population. There are plenty of ways and different events you can take part and join in later in the paper so please make sure to have a look and join them when you can. Another project that I have been working on in the start of this term is Movember. This work has been done alongside Jade, Student Activities Coordinator (Volunteering & Charitable Fundraising). We have elected two Movember ambassadors; Honor Fletcher (Musical Theatre Chair) and Josh Fake (Men’s Rugby Captain). We’re obviously still in the early stages of planning, but have managed to come up with a rough plan of what we want the month to look like, to campaign on social media around the month and hopefully host some face to face events where possible. Once again I would like to welcome everyone back, I hope the year has started off well and look forward to what the rest of the year has to offer. Obviously ending in a Varsity win on home turf at the end of March!

Black History Month

The Bucks Student By Tom Featherstone

This October we are celebrating Black History Month 2020. This year we are looking to celebrate the Black figures and icons that have made a positive impact on your lives, and we want to share their story. If this is something that you would like to take part in, we would advise you to share your story online, through social media, and tag us! Once we have seen your share, we will then be re posting this over all our social media channels to get as much traction as possible and make the story of your icon one for many other people. Obviously, you will need to get the all clean from the person before sharing their story.

“Hate is too great a burden to bear. It injures the hater more than it injures the hated.”

Coretta Scott King / American Author / Civil rights activist / Wife of Martin Luther King

Alongside this we are hosting many different events over the month, both in person and online. These range from different social media outputs, film nights in the lounge and speakers. We are hosting a Rock IT With Rho takeover on the SU Instagram. ‘Rho’, Rhona Noel is a Bucks Alumni who has gone on to become professional Dance Fitness Instructor and the Director of her own company; Rock it with Rho LTD. She specialises in creating tailor made dance fitness and aerobics sessions, that motivate and inspire you to want to take part and get fit and set some achievable fitness goals in a fun and welcoming environment. Rhona will be talking about the history of the Caribbean movement and where it originated from followed by a Q & A where you can ask any in depth questions you have! This is going to go on 20th October. Another event that we are going to be hosting towards the end of the month is An Evening with Jeffrey Boakye. Jeffrey is a writer and teacher originally from Brixton, London. He has a interest in issues surrounding education, race and popular culture. He is the author of Hold Tight: Black Masculinity, Millennials, and the Meaning of Grime and Black, listed: Black British Culture Explored. His next book, I Heard What You Said, is an exploration of race in education. Jeffrey lives in Yorkshire with his wife and two sons. This is going to run on Wednesday 21 October.

Wellbeing month

October edition 88

In collaboration with The Clare Foundation we are excited to be delivering the first of (hopefully many!) wellbeing months! The Clare Foundation is a charity that aims to make Bucks the happiest county in the UK. They are a charity that brings together key stakeholders, partners, businesses and charitable organisations to facilitate and create positive change across society in Buckinghamshire. Their mission is to bring the forces together to tackle the root causes of unhappiness. We are now in week 2, but there is still plenty to get involved with! We will be delivering a range of activities all designed to help you stay well and thanks to the Big Deal and The Clare Foundation these are all offered free of charge. There will be a number of training sessions covering topics such as mental health awareness, eating disorder awareness and self-care. Our workshops will give tips on building resilience in an ever changing environment - particularly relevant this year. Alongside these training sessions we will be offering a number of wellbeing initiatives, including a free wellbeing box available to collect from the Students’ Union! As part of the Wellbeing Month we are revamping our campaign around Breaking the Stigma of mental health conditions, following on from World Mental Health Day on Saturday 10 October. From Monday 19 October until mid-November, there will be a social media awareness campaign addressing some of the identified mental health stigmas from the quiz held last week.

