By second year, you know the campus and Canterbury environment well. This year you’ll be assessing where you’ve been and where you’re going, and the range of choices you have may seem daunting. You’ll be making some big decisions about how to direct your studies, what your leadership path will look like, and what career opportunities you’re going to pursue.
As you embark on the next chapter in your academic life, here is some general advice:
Make academic connections.
Begin to reflect on the things that interest you intellectually. The modules you take this year will encourage you to develop the knowledge and skills that you will use with increasing independence in your third year. Identify experiences that broaden your horizons, through study abroad, activities with university societies, volunteer opportunities, and more.
Build leadership skills.
Seek out opportunities to take on new responsibilities, serving as a mentor to others and working with teams to problem-solve. Your activities help you to build competencies that future employers or graduate admissions committees find valuable when considering applicants, and they also help you to clarify your goals. There are many opportunities with university clubs and societies, and we actively encourage you to get involved in the Canterbury community through a wide variety of volunteer activities.
Build your network.
Deepening your relationships is critical to your education this year. By May, at least three members of staff at Kent should know enough about you, your work, and your aspirations for the future to write you a letter of recommendation. You should also be working on your network outside Kent, through internships and co-curricular involvement.
Together, these decisions and relationships will begin to shape your university experience, and your life beyond Kent.
We’ve put together this timeline and resource guide to help you think through some of your options but remember that you are not required to decide everything all at once, or all alone. We invite you to talk with your academic adviser about charting the path that’s right for you.
Summer
Let your curiosity guide you! Explore ideas, places, events, stories that excite you.
Stay in touch with all that’s happening in CLAS over the summer with @kentiquity on instagram, twitter, and facebook.
Begin to discuss study abroad options with advisers in the International Partnerships Office.
Early to Mid-September
Reconnect with your faculty adviser to review the summer and plan ahead. Talk with your adviser about some of the following questions:
When you came to Kent, what did you think you wanted to study? Has that changed or developed over the past year? What worked well last year and what didn’t? Take a step back from modules and careers and think about what interests you in the world: What draws your attention in the newspaper, online, in books, movies, and in conversations? What kinds of questions do you like to think about? There is still time to explore your academic interests!
With which academic staff, graduate students, or other teachers did you make a real connection last year? Reach out to them and stay connected.
Think about the skills gained from each extracurricular activity you participated in last year. If you haven’t become involved yet, now’s the time to begin volunteer work and other extracurricular activities. Visit the Student Union and check out the options available to you at Kent.
If you decide you want to study abroad, you must add it to your degree before the end of Week 5 in your second year. Contact the Taught Programme Administrator as soon as possible for advice on how to proceed.
The Classical and Archaeological Studies Department runs a series of research seminars each year with leading researchers in the field. Look out for these events and attend! Often the speaker will be someone whose articles have been assigned in class, and this is a good time to broaden your horizons and see what Classical and Archaeological studies looks like outside of the classroom.
Early October – Early November
Meet with the Careers and Employability Service (CES) to explore your options, create a plan, and develop a solid resume. Sign up for their events (they usually run a careers festival in October), especially the meet and greets with potential employers. These conversations are really important for helping you see how your degree is preparing you for the world of work. You have been building excellent time management, project development and writing skills. Now is the time to see how they can be put into practice across a range of fields.
Get involved with KCAS and other student societies to enrich your academic life. Now is also a good time to let your curiosity guide you in exploring certain aspects of the ancient world from your modules from your own perspective. Connect with graduate students to learn what the research life is all about as you begin thinking about where you would like to focus your study of the ancient world.
This is the time to prepare for midterm assessments! Your midterm assessments will vary depending on the type of module you’re taking, but it’s likely that your workload may feel heavier between weeks 5-8 of term. Seek support from SLAS and from your fellow students in study groups. Don’t forget to use the Assignment Survival Kit (ASK) to help you manage multiple deadlines and give you plenty of time to complete your assignments.
Before you tackle your first assessment, review these helpful hints on acknowledging your sources and developing good working habits. If you need some extra help, get in touch with SLAS for 1-to-1 writing appointments, or attend their workshops. You know the drill!
Autumn Reading Week is a time is an important time to deepen your understanding of who you are, what you want and how you connect with the world outside of Kent. It sets time aside for you to take up volunteer opportunities you haven’t yet found time for or to get in touch with your academic adviser. Remember, this week is about rounding out your academic experience. This is NOT a half-term break (we’re at university after all). This week is an enriching part of academic life, helping you follow your curiosity and embrace new opportunities for your success.
Late November
This is a great opportunity to step back, reflect on your first two years, and think about what you want the rest of your Kent experience to look like. What have you learned? What do you hope to do? Are there any adjustments you’d like to make to your study habits? Would you like to get some academic support to make the most of the rest of the term? If you haven’t already, now is the time to talk with your academic adviser about your plans for the weeks ahead.
