In this episode of UniCast, Nancy and Meg catch up with Simmie Superstar Broadcaster Nihal Arthanayake. Currently host of his daily show on BBC Radio 5 Live and his podcast Headliners, Nihal has previously presented on BBC Radio 1 and BBC Asian Network and is due to publish his new book Lets Talk: How to Have Better Conversations later in the year. Nancy and Meg find out about Nihal's time studying at St Mary's and his advice for how we can all have better conversations on difficult topics.

This week Meg and Nancy are joined by final year student Josefine and Student Placement Lead Maxine to talk all things Work Placements. If you are interested in one of our new sandwich year courses or want to find out about what its like undertaking a work placement as part of your degree and how it will benefit you at the start of your career, then this is the UniCast episode for you.

Find out more about our degrees with placement year: https://www.stmarys.ac.uk/courses/undergraduate/placement-year.aspx

In this episode of UniCast, Nancy and Meg are joined by Head of Drama St Mary's Mark Griffin to talk to Simmie Superstar Tom Grennan. Tom shares his memories of studying Physical Theatre at St Mary's, plays a round of Simmies Would You Rather, talks about the new Drama St Mary's Scholarships in partnership with The Stage, which offer two fully funded places to students regardless of financial or social background, and reunites with an old friend. This is not an episode to be missed!

UniCast is back for a special bonus episode before the UCAS Deadline. If you are adding the finishing touches to your application, then this is the episode for you. Nancy and Meg are joined by Mandip, Charlotte and Rachel to talk about the best personal statements they’ve read this year and their tips for making yours the best it can be before you submit your application.

Links:

Spotlight on Student Ambassador Diversity

https://www.stmarys.ac.uk/announcements/2022/01/spotlight-on-student-ambassadors-diversity

In Episode Six of UniCast, Nancy and Meg catch up with recent graduate Daniella to find out all about accommodation. If you want to know more about what its like living in halls, tips for looking around accommodation and advise for how to look at universities if you have a disability, then this is the episode for you.

This week Meg and Nancy are talking Personal Statements. They're joined by current students Diana and Adi to talk about how they wrote theirs, top tips for getting the most out of the word count and how to avoid cliches. If you're currently writing yours, need motivation to get started yet or in the midst of proof reading, this is the podcast for you. If you have any questions, drop the team a message at unicast.podcast@stmarys.ac.uk.

Dyslexia support

https://www.bdadyslexia.org.uk or call 0333 405 4555

This week Nancy and Meg are talking all things moving to uni. Meg is joined by Kristen, the Head of International at St Mary's, to find out more about what it's like for international students to move to a UK university and about Study Abroad opportunities, and how they work. Nancy meanwhile is joined by Student Support Officers Felicity and Mike to talk about starting at uni, life in halls and living on campus, and the support systems available to students.

Everyone has heard about Students' Unions, but you do you know what a Students' Union actually does? To help bring you up to speed, Meg and Nancy are joined by Ahmed, Vic and Tayla - the 2021 Sabbatical Officer Team at St Mary's University, Twickenham. They'll be myth busting and telling you how to get the most out of student life, how you can get involved in your students' union and what their plans are for the year ahead. To quote Ahmed, "it's gonna be lit".