UOW UniSpeak Edition One

UNI SPK

UNISPEAK ISSUE 1 JUNE 2012

YOU THINK YOU KNOW

At UOW it’s not about what you know.

It’s about what you don’t know—and what you plan to do about it.

It’s who you are, where you’re going and who you have with you when you get there.

It’s also about how you deal with the unexpected.

UOW people have the right mix of attitude and skills to make the best of every opportunity. And where there’s no good options, make some new ones.

There are no sure things in life. At UOW, expect to be pleasantly surprised and you’ll be on the right track.

UNI SPK UNISPEAK / ISSUE 1 JUNE 2012

Contributors If you want to see more from the crew, you’ll find links to their personal blogs at facebook.com/uowfuture

Scott Ennever

Alice Matthews

Second-year Information Technology (Dean’s Scholar) student, public speaker extraordinaire, [very] amateur bodybuilder and DJ.

Third-year Journalism and Arts (Spanish) student. Part-time guitarist (guitarrista), full-time optimist (optimista). Headed to Mexico (México) on exhange in July (Julio).

Xirui Zhou

Carlie Davis

First-year Commerce (Marketing) student from Changsha, Hunan, China. Resident explorer, dreams of working in travel.

Third-year Science student with a Chemistry major and minors in Earth Science and interior decorating on a budget. Just came back from exchange to the University of Massachussetts, USA.

C O V ER P H O T O Alice with her friend Tamsin (left), who was instrumental in a recordbreaking fundraising effort on-campus earlier this year.

WHATEVER MAKES YOU HAPPY writer Scott ENNEVER

Hello again guys! This is Scotty just checking in about what’s been happening on my end over here at UOW, and to point out some things you should be pondering throughout the year.

You may remember me humiliating myself in front of a large number of Year 12s from all around NSW at Discovery Days in February this year.

I shared the embarrassing story of how two of my best mates fed me cocoa powder and artificial sweetener in place of my protein powder for a month!

Since then, I’ve been engaging in an assortment of activities, including: DJing: Bought a cute little deck, played at my sister’s 18th – now training to play alongside Skrillex and Flux Pavilion at Future Music Festival 2013 AFL: The UOW Bulldogs season has started, and we’ve brought home a couple of great wins—but I’ve managed to somehow injure my knee (now twice the size of the other), scoring me a seat on the bench for the next few weeks Generic procrastination and putting off uni work doing other fun stuff: Only to get hit by a karmic freight train of IT-related major assignments and end-of-session exams, starting in about a week Aside from all that, I’ve also had to begin considering what I’m actually going to do with myself when I graduate.

I envisage myself tackling the IT world, consulting and helping people with their computer problems, but I think one of the best things about UOW is that it encourages you to explore different options, and gives you a qualification that is recognised internationally.

After meeting so many great people from all around the world I think it’s about time I see it: visit their hometowns and discover some opportunities abroad.

So just like I said at Discovery Days, when you find yourselves at a crossroad, chill out for a second and think about what will make you the happiest.

Because I can promise you, I’ve tasted my own medicine for a while now—and these decisions are probably the best I’ve made.

5.5 / Add value to your degree.

Studying abroad is more than just bailing overseas for a semester or two and having the time of your life. Employers like to see experience and going abroad says something about your character and maturity and if it suits you, you can study a language overseas which is infinitely valuable to employers.

FIVE AND A HALF Reasons to Go On Exchange

writer CARLIE DAVIS

My time on exchange has come to an end and here is a chance (in list form, since that’s my style) to reflect on why going on exchange while you study is the ‘bombdiggity’. I could write 100 reasons but I’m going to keep it to five.

Actually I lied. Five-and-a-half.

3/ Experience a different culture and education system.

One of the biggest shocks to me was the differences in the university system in the USA. Extra credit, make-up exams, no study week: things are very different to the way we do it at home and it takes some time to adjust. When you do, though, it’s an experience that you will never have in any other context for the rest of your life—and it’s fantastic!

