Placement Adverntures # 6 (答え)

答え - n. answer, reply (Japanese - English Dictionary http://linear.mv.com/cgi-bin/j-e/dict)

The time when I started the series of posts called Placement Adventures was roughly the time when my adventures actually started. In the past several weeks I have been rewriting CVs, writing Covering Letters and filling up Job Applications. it is so much work and you never know if it is going to pay off.

The time when I started the series of posts called Placement Adventures was roughly the time when I started checking my e-mail twenty time a day, sometimes every half an hour, eagerly waiting for an answer from one of the four companies I have already applied for.

The time when I started the series of Posts called Placement Adventures was the time when I started praying for an answer (and oh my God, it sounds so cheesy and film-like but in reality imagine a more whnier and desperate kinda way)

At two minutes to two o'clock today (Oh, my God even the time is epic) I got the first invitation to stage two - Online Assessment Centre. Finally one of the X companies decided I am not a total screw-up, finally someone decided to give me a chance.

Now my Placement Adventures continue and I will be needing help...

Placement Adventures #5 (S'appliquer à )

S'appliquer à: to apply to (Collins French-English Dictionary)

Probably the most frustrating part of my placement adventures has to be the online applications I have to submit. Of course the applications vary between the different companies. There is one thing in common, they are all perfectly appalling. It would be so much easier to just send your CV with a Covering Letter to an e-mail. I can probably divide the different characteristics of the online application method in several points:

1) Registration I cannot believe how many websites I had to register in. I am currently a member of the Toyota, Peugeot, Kraft Foods and Intel websites. And bear in mind that I have just started applying, I haven't even submitted applications in all of the companies. But you always have to register. Bottom line, I wake up with 5 extra e-mail every day!

2) Online CV The most frustrating thing in the online application process is the so called 'online CV'. Most of the companies want you to, literally, write a new CV for them. In some cases it is even more detailed than your normal one. In other, it is much shorter. Only after you make your online CV you can attach and submit your normal CV. I just don't see the point in sending two CVs. Do you?

3) Questionnaire After the online CV most companies would ask you to fill in a online questionnaire. Up to ten questions which you need to answer in up to 150 words. You can imagine it takes so much time.

4) Online Covering Letter Some companies want you to write your 'motivation' in your application. Others just want you to give an answer to a specific question concerning the company.

5) Online Tests Some companies would start testing you from the very application: " In 2000 words answer the question - What is the effect of the economics crisis in the company X's industry."

The bottom line is - be prepared with time and patience!

Placement Adventures # 4 (Curriculum Vitae)

Curriculum Vitae: a summary of your academic and work history (The Princeton Dictionary)

In other words, the one way you can tell your future employer who you are, in an extremely concise way of course. There are three huge disadvantages CV:
- You don't really have a choice for the format (for your placement CV that is)
- It is so extremely impersonal (I mean, you can't even state anything in first person)
- You have exactly two pages to describe the best of all your life!

And yet, that is your best shot at getting your future employer to hire you, and what's more - IT IS YOUR ONLY CHANCE! Therefore, right now everyone I know from uni is constantly asking for tips, writing, rewriting and obsessing about their CV. Of course, everyone includes me. I spent two days writing my "new" CV hoping it would be good enough. The worst thing is, I can never know if some particular employer is going to like it. So, as the placement office advisers said: "Just send it to as many companies as you can!"

To be honest, I have had plenty of support from the Placement Office when writing my CV and, yet, there is never a guarantee, is there? In the end of the day, all one can do is hope that his done a good job enough making his academic and work achievements seem impressive. All that is left after that is WAIT...

PS: I have just added a free messaging service, you can send a free text message to any mobile in the world. I just tried it and it is working just fine. You have to register real fast first to get a password sent, but it is all free. Enjoy!

Placement Adventures # 3 (Far Far Away)

On a floor far far away (actually 6th) in the Aston Main Building you can find a very extraordinary room - The Placement Office. I have talked with so many people from so many universities and the Aston Business School Placement office is the most useful place for a student on the quest for a placement. Even the other schools in Aston don't have the office. There are three main features to it:

1) Placement Office Briefing Sessions
For me these lectures have been the most useful feature of the placement office. They literally taught me how to write a proper CV and cover letter.

