Title: BME Presessional 2009
Duration: 12.00 minutes
187 students, 18 Nationalities.Here BME students talk frankly, and honestly, about their experiences on the course
Quality of teaching
Chen-Chi Yang (Taiwan): I have to say they’re really really patient , the teachers and tutors, and they’re always encouraging me no matter what kind of mistake, big or small…, they still encourage me and they’re always looking for positive things and that’s what’s really helped me a lot because English is not my first language so I’m still not that confident about writing or reading things, but the tutor they are really patient to help me.
Maria Cristina Baggio (Brazil): I think the quality’s really good …the teachers… and I’m really impressed with all of it and the class is really interactive, and I have a lot of fun as well…learning.
Maria-Luisa Argiolas (Italy): I think the quality’s really quite amazing, I was very surprised because in my life I’ve only met a few teachers which are so qualified, and because they have a lot of experience in the world. My teachers I asked them why are you so open and why do you know so much about business. And not only English, they have great experience around the world because they teach in different countries so they’re pretty able to teach to us about different cultures.
Nada Rangsikansong (Thailand): The skill of teaching English from the teachers here is unquestionable. They are great. And further,,, further than that, they also give a lot of moral support, especially for me and my other classmate who was thinking about transferring to another course. She was really helpful with that and told us where we could find more information. Here on the course the teachers are really friendly and always encourage us to speak. Because I’m a non-native speaker, sometimes I speak slowly or strongly, and the teachers are always patient and helpful.
Jennifer Metcalfe, BME Teacher: I suppose one of the most important things for me is that students should speak a lot during this course, I think, when they come on this course, they know they are going to be doing speaking, writing and listening skills, and tend to do a lot of reading and presentations. But what they often forget is… they need to speak when they’re on this course, and you’re speaking and asking questions not necessarily because you want to know the answer to those questions but because you want to practise your skills of asking questions and answering them, and this really needs to inform your attitude to the whole course. When you go to listen to the lectures, the live lectures which you’ll get an opportunity to do through the course, you need to make sure you respond to your lecturer right from the beginning.
What do you miss about the BME?
Davit Khutsishvili (Georgia): It’s a very friendly environment, as on the BME we were not only students - we were like some little family - we were very close to each other, friendly,..,we had a lot of fun.
Andre Andiki Nitimihardja (Indonesia): I honestly will miss the whole part of the BME because from the beginning to the end, every day was a new experience for me, I learned different things every day.
Jimena Gomez Lues (Chile): [Yes, I’ll miss especially] my classmates, because you spend every day for twenty weeks.., you have the same experience. At the beginning you are new , you feel the same, you feel confused so you start to learn how to live in the university, how to go to the library, everything. So now I miss how I see everyone every day.
Preeyaporn Somboonwanna: I think I really miss my friend.
Zahra Sazegamejad (Iran): I miss everything because …when I was on the BME course I thought ‘I’m in a school where, you know, everybody is kind with each other…and nobody felt homesick at all, no and because I think everybody, the teachers and students, they support each other. Everyone has a nice relationship with each other
Hasan Sikoh, BME Teacher and WebCT Coordinator: Team working is one of the skills that is central to studying on a degree programme at academic institutions, and also plays a central part in communication with the real business world. On the BME students are engaged in working in small groups, in seminar discussions, and to prepare for group presentations and projects, so for instance each week BME students are given a case study for analysis and then in their teams students work together to brainstorm their solutions and strategies that will help to address the issues identified in the case. Through these activities, students develop their analytical skills, engage in problem solving and have the forum to put forward really creative ideas.
Advice for future BME students
Rama Suleiman (Syria): First of all I want to commend it to them for sure…and anyone has the ability to come to do this, it’s worth to do it. I think sometimes I would have preferred to have done the 10-weeks.
It was a good idea to come on the BME course, and it was a good idea to have some practice before the main course because it’s difficult to start the main course when you come,… it’s better to adapt first then do it, to just come then study.
The BME course is very intensive so you need to work a lot, and with the other weeks it must be the same, so yes, it’s very good practice before starting the main course at the business school. I think the most important thing is to organise your time, and try to resolve things like where you live after you finish your BME Presessional course, because you have to spend a lot of time to do it. And the course is very intensive, we have a lot of hours a day, then something important would be to try and follow the material as well, even if the teacher doesn’t tell you to read a book, read each page, try to do it even if alone, so I thin: have a nice time and study from the materials is good advice.
Clare Williams, BME Project Coordinator: One area I’m particularly interested in is business concepts. I know some of you would have already have learned different business concepts in your degree, and maybe in your job but then again some of you won’t as some of you would have done a different degree, like a non-business degree, so on the BME we do cover business concepts as part of the course. So it helps to reinforce your existing knowledge and if it’s new to you, it will introduce you to the business concepts so you’ve got some idea of some of them and the vocabulary, and that also relates to something else which I think is very special about the BME course at Birmingham University: that you do get a lot of support. And I know the students value that a great deal because you’re in a different country, you’re away from home, you don’t have your support network, you get a tremendous amount of support from the staff on the BME because they care about you and they care about your welfare, not just you studying and passing exams, and passing assignments. We really do support you.
It’s a challenge, don’t think it’s going to be easy for you, and don’t just think ‘it’s only 6 weeks so it’s going to be easy’,..it’s difficult.
In summary
Student 1: It’s very difficult to summarise in one sentence, because there’re so many things that come up in my mind about the BME course because there’s been so many experiences, new experiences that I will try to summarise in one sentence: the BME is very important and is the most unforgettable experience.
Student 2: Great experience.
Student 3: I think the BME course is so informative, and to where we study.
Student 4: It was excellent.
Student 5: One word: wonderful.
Student 6: For me it was a nice experience.
Student 7: I would say it’s exciting, and the most beautiful experience that I’ve ever had.
Student 8: It’s hard to sum it up with one word..it’s interesting and intensive at the same time and fun.
Jennifer Metcalfe: Be fully involved and engaged, be one of those students who is remembered at the end of the course.
Gail: Hello I’m Gail.
Nimisha: Hi I’m Nimisha.
Vicky: Hello I’m Vicky Spencer.
Gail:‘we’re the administration team, who handle your enquiries, and your applications, we look forward to hearing from you.