2/ Make an international network of friends.

Exchange gives you an opportunity to make friends and the first people you will meet usually are other international students. During my time in the US I made friends with local and international students. We are all planning to visit one another all over the world.

5/ You get to travel … enough said.

4/ Personal growth and independence.

I know I have really grown a lot after going on exchange. Having to study, socialise and travel in a foreign country really makes you grow up. You have to do everything yourself and that’s a really good feeling, knowing that you can survive independently.

1/ Gain a second family.

The friends I made have become life-long friends. I know how cliché that sounds but it is a cliché for a reason. These people become your family: you live with them in dorms, you eat with them every night, you study together and you go out together. The people you meet are reason enough to come abroad.

Coming back home was bittersweet, as I left one family to return to another. And that’s why everyone should absolutely go on exchange. No exceptions.

U O W R ur a l A m b a s

LEETON HIGH SCHOOL JUNE 28

COOLAMON CENTRAL SCHOOL JUNE 26

JUNEE HIGH SCHOOL JUNE 25

NARRANDERA HIGH SCHOOL JUNE 28

WAGGA WAGGA INFORMATION NIGHT JUNE 25 KOORINGAL HIGH SCHOOL MOUNT AUSTIN HIGH SCHOOL KILDARE CATHOLIC COLLEGE WAGGA WAGGA HIGH SCHOOL THE RIVERINA ANGLICAN COLLEGE / JUNE 25 MATER DEI CATHOLIC COLLEGE WAGGA WAGGA CHRISTIAN COLLEGE / JUNE 26

s a d or s ’ P ro g r a m

YOUNG HIGH SCHOOL JUNE 29

COOTAMUNDRA HIGH SCHOOL JUNE 26

FROM WOLLONGONG TO WOLLONGONG

GUNDAGAI HIGH SCHOOL JUNE 27

TUMUT HIGH SCHOOL JUNE 27

UOW students will be hitting the road at the end of term two and the start of term three to visit schools in regional NSW and VIC. Scotty and Sophie are from the country themselves and will be heading to the Riverina region during the week of June 25. As part of this trip, we will be holding an information evening for parents in Wagga Wagga on June 25.

In term three, Peter and Alice will be heading to the Murray region to visit schools; at the same time Vanessa and Nathan will be going to schools in the Central West region.

More details on all these trips can be found at www.uow.edu.au/future/events

Watch your step WRITER Alice Matthews

The people you meet at uni can change your life, so be careful who sits down next to you on enrolment day. I met my best mate Tamsin that way and two years later we were bald.

Shaving my hair off wasn’t on my bucket list, but it became something I actually wanted to do. In our second year of uni, Tamsin lost her mum to breast cancer. Her mum was about to undergo her fifth chemo treatment, and Tam intended to shave her head then but never got the chance.

At the end of 2011, Tamsin set a goal of $5,000 for cancer research and started “The Big Shave” to raise funds for the Cancer Council. She pledged to shave her head on-campus at UOW to raise awareness and three more jumped onboard— our friends Tessa, Tash and me—and the goal tripled to $15,000.

I’m not even sure why we set the goal that high. We knew we were going to try really hard, but it was going to be a stretch. The one thing I thought I knew about uni students is that they share a love for free stuff.

They’re economical. Packet-mi-goreng-and-goon economical.

So there we were. Four girls, impending baldness, a whopping $15,000 goal and a university full of students who didn’t owe us anything. I didn’t know how on earth it was going to happen.

Three things helped us out more than I would have imagined. Facebook, YouTube and UOW. I was working at Discovery Days and met Rowan, a filmmaker working for UOWnow, when he was filming my presentation. I told him we were shaving our heads for cancer fundraising to see if UOWTV wanted to cover it.

We thought it would be hard fishing for money from our fellow students. That, even with all the help from family and friends, $15,000 was asking a bit much.