2) CV and Cover letter check
The CV and Cover letter check is the bets thing for a placement student. Keep in the you can have specialized companies check your CV but that will cost up to £200. In the placement office it's free! (God I love free stuff!)

3) Website
The website has, for me, being the perfect planning tool of all the stuff I have to do to get a placement, starting from choosing an employer, a position, writing a proper CV and then a proper cover letter.

4) Appointments
Hopefully my time will come to use the 15 minute appointments. A student can have a mock interview and practice what he/she is going to say on the actual job interview!

5) etc. ask for more!

Oops, my briefing session is starting!

Placement Adventures # 2 (Meet the X)

This week I will use X for every company that has had or will have a presentation at Aston. It is unbelievable how many companies are interested in having interns from our university. I did not realise how amazing that is until I talked with a friend of mine who is from a different university and unfortunately hasn't had the same 'luck'. But is it luck? No, it is probably university connections, the good performance of previous interns or postgraduates, or maybe even our Business School rank place. So, prospective students beware of the internship opportunities you are going to have once you get here.

I have been so busy last couple of weeks that I did not even manage to go to half of the presentations. There is at least one every day of the week! Here are some of the companies that I managed to go to (only in the first week of presentations)


I will return to this list tomorrow and give a little feedback on the company presentations.

Placement Adventures #1

The second year brings one horrible thing - Placement Search.

It seems like every single student is searching for his/her placement. How can you tell - there are three questions anyone can ask you through the day:

- So, are you gong to company X's presentation?
- So, how is the placement search going?
- Did you find a placement yet?

Of course, it always seems that the person asking you is one step ahead and is just trying to rub it in your face. Thank got there are so much help from the Placement Office. It my LAST HOPE! Talking about the Placement Office, I have not given you any updates on any placement stuff yet, so this week is the official placement week in my blog.

The End of an Era

January 19th 2008 is one of the dates I think I will always remember - the day when I started my first job in the UK.

On the 18th January I went out with Kara and just as we were dancing she told me that the pub she worked in were looking for staff. On the next day, as a joke, I went to the pub and had an interview with on of the managers Simon. I clearly remember his questions and my lies:

Simon: Do you play sports?
Vlad: Oh yeah, me an my flatmates play football every week
(Yeah wight we did it twice through the whole year)
Simon: I see you have work experience behind a bar.
Vlad: Oh yes, you can see that I have worked quite long in 'No Name', the only thing I have not done is pour pints because we did not serve draft. You can call my ex-manager Jane Ramsheva for reference
(Manager, right, that was my ex-girlfriend)

Anyway, I got the job. I got home and three hours later they called me for a trial shift and induction. Just like that the roundabout started turning and after almost a year it stopped. Yesterday I served my last pint and do not intend to go back any time soon. But, still, I can't help but missing The Newt. I have this theory that there is 'A Newt Curse'. Every single employee that has left keeps coming back, either to work, or as a customer, but they can never stay apart for too long. Probably it is the staff, probably it is the atmosphere, but I know I will be coming back, not only to get a pint but to see my ex-colleagues and my ex-managers, to sit on the old chairs where I used to sit after shifts. For the time I worked in 'The Newt' I saw the management fully changed four timer. The only three people that are left from my starting team now are Simon, Kara and Sam. Yesterday I found out that Simon has give his one month notice and is going to Australia in December. Now that I look back the only things I remember are the fun times and the ridiculous situations. I bet you can get a feeling of the place too, even if you go 'as a joke', Student Nights are now Saturdays but I know who will not be serving you!

Now I can finally write on my CV:

The Newt (21/01/2008 - 24/10/2008)

My First Lectures at Aston University (Round II)

It has been too long since I have been postponing this post. You would ask why is that? The Answer is hidden in the very title of this post: 'Round II'. The second year is, so far, the toughest year in my academic life (not that my academic life is so long, but still). Here are the simple impressions of an average second year student, that's me.

