University of East Anglia, Norwich www.uea.ac.uk

The University of East Anglia (UEA) in Norwich is set around a large beautiful wooded park with a lake, next to part of the river Yare. Its grounds are ideal for joggers and walkers, and yet it provides idyllic views for the students living on campus, especially in the Norfolk and Suffolk terrace accommodation. These were the best and cheapest. There are also other campus's which are en-suite and more expensive.

I studied at the UEA for 4 years, doing an MChem, which is a chemistry degree plus a year either abroad or in industry, so I chose to spend a year in Germany. I did not have high enough points for a year in industry. I thought that the best year during my studies was in Germany at the 'Albert Ludwig Universitaet' Freiburg, because I had the opportunity to do a lot of lab practicals (mainly organic chemistry) every day, which was great. Plus learning to live in a foreign country and learning to speak the German language. I loved it there so much, that I did not want to return to England, let alone UEA.

I chose the UEA because I had wanted to do a chemistry course with analytical science, plus I had never been to East Anglia before, and I liked the look of the park. But looking back, I wish that I had done a lot more research on the UEA and other universities, then maybe attended the university of Hull instead, which was my insurance or 2nd choice, and would more than likely have had a better quality of degree with more lab practicals, subject options, and therefore a better job. I felt that the UEA did not emphasise enough on lab practicals, which was not very adequate for any student looking for a career after graduation. In my case, for analytical chemistry jobs I needed to gain plenty of experience with different types of chromatography techniques, especially HPLC (High Performance Liquid Chromatography). But unfortunately, at UEA I was never given the opportunity. When I spoke to my course advisor about this matter, he told me that the UEA had no such equipment, which turned out to be incorrect according to one PhD student.

Ever since I graduated in 2002, I still have not been successful in finding chemistry related work, as I have not had enough practical experience. It is bad enough for any 21 to 22 year old graduate to find a suitable job, but it is even worse for me, as I am nearly 37 years old!

It is all good and well for UEA and other university lecturers to bombard students with a lot of coursework and exams, but at the end of the day, it doesn't really help students find relevant jobs where only practical experience can do this.

It was a shame that the UEA got rid of some of the decent friendly lecturers who would have the time to sit down with you and help with course problems.

On the plus side, the UEA does have a good nightlife, with bands and retro discos playing in the upstairs LCR room, plus a monthly poster fair. Downstairs boasts a large bar; half of it reserved for non-smokers, plus lots of cheap drinks. There are also a few shops, banks, a post office, a couple of eateries and a launderette in the vicinity. There are also plenty of sports clubs and leisure societies to join. There is also a sports park nearby, which has a large swimming pool, plus many other sporting facilities for a lot of the sports clubs, as well as a large gym.

If you plan on going to university in the future, it is advisable to do plenty of research on different universities and the courses on offer.