We will also be running the positivity project which will allow you to share your positive vibes on campus and online and participating in ‘Honest Hour’ sessions with our fantastic team of Executive Officers will be the opportunity for you to speak openly about your personal experiences and hear how the Students’ Union can instigate action to make your life at Bucks even better. Another important part of wellbeing is physical health so as part of our wellbeing month we will be working in collaboration with Gateway gym in providing fitness classes designed to support both your physical and mental fitness! All of our activities will be advertised on the ‘What’s On’ page and across our social media so make sure to keep an eye out to take part. We know things are a little different this year and sessions will mostly take place online to help keep everyone safe and allow maximum numbers to take part. Many thanks to our partner The Clare Foundation for their continued support in providing activities to make life better for students at Bucks. As always, if you have any questions or require support with anything at all, just get in touch with one of our team.

Free activities

The Bucks Student By Emily West Welcome to Bucks or welcome back to those of you returning! We hope you are settling in well and want you to take full advantage of all the amazing opportunities offered by your award winning Students’ Union, all FREE courtesy of the Big Deal!

We are now in the second week of our wellbeing month, but there is still plenty you can get involved in and nearly all our opportunities are now online, meaning you can enhance your CV and improve your wellbeing from the comfort of your own home!

And a big thank you to those who attended our virtual Freshers Fair! And for those who attended the Employability and Recreational Activities stands, we listened to your suggestions, so please watch this space…Japanese lessons will be coming shortly! Maybe you have something different in mind? If you have an activity or skills session that you would like to take part in, please do not hesitate to get in touch! We love hearing your ideas and providing opportunities that you want! Contact us at surecactivities@bucks.ac.uk and we will do our best to help.

Online Reputation Management

Caribbean Workshop

Self Harm Awareness

Don’t miss out on this FREE unique training session! This workshop will provide you with information and advice on how to manage your online reputation and social media accounts. In a time when employers are checking your social media accounts before hiring, this has never been so important!

Rock it with Rho LTD is proud to be delivering their infamous Waistline Workouts Dance Fitness session for Bucks this October! This FREE session will be done online, so you and your flatmates can have the best time working out, leaving the workout feeling inspired and motivated without having to leave the house!

This FREE course is designed to provide you with an understanding of self-harm and you will come away with a general understanding of what self-harm is, how common it is, and how to help affected individuals.

Singing Lessons We still have one space left for our popular online singing lessons at 10.30! Whether you are looking to improve your voice for professional or karaoke reasons, these are the classes for you! Signing up will entitle you to FREE lessons from our professional singing tutor done on a one to one basis.

Mental Health Awareness This session is designed to explode the myths and misunderstandings about mental health and mental illness. It will enable you to recognise signs and symptoms of mental health issues and benefit from practical advice about directing friends, peers and colleagues to appropriate guidance and support, when managing distress.

We have a diverse and varied programme arranged for you and you can attend as many sessions as you like at any Bucks campus. Also coming up in the first semester, we have: emergency first aid, public speaking levels 1 & 2, paediatric first aid, and much, much more! If you need any support to enhance your academic experience, pop into one of the Students’ Union offices and we will be more than happy to help wherever we can.

You can book onto any activity through our website so be sure to keep an eye out on bucksstudentsunion.org ‘What’s On’ page – don’t miss out by not reserving your place early on!

Leadership academy

October edition 88 By Sarah Jackson

Leadership Academy

The Leadership Academy was developed to recognise the value of developing future leaders early on. It is a bespoke development programme for talented students to gain specific skills for routes through the Union into leadership roles. It’s a series of training, courses and opportunities to enhance employability and build leadership traits - all free of charge courtesy of The Big Deal. Development activities will be sympathetic to studies, manageable for students at all levels and a typical programme will include:

Creating future leaders After a successful first year we are excited to be recruiting our next cohort of 25 students to this year’s Leadership Academy! Given the current climate, it has never been more important to focus on building up your skills and having a clear set of goals to achieve by the time you leave university to search for your first job. Whether you know exactly what you want to do, or are still deciding, the Leadership Academy can help equip you to give you the best possible advantage when leaving university.

