Name, Course, Year, Home town:
Jazmin Coe, Computer Animation Art and Design, 2017-2020, East Sussex
Student Bussiness/Side hustle:
Portfolio: https://jazmincoe.artstation.com/
Why you choose your course an:
3D was a hobby of mine before studying Animation. The course is very varied in terms of disciplines, so it's no matter how much you know about computer animation before joining; the first two years are designed to help you find your preferred area (which you will use for the Final Major Project). The course tends to adopt an attitude of leaving you to work out problems yourself. While this is a useful skill for the industry, students often felt as if we were left to teach ourselves. As you could imagine, this isn’t always considered the best investment of 9K a year. In the third year I had very minimal contact hours of one 2 hour lecture a week for the first semester then no lectures for the rest of the year, just meetings. This is, however, a good thing considering how much coursework you’re expected to achieve during the second and third year. The first semester, you’re always given a workload that seems almost impossible to complete in time and towards the end of the year, I could say there is not enough work. If you are a proactive student, you may find you fit in well here. You are usually expected to make your own meetings with lecturers. Even those who are not very involved, I found the lecturers were very helpful at providing feedback when asked.
Best A level/Subjects for the course:
As this is the art side, maths is not required although it might be useful if you’re interested in the technical aspects (such as coding). The most important A Levels to have are art based subjects. Although it’s not compulsory, a subject with a level of digital art (e.g. Graphic Design) would be very useful.
Placement year:
I did not take a placement year. Although the uni claimed to have good industry connections for placement years, I found very little support in finding one. The careers advisors were difficult to get hold of and did not offer any relevant advice. They operate for all courses under the Faculty of Media and so did not have a good knowledge of my course and who to apply to or how to go about it.
Best and Worse things about studying at your university:
The uni has opened a new building for the faculty of Media & Communication and Science & Technology from 2020. This building is fit with state of the art equipment and facilities and is a nice environment to work in. Bournemouth is also a pleasant area to live in. The uni has a very operational Student Union and offers a wide range of societies and events. For disadvantages, I feel like the University relies too much on their reputation for this course and lacks in quality teaching and satisfying students.
Where you live up's and downs:
For first year I lived in halls. I would definitely recommend this for year one if you can get in. It is handy for freshers as it’s the best way to meet people. Each accommodation has a ResLife team which is a program to support students outside the campus. The accommodations will be conveniently located with local shops and bus routes to the uni. Most are centred in the town, close to the nightlife. The negatives are that this is shared with lots of other people in their first year. People like to party and set fire alarms off- day or night. Second year I lived in housing, shared with three others. Although this is cheaper than halls, an entire house can be expensive to upkeep, meaning it can be really cold if the EPC rating is poor. This also leads to damp and other problems. For my final year, I moved into a flat which was much more comfortable and affordable.
Best University Accommodation:
Bournemouth Uni has built many new accommodations since I was in halls. Their costs are higher than the previous building but with quality increased too. However, the old buildings were comfortable enough for me.
What do you think of the University Area:
Bournemouth generally is a very pleasant place to live. It’s the best quality is the beach, which is very close by. The town centre is not spectacular but there are affordable supermarkets around. The nightlife is not teeming, but there is a fair amount of clubs and bars.
What advice would you give to first years:
While studying is important, the university experience is also about meeting new people, trying new things and generally having a good time. So I would recommend reserving a fair amount of first year for signing up to societies, socialising and enjoying the nightlife. Some advice I wish I’d followed each semester is to start your assignments as soon as you've given them. Save yourself the stress and hand them in with plenty of time. This will help your work-life balance.
Why did you choose University:
University experience