1) Unbelievably for me, and everyone else in my lecture theatre, first day of uni started at 9 a.m. with my fist lecture, and by lecture I mean a full length, 54 slide, 98 minutes revision of Micro economic concepts. I could not believe my eyes, the lecturer not only had time to introduce himself and finish the lecture, but also finished 2 minutes earlier.

2) The second lecture got the theatre fully overcrowded; it was so hot that people started falling asleep (incl। myself); it was so full that you could hardly hear the lecturer. It has been sorted by now, but still.

3) The third lecture was very, very disturbing। I got told that I am to be taking part in a simulation of a car-production company; later in the week got chosen for the Financial Management position; in the following weeks understood that I am scr**d.

4) The fourth lecture was finally just an introduction to the module, no information to remember, just half an our of the most stressful numbers in your life. The second lecturer, basically told us that we are all doomed and will get low grades.

5) The fifth lecture was the Business policy and I can openly say, the worst subject this year। It is basically a lot of obvious assumptions, put in a textbook. When you add the US influence on the textbook, the whole subject becomes bloody evil.

6) I missed the sixth and final lecture because I got confused with time। Yet last week I managed to find out that I don't remember anything of my statistics classes and that I may possibly fail the test next week.


So these are my first impressions from this year. Now I assume you don't want to hear only about the academia but also about the life. That is why I am dedicating next week to the upcoming Halloween (Halloween is huge in Aston). I am not only going to tell you all about my Halloween Aston Party, but also take out the old box of photos from last year.

My Very First Lectures at Aston University

I can still vividly remember my very first week in Aston. I was so excited, hoping to perform good and show my best, ready for the adventure that was my first year. Or at least I thought so...

My very first lecture was - Introduction to Organisational Behaviour. Patrick, the lecturer, just mesmerized everyone in The Great Hall. I think from all my first year lecturers Patrick was the one that just always managed to pull out an actual show. People would sometimes applaud him after the lectures. So, to go back to my very first lecture. I stepped into the Great Hall expecting the worst. I had no idea what Organisational Behaviour is and I imagined the professors to be all serious and stern. Patrick started with introducing himself (as every lecturer) but it was not the usual introduction, it felt sincere, honest and really personal. As if we were out in a pub - me, my mates and Patrick and we were just telling each other crazy stories from when we were young (lets just say that). I left the lecture calm and relaxed, thinking that everything to follow was easy and fun. God, I was so gullible!

The Management came next, then the Economics, then the Accounting, the Marketing and they all just seemed so difficult and new. I had never ever discussed the subjects in school. I would comment on every lecture with my mates and we would all be like: 'That wasn't too bad...' or 'I liked it', or 'Piece of cake!'. Bloody hell, we were all so wrong. It turns out that you have to actually read after the lectures and prepare yourself for the next one, and write homework, and even do research. You can imagine that the longer it takes one to realize all that the harder it's going to be for him to cope with it. Well, we found that out in Week 3 when we had our first quiz in Financial Accounting. We all felt so unprepared and plain stupid. That is when we had to go back to the first lecture and catch up. We would have study groups which now seem like a total waste of time. We would call friends and previous teachers and even parents for help when all we needed to do was read and just absorb the material.

Still, there was one subject that I immensely liked from the very first lecture. That is - Quantitative Techniques. Oh, I still remember the first slide, it was on some material I had covered in school 5 years ago. I finally had a subject that I had an amazing advantage in. Yes, it was not very interesting, but I did not have to study at all. I never bought the Quantitative Techniques textbook and I still love the subject.

Just like that my first week was over, and then the next one... Today I feel like I just got into uni, not much wiser and not much smarter, just a boy on its way to real life. OK, well, maybe a bit smarter and just a very tiny bit wiser, and more prepared for what is to come.

The First Week of Uni

No matter which year you are, what degree you are having, or what plans you are trying to fulfil, the first week of the uni year is always a bit scary, a bit disturbing, very exciting and always fun. In the first year of uni your module leader may tell you that you are going to fail but you are going to laugh in his/her face. Later on you may think thing through, more rationally and seriously, but in the first week it is all about the fun.