One to one sessions to agree your leadership development route and monitor progress - We will discuss your career aspirations with you, propose and agree a personal development plan with clear objectives and deadlines and review your progress throughout the academic year through regular emails and meetings. Workshops focusing on leadership styles and self-awareness Through an external agency, we would fund and deliver formal leadership training which would provide you with workplace critical skills. We can also offer a free Strengthscope personality profile to help you understand your key strengths and how to use these to your advantage. Accredited training courses specific to your chosen route - We can provide licensing qualifications and legislation compliant certificates for those in the hospitality industry; safeguarding or coaching

qualifications for those in the sports industry; your development programme will be specific to your route and we will source the experience that you need, all of which will appear on your Bucks Award. Employability sessions focussing on CV’s, interviews, applications and assessment centres - Group sessions in all of the above will be scheduled regularly alongside the University’s Careers and Employability Service. One to one sessions are also available with both the Students’ Union and the University. Access to networking opportunities through conferences, staff days and external events - There may be a national or industry specific conference that we agree will benefit your leadership journey and you will be invited to be involved with Students’ Union meetings and development days and consulted with when we have new initiatives or policy to implement. Plus full support of the Students’ Union Development Team through one to one meetings, reflective developmental sessions and assistance with finding your ideal leadership role. You can find further information and apply for the Leadership Academy via the “Jobs and Skills” section of the Bucks Students’ Union website, but hurry, the deadline for applications is Friday 23 October! If you have any questions, please contact sutraining@bucks.ac.uk.

Events calendar | 19 Oct – 25 Oct

The Bucks Student

The Venue and The Lounge at Bucks Students’ Union are open seven nights a week. If you don’t see an event listed below, check online nearer the time; bucksstudentsunion.org/whatson

Tuesday 20

Wednesday 21

Monday 19

Thursday 22

Friday 23

VIC

TORIA SECR

HOSTED

SATURDAY 24 OCTOBER

PERFORM

FROM SH A

PAIN

PERFORM

FROM JO E ACK

CES

NIA

Saturday 24

FRIDAY 23RD OCTOBER

LEARN SPECIAL EFFECTS MAKEUP READY FOR HALLOWEEN

Sunday 25

Events calendar | 26 Oct – 1 Nov

Have an idea for an event, want to arrange a takeover, or feedback for our events team? You can get in contact with the team by dropping an email to; events@buck.ac.uk

October edition 88

Monday 26

Tuesday 27

Curry Club Thursday 29 October Curry & pint for £8 The Lounge 6-10pm

Wednesday 28

Thursday 29 IN THE

Friday 30

Sunday 1

Saturday 31

Rusty recommends

The Bucks Student By Seana O’Reilly

Rusty recommends With everything going on right now, events may seem a little confusing. Across our two venues we have complied with the government’s guidance on managing the risk of COVID-19 and we have become a fully contactless payment system via mobile ordering, there are new social distancing markers and layouts within the venues, many sanitising stations across all our venues, more frequent cleaning with dedicated staff, screens at collections points to keep everyone safe and QR codes on entrances for easy NHS track and trace. With all of this in place we were able to plan and successfully re-create a COVID safe Freshers Fortnight, with seated events such as a fully booked Wine & Cheese night, SOAP brought us a ‘Who Killed Rusty?’ Murder Mystery, our cleverly named FRAT Night replacement Social Bubble House with resident DJ OneF, Glitterbomb were here to bring you some Drag Bingo along with our weekly Speedquizzing EVERY SUNDAY – we had all of this and so much more! We’ve got so much more planned and hopefully something for everyone! Head to our website where you can check out everything we’ve got lined up – if you have any event ideas please do get in touch at suevents@bucks.ac.uk

Cocktail Masterclass

Glitterbomb Bucks: Adore Delano

Due to the high demand and popularity from our first cocktail masterclass evening we’re bringing it back for monthly classes!

Drag Race Icon Adore Delano will be here at Bucks not for just one but TWO shows! Join us for a special evening with the Star of RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 6 AND RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars 2 musician, with live performances and a meet & greet opportunity this is something Rusty Recommends not to be missed!