As it turned out, we raised $25,070.

Dozens of strangers helped us run the fundraiser, and hundreds showed up to watch and donate. People wanted to help us and all we had to do was ask.

He said yes—and then took it on himself to do a trailer for the big shave. It went online and ended up spreading over facebook.

Uni wasn’t just a place we studied anymore. It became a place where things could happen, anything really.

We went to Unicentre to ask about hiring or borrowing space for the event. They gave us the whole UniBar for the day, helped us set it up and lent us equipment.

There was a final, massive surprise. The Cancer Council reported on our event, putting photos online.

Complete strangers were leaving comments, thanking us for what we did and sharing their stories.

The girls asked local businesses for support and they gave us over 500 dollars of raffle prizes without blinking.

Our event was on facebook, the Uni TV screens around campus, the student magazine and the student website. We even got a mention from the Doctor on Triple J. Nothing was certain, though.

I realised that you’ve got to be careful of places like this, because you just might find yourself doing something impossible.

Breathing room writer Xirui Zhou

Hello there, my name is Xirui Zhou. I am currently a third-year student at UOW. I came to UOW from Changsha, the capital of Hunan Province in China.

Changsha has a population of five million people. Every day you walk down the street and there are people in front of you, beside you—basically everywhere. There are very few foreigners there.

I learned English from English, American and Australian people in high school, but most of the people in the city are Chinese.

That’ s part of why student life at UOW is so fresh for me. In Wollongong I feel like I’m in contact with the whole world, with so many cultures all merged together.

As an international student studying here, I always notice how many different languages I can hear as I walk around our multicultural campus. I feel like I am travelling the world without ever having bought a plane ticket!

It’s not just study, I also like living here. I don’t like the fast-paced lifestyle of the big city. Before I came to Australia, I was thinking of studying in Sydney or Wollongong. I made up my mind when I saw a photo of a house by the beach in Wollongong. I thought: I’m going to be here for three years—I’m not just studying, I want somewhere I can live.

In Wollongong it’s always blue skies, far more than in Changsha.

I do miss the food of home, though.

Still, I am really enjoying my life here, and I look forward to more ‘fresh’ experiences!

coming soon & things to do

ASKING THE RIGHT QUESTIONS ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW AT UNI INFORMATION DAYS

We’re in the season of open days and information evenings where you’ll have an excellent opportunity to talk to reps from universities, colleges and businesses about your future career direction— and it pays to come prepared. If you want to be informed, you have to ask the right questions.

When it comes to unis, everyone will want to know different things. However, we think there are some essential questions that any keen student will want to ask. Here are UniSpeak’s Top Ten things to ask a university rep at a careers market.

1 / What degrees do you offer that relate to my interests, HSC subjects, and career ambitions?

6 / Are there any compulsory job placements in the degrees I’m interested in?

Degree names vary from uni to uni, and college to college.

For example if you are interested in a career or business, this may be called ‘commerce’ or ‘business administration’, depending on who you’re speaking to.

Are there any other ways to gain work experience within the degree?

2 / What assumed knowledge and recommended studies apply to the degrees I’m interested in?

Remember: at UOW, assumed knowledge isn’t a pre-requisite for admission, but if you haven’t studied those subjects you may find the degree very difficult.

3 / What are my options if I don’t get the ATAR for my course? Are there any other ways to get into the course I am interested in?

Ask if you can transfer from studying one degree to another (e.g. business to law) or ask about TAFE or college programs which will make you eligible to apply to your chosen uni. Ask about bonus entry point schemes too.

4 / Are there any selective entry options into the course I am interested in?

Many universities now offer programs like UOW’s Selective Entry program, but details will vary significantly from one university to the next, so be sure to get as much information as you can.

5 / What are the job prospects like for the career that I’m interested in?

Also ask what job-seeking assistance the uni provides.

7 / What is the workload for the degrees like?