The fun comes from the constant complaining about the lecturers, the unending small-talk about controversial** subjects, the hasty remarks abut everything new. In the first week of uni you will be laughing at you future misery and I bet that future you will be cursing those gullible moments of mere understatement.

In the week to come I will share with you my perceptions from last years lecturers during freshers week and what has changed this year...


**controversial (in tha first week of uni you will find yourself arguing with your mates about a certain module - they would think it's impassable, while you can already see the first on your diploma)

Freshers Flu

Hopefully, there are less flu cases between students this Freshers Week compared to last year. I can still remember my first freshers flu last year. Me and my eight flatmates were all sick and were ready to try anything, I mean ANYTHING (:P), to get better.

I was living on a box of pills my mother had given me. I think I was taking a total of ten a day. Now that I think about it, that surely cannot be good for you.

One of my flatmates, the infamous 'Party Animal' was trying to cure himself on herbal tea and vitamins.

'The Hippies' were so desperate they even agreed to try some of my pills. In the end they could not put themselves through it and left the pills for when they are on their deathbed.

'The Hard Worker' being a pharmacy student was living on paracetamol because it is the base of most of the flu pills.

Of course we all got better with time but, still, the experience was not a good one.

... Unfortunately I did not learn from my mistake and currently am one of the ill second year in a raw. The flu will pass and, surely, will not ruin last weeks amazing experiences. Yet, I felt obliged to give TIP 10 FOR PROSPECTIVE STUDENTS: Health is important! Try to stay healthy and enjoy the uni experience at its fullest.

Freshers Week 2008

Freshers Week 2008 has hit the university and does not want to let it go. It is unbelievable how a humans body can withstand the torture that is Freshers Week. There is a full schedule of activities starting early morning and finishing, well, early morning; absolutely no time for rest. I have already posted the events for the week and there is no point of repeating myself, instead let me share with you the highest and lowest points of the week.

The Freshers Pub Crawl has been the highest event this week, and definitely the most attended. I have to say that compared to last year, this year's pub crawl was quite unorganized; and yet, I had so much fun. This year fewer pubs were included: (and surprisingly - one restaurant)Einstein's - Sound Bar - MinZu - The Newt - The Yard of Ale - Scruffy's. Of course the big finish was at The Guild, which was at its fullest. The 1st October will be remembered for a long while. It was truly the best night of the Freshers Week so far.

There have been quite a lot of disappointmets. As a whole the Guild has lost some of its glamour this year. I was surprised to see the once constantly overflowing halls now empty with a sigh of disappointment in the air. I think this year's Indie Night was the biggest disappointment of all. The were more people in Einie's than in the main room. Another fact that has surprised me is that I have been able to get in after 11:30 buying a ticket at the door every night. Last year you had to pray to get inside after 11:00 with a ticket.

But putting negativity aside, I have been enjoying Freshers Week 2008 so far and I am going to keep a positive spirit and wait with anticipation for tonight's surprise. Tonight is set to be on of the best. Yet we are all expecting the closing party on Sunday, which is set to be amazing.

International Freshers Week

The International Freshers Week has taken over Aston's Campus and although it cannot be compared to Freshers Week, there still are some lush parties. There have been three ultimate party places this week.


Einie's has been on every night and I have to say is unbelievably full. Yesterday it was busy with fuss and and excitement as the first Pub Quiz Night was spicing up the new freshers. The £2 Carling was the hit of the night! Yet, I have to say, the air conditioning problem was unbearable this time. It was like a Roman Spa in there.


Gosta was a unsually full on Monday. I missed the Pounded nights all summer. They were still going, there was just no one there. Now it was finally a good start for Gosta - a full house all night.