Learn how to shake or stir your favourite cocktails from professionals! Tuesday 20 October Doors 6pm Tables will be on a first come first serve availability so make sure you’re here early to guarantee a great time! Comedy Night Bucks is bringing high spirits with our new comedy nights! Check out some of the hottest comedians on the circuits performing in our venues. All of our events are now open to the public – tickets for this event are £7 to non-students and can be purchased from our website under the ‘what’s on’ section. Check out from the list below who you can see LIVE at this event. Mary Bourke: “One of the best comedians in the country.” - GQ. Ben Norris: “Splendidly funny.” - Time Out Julian Deane: A brilliant joke-writer Jarred Christmas: “Best of the crop.”

Show 1: Doors 4:30pm, Showtime 5:30pm, meet & greet 7:15pm Show 2: Doors 7:15pm, meet & greet, 7:45pm, showtime 8:30pm Find your tickets on our website or head to glitterbombevents.co.uk Bucks students meet & greet tickets are ONLY £5 Jam Night Calling ALL musicians, missed the live music/performing scene? We have a safe way for you to do so! Monday 26 October 6pm you can perform to a seated venue with Monday Madness drinks deals of draught pints for £2 5-8pm. All you have to do is bring your equipment/instruments, we’ve got the rest covered!

Download the FREE app Discounts Legal ID Campus Life

Join today

TOTUM.COM @WEARETOTUM

The Family Rain - Interview

The Bucks Student By Zuzanna Majewska

The Family Rain

The Family Rain are back. It was great to see them after that break. And they are back not only with two new songs, ‘Be My Avalanche’ and ‘Radiator’ - they are back with new, heavier sound. Their performance at The Lexington was incredible. Zuzanna: You have just released two new singles. How would you compare them to your first album and EP? Ollie: “I think it’s heavier. In that intertwining time when we had a break, you see, when we did the Voyager thing, which, I think, strips the colour from what we do as The Family Rain, I think we simplified our sound to straightforward rock, which was something we were missing in our lives.” Will: “Yeah, heavier. I think we just wanted to focus on what the strongest points were, you know, as a band. When we looked through

all of our songs, especially live, people wanted big, heavy songs. So we just wanted to build it up as that thing. I think we really enjoyed doing that.” Zuzanna: Your songs seem to be personal. So how does your writing process look like? Will: “So, it sometimes starts with just one word or one lyric and then working back. A lot of the time recently we’ve been going to these special places and basically, we keep the titles of the songs, we were just keeping to back them up and up and up. Then when it comes to writing a song, you think what does this word mean to you right now at this point of your life and try to put the story which means something. A lot of the time, me and Tim, we write these lyrics. It is always fun to work backwards on something which has a meaning for you.”

Tim: “And tells how you are feeling at that time.” Zuzanna: Are you going to release a new album? Will: “That is the plan.” Ollie: “I think the plan is, a few more singles this year and hopefully drop the album next year.” Will: “We have, like, seven songs recorded, so we just need to record a few more and then just release a few more singles.” Ollie: “Also build everything back, because it has been a while. Remind people what we are and introduce the way we are going with it.” Will: “This year is just about getting up and up.”

15 October edition 88

Zuzanna: Who is your biggest inspiration? Tim: “Various, from song to song, to be honest. For the latest singles, we were listening to a lot of Queens of the Stone Age.” Ollie: “For me, it is just anyone who, when they are playing live, lives it on the stage, puts everything into their performance. It could be AC/DC or Metallica.” Will: “Then, melodically, The Beatles have always been a huge influence. As we were growing up we were listening to them a lot. The huge rock bands like Motorhead, Led Zeppelin... that sort of stuff. Just trying to get a melody from The Beatles and make it a massive rock show.” To read the rest of this interview, as well as many others, head to teaindie.com. Or, just enjoy the accompanying photos and the rest of the show!