Early December
Prepare for final assessments and any in class tests you may have. Get support from your academic adviser, and from SLAS1-to-1 consultations and workshops. Don’t forget to use the Assignment Survival Kit (ASK) to help you manage multiple deadlines and give you plenty of time to complete your assignments.
Mid-January
Identify and cultivate a faculty mentor. This should be different from your academic adviser. Touch base with people who might write your recommendations over the next year. Who has taught your favourite class or delivered a research talk at the Department’s Archaeology Day or Classics Day that you really liked? You might even have found a lecturer in one of your wild modules who got you excited about another area of study, so contact them! Visit academic staff during office hours or invite them to have coffee or a conversation over lunch. Ask questions about their research, talk with them about your academic experience, and discuss plans for the year (or topics for a dissertation, if you’re already thinking about that).
Use our Independent Work Guide to familiarize yourself with departmental goals and expectations regarding independent work.
Sign up for SLAS workshops and some Careers events to attend. Now is the time to hone your academic skills and for you to begin to see how they transfer into a range of career options.
A new term means the CLAS public talks and research seminars begin again with leading researchers in the field. Look out for these events and attend! Often the speaker will be someone whose articles have been assigned in class, and this is a good time to broaden your horizons and see what Classical and Archaeological studies looks like outside of the classroom.
If you haven’t started thinking about housing options for next year, now is a good time! In addition to providing on campus housing for third years, the accommodation office also offers advice about living off campus.
February
If you haven’t thought about summer internship, work, or placement activities, now is the time! Get In touch with CES. Talk to your academic adviser about what you might want to do and begin thinking about module choices for next year.
Early March
Prepare for midterm assessments! Your midterm assessments will vary depending on the type of module you’re taking, but it’s likely that your workload may feel heavier during week 5-8 of Spring term. Seek support from SLAS and from your fellow students in study groups. You know the drill!
Spring Reading Week is again a time for you to take up important non-academic experiences. This is often a time when KCAS (Kent Classical and Archaeological Society) organises events, and when you can continue to explore volunteer opportunities. During this pause in the normal teaching schedule, explore things that take you out of your comfort zone to broaden your education. This is NOT a half-term break. This week is an enriching part of academic life, helping you follow your curiosity and embrace new opportunities for your success.
Mid-March
Online module registration (OMR) begins! This is the time when you will be choosing your modules for next year. Make sure you look back at your Student Degree Map and talk to your academic adviser! The Department usually has a module selection moodle page with details and some lecturers run an ‘open house’ for students to drop in and discuss informally what the module will entail. It’s really important that you begin to think about how you want to shape your degree. Do you want to focus on archaeology? Do you want to focus on one language or pick up another? Do you want to focus on Rome or Greece?
Attend the Independent Work Plenary Session! Information about this will come out at the same time as Online Module Registration. This is REALLY IMPORTANT to making sure your third year goes well. Use the reflective question above to help you begin to think about your independent work for your third year. You will have to submit a research proposal in Summer Term, so it’s good to get a start now. Read about how to craft a good research question or develop an argument in the Department’s Independent Work Guide. Talk to current third year students about what they’ve done in their independent work and ask for their advice. Begin to explore topics, gather ideas for possible supervisors, find sources, gain familiarity with the way articles are written in the areas of research you’re interested in, and seek out help to understand what makes a good independent project.
Late March – Early April
This is a good time to reflect on your progress this year. What went well? What was a challenge? What surprised you this year and what stirred your curiosity? What are your hopes for the summer? What adjustments would you like to make in your study habits? If you haven’t already now is a good time to talk with your academic adviser.
This is also a good time to contact your lecturers for the modules you’re taking next year to ask them for any suggested reading you could do over the summer that might help spark your curiosity about the subject.
Clarify your goals. Think about what you’ve accomplished so far, what the connective threads are in your experiences, and what your values are, and use those as a guide to craft a path for the next few years.
Strengthen your connections, both in academic and co-curricular circles. The deeper your connections with faculty and with prospective employers and alumni, the more people you’ll have to support you in your independent work and future planning.
Think big, start small. It’s easy to be overwhelmed by your first large independent project. Don’t be afraid to think big, but then break your goals down into actionable, achievable mini goals.
May-June
Prepare for any Final Exams you might have and think about plans for next year. If you need a little more academic support, get in touch with SLAS, if you need some careers advice, get in touch with CES, and of course, remember you can always get in touch with your academic adviser.
During the Summer term, you should be preparing to submit your Research Proposal for your Independent Work. If you are planning to pursue a Dissertation, in addition to the Research Proposal, you will need to find your own supervisor among the academic staff in Classical and Archaeological Studies.