I have to say that Gate Crashers is the hit of this Uni season. I talked with freshers that have been there every night and don't want to go anywhere else. The reconstruction has been massive and every trace from 'The Works' has been swept by glamour. Gate Crashers seemed massive yesterday(and I used to go to 'The Works' regularly), the main room being the hit of the night. With three massive disco balls, an enormous light wall and eight smoke machines, Gate Crashers' main room is currently the best club in Birmingham!

... International Freshers Week is not finished, there is more to come. Tonight the first Karaoke night is set to tart the new season. I personally will be going to the grand Karaoke final in the Newt, though.

If you are not a fan of Karaoke, Kelly Rowland is set to sing in Selfridges. The party is supposed to be invites only and lots of V.I.P. guests. This is going to be the ultimate party place tonight! (well, for those who manage to get in).

The Countdown to Freshers Week #1

As promissed here is the official 'Auntie' T-shirt for next week.



(If you open the image you will see the official events for the whole Freshers Week)

The Party Animal

The last Aston character that I am going to share with you is my 'party' flatmate from last year. You will probably meet 'The Party Animal' during Freshers. He is, literally, all over the place when it comes to a party. During last year's Freshers Week he managed to popularise the pre-guild/warm-up party in our flat so much that it became a tradition for people from Dalton to visit us every night. Once he got us a V.I.P. in Oceana with free drinks all night. And, well, even after four months he still called me when he came back to Birmingham to hang out. He is truly unstoppable. But how would you recognise the party animal.

First, and most importantly, 'The Party Animal' always has to be trendy. Then he must never feel cold or heat. No matter what the temperature, 'The Party Animal' has to have an outfit prepared and suffer the consequences. Last but not least, he should be able to sacrifice a night's sleep or exams' preparations for the party's sake.

Yet, I have to say that 'The Party Animal' surprised me very positively in the end of the year and got quite good marks, not mention passed all his modules. I have big hope for him... Here's THE PARTY ANIMAL'S TIP FOR PROSPECTIVE STUDENTS: DON'T MISS THE SESH AT MY FLAT BEFORE THE GUILD!

Now before I sum up, I have to say that the characters I described are only four of the seven people I lived with last year. The rest three are individualistic and I don't want to put a name tag on. And last, there may be a hint of 'The Hard Worker' or 'The Hippies', or 'The Party Animal' in any of us. Aston's campus is so colourful and interesting that you will find your own characters and you own friends. Hopefully, you will be lucky enough to live with them for a year, like I did. Now that I look on the year that has passed I feel no regrets, I was blessed to have such fun times.

Here's a little heads up on what is to come here till the end of next week. You will get and exclusive sneak peak at what is to come at Freshers and hopefully a Rota of the different events. International Freshers Week started yesterday and I will give a post with the events to come in the week. The first hint is:

The Hippies

After a comparatively short break and a lot of sunbathing I am back in Birmingham. I feel just like last year - cold and filled with anticipation. Kara is going to be an 'Auntie' this year and we will have a very good insight on all the events from this year's Freshers Week. The International Freshers Week takes off next weekend to warm up the campus and prepare us all for the big 'F'. (For everyone who are not familiar with the term 'Auntie', an 'Auntie' is the person male/female who is supposed to welcome, help and integrate the freshers in the Aston atmosphere.)

If I remember correctly, though, I still have several untold stories. I already started describing several types if typical students or at least what I think is typical. After 'The Hard Worker' which is a very common type comes another huge group 'The Hippies'.

'The Hippies' male or female have the same characteristics. First, they are always a part of the bigger 'Hippie Society' in the university. They would know all the other hippies and meet socially with them at least four times a week. Yet, they always seem to 'not care' if the group has a fallout or a big trouble. When a problem comes, 'The Hippies' will not hesitate to save themselves first. Still, 'The Hippies' are in some rare occasions ready to help someone from the group to improve their 'Hippie' status or just to feel better about themselves. In the end of the day, though, 'The Hippies' are supper nice to all the 'Non-hippie Masses' on campus and if you don't provoke them can be extremely friendly.