Student success

The Bucks Student By Julia Veness, Stuart Hall, Peter Lin

Blackboard collaborate

Top 10 tips from our Learning Technologists on improving access to our online teaching platform Blackboard Collaborate. We use blackboard collaborate because it is has many tools and features to support your learning and integrates with our other learning systems here at Bucks. 1. Make sure you have a good internet connection, if you experience unreliable internet access then the Library spaces will be open on campus for you to access your online learning. You will need to book a space – bucks-uk.libcal.com/r 2. Remember online sessions can be accessed by computer, tablet or phone if you have a WiFi connection. 3. Join sessions early to check your audio and video settings are functioning properly. 4. Depending on what device you’re using, you may have a preferred browser. However, for Blackboard Collaborate we strongly recommend Google Chrome. 5. To improve your connection to online sessions, turn off other applications that you do not need. 6. Please refer to the pre-session information provided by your tutor as part of the Learning Event Support Package (LESP) as this will help you prepare for the session. In addition, listen to the instructions of your lecturer on the day, they will tell you if the session is going to be recorded and other activities that

you may be participating in that will require you to turn on your microphone or video function.

Your blackboard collaborate team:

7. When accessing an online teaching session make sure you sign in with your full name so your attendance can be logged. 8. To contribute to sessions use the “raise hand” tool or the online chat function.

Julia Veness

9. Don’t be afraid to ask for help if you need it! Although the collaborate session is online, your tutors are still at the end of an email/phone/ Blackboard Collaborate room/virtual and/ or in person office hours and will be more than happy to help if you’re struggling with the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) or any specific topics. If you are having issues accessing Blackboard Collaborate then please contact Open4Learning@ bucks.ac.uk for help.

Stuart Hall

10. Blackboard Collaborate course rooms are available for group work discussion. If you experience any issues logging in to Bucks online systems then please contact: IT@bucks.ac.uk

Peter Lin

Printing

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• Offering student friendly prices On campus and run by your Students’ Union, we’re ready to print your leaflets, flyers, posters, portfolios, dissertation and much more. Visit bucksprinting.com or drop an email to help@bucksprinting.com for more info.

MyBucksCareer

The Bucks Student By Emily West

MyBucksCareer MyBucksCareer is for all current students and has a range of interactive career advice including CV and covering letter builders, videos and reports from industry professionals, as well as lots of interactive tools to make you truly employable. Whether you are in your first or final year, there is something for you, whether that is learning how to gain key skills on your CV, or practicing your interview skills through the mock interview function, it is never too early to start planning your career and developing the skills you need to achieve! As part of this service, there are several upcoming “Meet the employer” events where you can learn all about the opportunities a selection of employers have available for you when you graduate. The first of this series will be from The Co-op on Thursday 22 October at 3pm. This will be a chance to gain a unique insight into Co-op’s opportunities and hear directly from former and current undergrad placement students. Co-op stands for something different. It’s owned by 4.5 million members, and it gives its profits back to members and their communities. A career with Co-op gives you the opportunity to do work that matters. Co-op’s placement opportunities offer plenty of exposure and responsibility.

You’ll have a very real job with projects to lead on, putting customers at the heart of what you do. Gain insider knowledge – you’ll hear from a student who has just started their placement and one who completed it last year, as well as returners to Co-op following their graduations and a former placement student who has been with Co-op for 20 years! Starting in summer 2021, their roles on offer are: • Food Technologist • Labelling Assistant • Product Developer • Food Policy Co-ordinator • Junior Buyer • Agri-Marketing Co-ordinator This is a business that’s building a brighter future for its members, customers, colleagues and local communities. Hearing directly from others who are already on, or who have already completed the placement is an ideal opportunity to learn what the real role will involve. With a wide range of opportunities available starting in summer 2021, this is a great chance to find out if The Coop is a company that you would like to work for. So log onto MyBucksCareer, explore the services on offer and make sure you register for the “Meet the employer” event!