Ask about the hours per week; types of assessments; full time and part-time study options. Where are the lectures and tutorials held?

8 / What scholarships are available?

Which ones are available to students starting their degree?

Which ones are for continuing students?

9 / Are there national or international exchange options?

Do any of their degrees offer international study options?

How many international partner universities do they have, in which countries?

10 / What are my accommodation options?

Things to look for: Is it catered? Is it on campus or off campus? What kind of student community activities can you get involved in?

Keep your eyes open for important careers markets that are coming up in your area or at your school. You can talk to UOW one-on-one at these events and pick up all of our course materials.

To see what is happening on-campus at UOW, please visit www.uow.edu.au/future/events

REWARDING EXCELLENCE EARLY THINK YOU’VE GOT WHAT IT TAKES? UOW Selective Entry invites students like you who have demonstrated a high level of academic achievement.

If you already have a good idea what course you want to do, and are 100% committed to doing well, we’d love to hear from you. Attitude and hard work count for everything with the UOW Selective Entry program.

First you need to apply—but remember that places are limited and competition is tough. We’ll look at your Year 12 half-yearly raw exam results to see if you meet the academic requirements of your chosen degree. We may then invite you for an interview or to the next stage of the selection process.

If we think you have what it takes, we’ll give you a formal invite to study before you receive your ATAR. How you’ll be assessed First of all, we’ll look at your academic record so we can be confident of consistently high or improving academic performance—especially in subjects relevant to the UOW degree you’re aiming for. We’ll ask to see your:

School Certificate (Year 10) results for English, Maths and Science.

Year 11 final exam raw marks for all subjects Year 12 half-yearly exam raw mark for all subjects Trial HSC Marks when you get them.

As well as getting the chance to tell us why you’re interested in a particular degree, you can also provide up to five points that you think are relevant to your application – things like hobbies and volunteer activities, work history or any other qualifications.

Applications open on 1 July and close on 16 August.

To apply or for more information and the academic criteria please visit selective.uow.edu.au

get to know us connect: uow open night Since Discovery Days, you’ve had time to reflect on the courses that are of interest to you and it’s getting close to the time of year where you need to make some decisions. You and your parents are invited to come and meet with current UOW students and staff and dig deeper on the courses that you are considering.

By attending UOW Open Night you will:

Learn more about three different study areas Find out everything you need to know about UOW Selective Entry Join your parents on a UOW Campus Tour Speak one-on-one with UOW faculty staff about what you’re interested in, and your course and career options

When: 3.00 pm – 8.00 pm, Wednesday 27 June 2012 Where: University of Wollongong, Wollongong Campus RSVP: Online at www.uow.edu.au/future/opennight

TIME

WHAT’S ON

3pm – 4.30pm Campus Tours 5.00pm to 5.40pm Selective Entry Session One Bachelor of Arts

Bachelor of International Studies Commerce Creative Arts Education Engineering

Health and Behavioural Science Informatics Law Science 6.00pm to 6.40pm Selective Entry Session Two Bachelor of Arts

Bachelor of Communication and Media Studies Commerce Creative Arts Education Engineering

Health and Behavioural Science Informatics Law Science 7.00pm to 7.40pm Selective Entry Session Three Bachelor of Communication and Media Studies Commerce Creative Arts Education Engineering

Health and Behavioural Science Informatics Law Science

The University of Wollongong attempts to ensure the information contained in this publication is correct at the time of production (June 2012); however, sections may be amended without notice by the University in response to changing circumstances or for any other reason. Check with the University at the time of application/enrolment for any updated information. UNIVERSITY OF WOLLONGONG CRICOS: 00102E

ecoStar paper is manufactured using 100% recycled post-consumer certified waste and manufactured under ISO 14001 environmental management standards. ecoStar has also been made carbon neutral by the purchase of carbon credits, through the Carbon Neutral Company.

YOU YOU THINK DO YOU KNOW