In their studies 'The Hippies' grow up to their name. They are not going to miss the sesh in flat 11 next week for some accounting test, or not got to Oceana on Monday because some boring professor decided to give them an essay to write. Of course that results is lower grades. Although quite bright, the hippies are always struggling with tests and grades. They have the most fun, though... Even 'The Party Animal' would go out less than 'The Hippies'... They just do not care and cannot be bothered.

'The Hippies' are in university to have the experience, not to get the best grades. And they may actually turn up to be right in the end, I still cannot say. Now that I look back on the months I have spent living with 'The Hippies' I actually miss them. We had so many fights because of the different way we lived our lives that sometimes we didn't speak to each other for weeks. Yet, when I look back on the whole experience I had with 'MY Hippies' I miss them and their nonchalant character. When you are in a bad place no one can cheer you up as good as 'An Aston Hippie'.

The Hippies would probably miss to give an advice to the prospective students but they may invite you to a party...!?

The Hard Worker

You can already feel the anticipation in Birmingham. The city is waiting for the new Uni year to start. In less than a month freshers will start flooding the Universities. Last year at this time I was making the final preparation for my leaving Bulgaria. I still cannot believe how much my life has changed since then. One of the people that changed it is 'The Hard Worker'.

'The Hard Worker' is how I will be calling one of my ex-flatmates from Dalton. He was doing a masters in Pharmacy and was swamped with work all the time. Unlike most of my friends who are just above average like me he was the best in his course. On his exams he would do unbelievably good. A 90% for 'The Hard Worker' was not that good. He always wanted to get higher. This ambition put him on the pinnacle of his course, reigning over the other pharmacy students.

Yet, 'The Hard Worker' was not what you would expect. All puffed up from going to the Aston fitness centre every day he was beyond shape. And most unexpectedly he turned out to be a party animal, that is, when he actually went out. See, the difference between me an average and him an elaborate student is that he does not go with the flow. If the whole Uni is going to Oceana tomorrow, and there is a test the next day, 'The Hard Worker' wouldn't because unlike me he had discovered something very important.

'The Hard Worker' has given me many advices during my first year. Yet, the most useful was: THE HARD WORKER'S ADVICE FOR PROSPECTIVE STUDENTS: You will spend only a couple of years in university, and those years will affect your whole life. Think about what and when you are doing. There will be time for partying after university, but there is no way you can travel back in time and change your Diploma!

Just Fab...

There are very few wise people that I know and that is probably just my luck. For starters, my parents are not really wise yet, I mean, they are still living their mistakes and making even more. They will become wise one day, hopefully. For now their mistakes just make them more fun. So I cannot really talk wisely ever, yet sometimes I just see the light in the end of the tunnel, if you know what I mean.

I just got off chatting with one of the very few fab (and probably one of the wisest) people I know and she is fab, believe me, successful, renowned, fabulous. She walks into the room and every eye is on her, opens her mouth and instantly gets the attention.... I have already told you a lot about Fannie and it is not only because she is, well, quite important to me; there is more and I bet you did not expect it... (I actually had something in mind)

Fannie has lived and studied in the UK and has quite a lot of tips for any prospective student, like you guys. Today she taught me a lesson, a lesson she had learned when she was doing what I am doing right now, and what you will be doing soon - do not get absorbed by the whole English nightlife culture... what do I mean? Let me tell you a story...

I am currently spending my fist ever fully independent summer. I live alone, get my own money... do whatever I want to. After my traditional recap yesterday I realised that I am actually not doing that good. My routine is simple: I work every evening, finish at 12, have a pint after work, go home, have a pint with a flatmate in front of the TV and go to bed; next morning I wake up, have a shower, breakfast, lunch, a pint with the lunch, go to work again... Did you notice how many times the word pint was in that long sentence. Remember, this is one day. I bet my colleagues would not notice the problem, they have lived like this their whole lives but for me this is new... And England is not about the drinking seshes or the night and the partying till dawn... it is about everything else... history, culture, politics... Read a contemporary English book and you will probably not see the word pint in it, or booze, or bear, or alcohol... at least not that as much as in this post. Have a walk on the street, try to notice the unique architecture. Go to the park, see the year-long greenness (it rains this much in very few countries). Go to a bookshop get an interesting book and see something you missed while having a walk. Turn on the TV absorb the media culture. Buy the Sunday Times and absorb even more media culture. See why is it that the United Kingdom is so different from every other European country.