19 October edition 88

Student success

By Heather Boyd-Savidge, Sarah Wilson-Medhurst

Student success A very warm welcome to all our new students this academic year and hello and welcome back to all our returning students. The Directorate for Student Success is here to help you to make the most of your University experience, supporting you in a range of areas to succeed on your academic journey. You may have met some of the teams during Welcome Week. One of the areas we are keen to support you with is study skills and other knowledge that will really help you to succeed on your course. We wanted to promote some key resources that will help you. Whatever your year of study it is never too late to use these guides. Three of the Practical Recipes for Student Success (PReSS) guides to help you get started or continue on your academic journey are:

Plagiarism is passing off someone We hope that these resources will else’s work as your own for your help you with any assessments you own benefit. This can happen either are preparing for. To access a copy intentionally or unintentionally and of the guides head to the Learning it is really important to understand Development Unit on Blackboard what it is so that you don’t and navigate to Practical Recipes plagiarise, as doing so can lead to for Student Success. an Academic Offence. The guide For further information or support gives you the information you need on any of these topics raised to understand what plagiarism please contact the Learning is so that you don’t plagiarise, Development Unit: as well as further sources of guidance and help. Whatever your The learning development unit year or level of study you will be staff can offer online or in-person completing assessments as you meetings, please email us at progress through your course. ldu@bucks.ac.uk and one of The assignment brief checklist is our advisors will contact you. on all of your assignment brief documents as a reminder of the areas that you need to consider Top Tips for Academic Writing for your submission. The guide is there to help you to make sure you understand what it is the assignment is asking Plagiarism: A Guide for Students you to do and that you are What is plagiarism? not losing marks unnecessarily on some of the Fit to Submit: Assignment Checklist areas that your assessment will be scoring.  Time management is an important part of writing. Have a plan for how you are going to fit everything in.

 The middle part (the discussion) of your written assignment should be where you put most of your effort. Don’t

spend too much time on an introduction and a conclusion.

 Analyse the exact words of the brief – what exactly is it asking you to do?

• Plagiarism a guide for students • Fit to submit: Assignment checklist Top tips for academic writing provides an overview highlighting the language used in assignment briefs, the 3 key areas to consider when putting your assignment together as well as tips for referencing, formatting and proof reading.

“Analyse” – Examine in very close detail; identify important points and chief features



“Compare” – find differences and similarities



“Evaluate” – apply your judgement and opinion

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“Argue” – will give you one side to take (still present both sides of the argument though)

 Once you know what your argument will be, check that it fits the assignment brief.

(There is no point writing about elephants if your tutor wants an essay on thermonuclear physics!)

There are 3 key areas in building a written assignment:

“Passing off someone else’s work…

• Top Tips for Academic Writing



Literature

Critical Analysis

Structure

Have you gatheredlectures all of theorliterature starts the minute Any source other than your own. This could be books or journals, presentations,Critical TV or analysis radio programmes or anyyou work by What are the different sections of your your work will be based on? pick up a text: argument going to be? another author.

either intentionally or unintentionally… Have you made a note of the author

Be thinking: Try to split the information you have year andyourself where itwith was the published? gathered into topics and themes. Ignorance is no excuse! It’s worth spending timename, familiarising concept of plagiarism and how to write and reference  What is the viewpoint of the author? properly. Does your argument flow continuously?  Have they submitted enough (1) as your own, for your own benefit.” evidence to make their argument You will have to use other people’s work in your essays and assessments. This is a normal part of academic writing. The key is knowvalid? ing how to do it correctly.  Have they left any unanswered Plagiarism can take three forms: questions?

This brief assignment checklist is designed to be given to students to help them avoid some of the most common “Collusion” “Copying” “Paraphrasing” Referencing mistakes they make in their coursework. If you copy a passage from another Even if you don’t copy another source Unless an assessment is clearly defined  Have referenced source usedwork”, in yoursharing work? research, source, you must put it in quotation word foryou word, you need every to provide a you have as “group HAVE YOU READ THE ASSIGNMENT BRIEF? you need toideas do this forwriting every with source – papers, marks (“”) and provide a reference, reference (but notRemember quotation –marks). and your peers isbooks, websites, TV programmes, etc. IF NOT, DO IT NOW!  Have you listed all of these at the end of your text –under acknowledging the author/s. collusion a form“references”? of plagiarism. In it you will find details of the assessment task, word count, the assessmentcriteria your work is them in the right style? (Check your programme handbook and Cite Them Right) Have you referenced What can happen?

