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News
International Experience Conference Sara Mattar | Head of Photography
FEBRUARY 2020
BBC Radio 4’s ‘The 3rd Degree’ at Minghella Studios Adam Snook | Part 3 History and International Relations The Minghella Studios on campus came alive with quiz action as BBC Radio 4 rolled into Reading, hosting a recording of The 3rd Degree, a show that sets a team of three students against three professors, all from the University. Comedian Steve Punt presents the show and asks the questions, maintaining a chirpy commentary full of jokes and witticisms, while doing his best to help the teams locate answers hidden in the depths of their brains. Round 1 tested the team’s general knowledge with a diverse set of questions ranging from weightlifting and crabs to WD40 and Czechoslovakian revolutions.
Sara Mattar
As International part-time officer I had an opportunity to attend a conference run by UKCISA in London.
ference was that students are isolated, anxious, have language barriers and are lonely when coming to the UK.
This event had only one representative from each university across the UK where I had the privilege to represent University of Reading.
This problem has been faced in many universities where many unions provide international events and great support for non-UK students. This could be supported by academic staff and colleagues.
This event was run to mainly discuss the challenges that are faced by the Internationals in the United Kingdom where there were many topics introduced such as mental health and graduate job. One of the main issues faced in mental health that was found in this con-
Several answers were more straightforward than the wording of the question might suggest.
The Minghella Studios on campus came alive with quiz action as BBC Radio 4 rolled into Reading Specialist knowledge was required for rounds 2 (language and linguistics), 4 (law) and 6 (film), with one student and professor answering questions drawn from their field of study. Professor Jane Setter displayed impressive understanding of language and linguistics, treating the audience to a brief lecture on ‘dark L’s’ and the intricacies of the international phonetic alphabet. Round 3 saw time pressure as the teams listed as many answers in a given category as they could think of in 30 seconds, while round 5 featured the shows signature ‘highbrow/lowbrow round.
Described as being a choice between Shakespeare or Love Island, the contestants can pick to answer on traditional cultural topics such as painting and opera, or modern pop culture such as films or social media. The show concluded with a quickfire round, with teams having to buzz or bell to answer. An enjoyable mix of facts and fun, The 3rd Degree manages to inform and entertain, the student vs professor competition bringing a unique dynamic. Tune in to BBC Radio 4 in the coming months to find out if youth or experience triumphed!
I would encourage students to take part whether it is part-time officer or in this conference. If any of you do have any questions about any of these or would like to hear more, please do email me. Pozzitive Television Ltd
An update from RAG Cait Pilkington | Challenges Officer After a successful first term with our triumphant RAG Bingo back in November, RAG is hoping to build on this success and continue with two big events to raise money for our two charities; Mind and New Beginnings – a homelessness charity in Reading.
have to be a member of a sports team or society to offer up something to be bid on.
Coming up on Tuesday 25th February we will be hosting our infamous Student Auction, providing opportunities for any nominees for the RUSU elections, and any sports teams or societies to offer up anything ranging from a training session, to a three-course meal for the winning bidder.
Later on, in May, we will be holding a Sleep-Out on the University campus.
It’s a great opportunity to raise money and raise your profile, and you don’t
You can contact us on our Instagram, Facebook or email (rag@reading. ac.uk) if you would like to participate.
With homelessness being one of the top issues the committee this year were concerned with, and with one of our charities being a café for homeless people, we thought there would be no better way to raise money and awareness than through this activity.
Our 2020 Naked Calendars are still on sale, so head online to the RUSU website to order yours to pick up from Student Activities. One calendar is £12, or you can buy two for £20. Finally, we spent the National Student Volunteering Week supporting many other groups and their activities to help celebrate the invaluable efforts and benefits that come from student volunteering. If you would like to join RAG, you can get a free membership from the RUSU website. You can also find us on Facebook and Instagram to stay up to date with all our events and goings-on.
Reading RAG