So, to make a point: if you are a current student get a grip on your self, if you are prospective student, do not let go that grip, ever! Have fun and try to remember the years of Uni, I mean the more you drink, the more precious once of a lifetime moments you are going to miss...

In the weeks to follow I am going to make you several descriptions of typical Aston students and I bet after I am finished you will all want to come here, it is just diverse, interesting, surprising and always fun!

The 10th Tip

Unlike recently, the weather today in Birmingham is dreadful, gloomy and wet, it feel like it is Autumn already. Still, the phenomenal book I am reading is keeping me positive - ''Number Ten'' by Sue Townsend.

What I have missed to share with you was my moving to my new house. Now I live in House 30 in Aston Brook Green. It is definitely the second most popular accommodation after the campus towers and Lake Side. The whole moving, cleaning and painting process too us a week. Me and Gosia started on Saturday 14th June and Karolina joined us on Sunday 15th June. By next Saturday me and Kara could not walk. We had been cleaning every bloody day and don't forget work. We were both either at the pub or at the house. Thinking about it now it sounds ages ago, though.

I haven't given you any tips lately and since I have finally reached my tenth one (I feel so wise ha-ha-ha) it is special so this post is going to me my TIP 10 FOR PROSPECTIVE STUDENTS! It is all going to be about where to shop, how to find the cheap deals an' stuff. And this is very important for an average student, innit.

The food is easy to buy; you have Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda, Aldi, The Rad Market, The 99p Shop, Poundland, there's just plenty. But what if you need paint or a chair, or a set of nice pillows, or a desk, or a bed. Here is the Top 5 of the shops I used to arrange my current room (the first being the most shopped from and the last being the one I have used the less)

1) Latiff's - It is a huge warehouse behind Moor Station. A little doggy from the outside, Latiff's is perfect for a new home owner.
2) Matalan - The moment I discovered Matalan I fell in love with it. So near Uni and so many stuff. Matalan is a little bit more expensive but has really nice stuff.
3) The Clearance Shop in front of the Carling Academy - this is the place where you can find the cheapest stuff ever, but you have to be very careful, some of them are broken or stained.
4) Primark - the good old Primark's home stuff are quite cheap and quite near the Uni. Yes, you cannot buy a bed there but you can get sheets and stuff.
5) All the 1£ something shops - you can find so many stuff in all the quid shops in Birmingham; one of my mirrors is actually from 'Everything for 1 or 2£'

So dear prospective students, I am not doing an advertisement for shops in Birmingham, I am giving you a free advice. I had to spend a year gathering all this information. Now you are so much better prepared than me, when I came to Uni.


Furniture and house stuff: I have made a Top 3 of the places I have use to buy all my stuff and I am going t

Exam Results Time

I am finally back in the UK after a two week 'holiday' in Bulgaria. Not much is happening in Burmingham. The only change in the scene at Uni is the 'EXAM RESULTS POST' on Aston Map - our student account @ the Uni webpage! Now every prospective student should now that the wait for results here is EPIC! We all have been waiting for almost two months and now only the general decision is posted.

I heard about the EXAM RESULTS POST yesterday and immediately took Karolina's laptop to check what my faith was. As I typed the Aston Map homepage I felt that this was going to be the longest ten seconds of my life...

...and it still has not finished generating
(Kara is already screaming)
- 'What happened?'
- 'I am still waiting for the f*** Aston Map to generate!'

...and just there the magic happened - the page generated, I could already feel the results were in there. *Have you noticed that when you receive a very important letter it always takes ages to open it because you are too nervous. Well, it took me ages to find where the General Decision link was...

- and there it was the long craved - 'YOU PASSED'

Now I am waiting for the actual results but at least I know I have successfully graduated my first year in Aston. I can still call myself an Aston Student. So, to all prospective students: I am still going to be here to say 'Hi' next year :D