marked against, and the learning outcomes – the basis for the assessment strategy in each University has a duty to the academic community to prevent Plagiarism, and it will be taken  Plagiarism is an “academic offence”. The Formatting module.

seriously. It has to apply the rules fairly to all students so even if it is the first time you have committed the offence, you will face  Have you checked the formatting guidance in your programme and/or module handbook and on the assignment

can lead to being failed forelements the assignment, the module, the semester and even expulsion from the course and Students often lose marks by forgettingconsequences. some of theItmore straightforward of their brief? of any credits you have already earned. This does happen to students every year. assignments. We recommend that you removal “tick off” each of the points below as you prepare your work  Presentation is an important of a written “Myask tutors can’t haveand read/ and remembered every book and journal - how will part the University findassignment. out?” for submission. If you need any help, your tutor or visit https://bucks.ac.uk/students/ universities across the world. It automatically compares what you have submitted  Bucks uses “Turnitin”. This is a database used academicadvice/assessment-and-examination ProofbyReading

to a database of published resources and works out how much of your assignment could be from other sources.  Once you have completely finished writing, proof read your work.  Some of your writing will always be the same as other author’s work. Quotes and paraphrases of existing work is essential in good  Presentation is an important part of a written assignment. critical discussion, but, your marking tutor will look for whether or not you have referenced this correctly.

TICK

Have you read and understood assessment criteria? Why dothe people commit plagiarism?

Remember – The LDU are there to help you

to country. You must familiarise yourself with the UK  They are unaware of the rules - The rules about plagiarism differ from country Have you met the learning outcomes? You will lose marks and your work may even https://bucks.ac.uk/students/learning-development-unit definition of plagiarism. 15/01/2020 : Adapted from: be failed if you have not. 15/01/2020

 They feel under too much pressure - University can be stressful and there can be pressure to complete assignments in a short timescale. It is never worth plagiarising other work in order to meet a deadline. The consequences of plagiarism can be much worse than Have you demonstrated you can and write critically in or the completed work? thethink consequences of asking for support requesting an extended deadline. To look at the support available, go to https:// and https://bucks.ac.uk/students/learning-development-unit. This means you have supportedbucks.ac.uk/students/academicadvice your arguments/explanations appropriately e.g. How to avoid using relevant academic sources andplagiarism you have

offered discussion points which expresent a comprehensive guide to writing / referencing on this one page! Visit the Epigeum Avoiding Plagiarism course  We cannotto tends your own or others’ viewpoints make reasoned conclusions/judgements. for further information. As a Bucks student you can access this resource for free, but you will need to register. For registration instructions, visit the LDU Blackboard Organisation and click the link to the course in the left-side menu or follow this link.

Have you maintained an academic tone throughout your work? That is, is your work  https://www.citethemrightonline.com/ for an interactive guide to referencing formal, focused, developed and clear? Have you checked that the programme requirements?

avoiding plagiarism

 The Learning Development Unit can also provide advice and guidance when writing assignments. https://bucks.ac.uk/students/ learning-development-unit

in your assignment is in line with your

Don’t go through your degree being scared / confused about plagiarism! Take time to familiarise yourself with how to avoid plagiarism and how to reference other authors correctly.software Once you to know how, youspelling can write confidently and positively. Have you proofread your work and used spellcheck check your

and grammar?

References: 1. Carroll, J & Appleton, J. “Plagiarism: A Good Practice Guide” 2002, JISC/Oxford Brookes University 15/01/2020 : Adapted from: PReSS pack

15/01/2020

Have you checked the presentation or format of your work is as specified by your tutor, for example, are font size, colour, style, line spacing and margins as the tutor specified?

Have you kept to the word count (or equivalent)? If you are not sure, check with your tutor. Can you confirm that the work submitted is your own and not plagiarised?

15/01/2020

15/01/2020 : Adapted from: PReSS pack

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