By William Blakesley-Herbert – Natural Flow is a termly zine, setting broad, yet evocative themes encouraging students to be as abstract or literal with their creative works as possible. We ask…
By William Blakesley-Herbert – Natural Flow Society
Natural Flow was created with the dream of having a creative space for all students to express their inner artistic visions.
Natural Flow is a termly zine, setting broad, yet evocative themes encouraging students to be as abstract or literal with their creative works as possible. We ask students to interpret the terms theme in their own unique way and to submit pieces of photography, paintings, poetry, prose, graphic designs or whatever medium they revel in. Once we reach the submission deadline, the team here at Natural Flow select our favourite pieces and publish them in the termly zine publication. We also have a website where we post all submissions, published or not, or whether they are theme related or not. We also give guidelines on how to submit. Why not have a look?
‘A Passage To India’ – Graphic submitted to Natural Flow (November 2020) by Anna Day
However, we have greater intentions beyond a zine. We want Natural Flow to stimulate and lead a new art culture movement at ARU. We hope that through our society we can generate more extracurricular creativity from students across all courses and congregate them in a university-wide creative movement. We also want to add much more to our creative output roster, including guest speakers, music and DJ events from university based, local (and maybe even more well-known) groups and individuals as well as exhibits, competitions, collaborations and launch events.
We believe our society could also help students to relieve some pandemic-induced stress by expressing their creative side, regardless of whether it’s course-related or purely as a hobby.
Starting this society as a group of third-year students during a pandemic has not been the easiest thing. We would have loved to do more in-person events, allowing us to connect with our audience. However, that has not stopped us! We have pushed our ideas and ambitions to as many people as possible. As a committee of third years, we are also looking to pass on our society to a new group of confident, creatively minded and ambitious students in the future.
‘Where It All Began’ – Graphic submitted to Natural Flow (November 2020) by Mateo Lundstøl
The zines theme for this term is Positives and Negatives. We want students to explore the positives and negatives of life under the current conditions. Be as fanciful or politically driven as you want!
Whether you have got a point to get across or just want to share your work with like-minded people in a diverse and accepting creative community, we want to hear from you!
By Kya Johnson – A safe place for all (not just vegans!) who want to learn and engage about Veganism and its related subjects ie. Sustainability, Global Impacts and Animal…
A safe place for all (not just vegans!) who want to learn and engage about Veganism and its related subjects ie. Sustainability, Global Impacts and Animal Welfare.
We set up this society with the aim of cultivating a space for all who want to learn more about Veganism. It can be scary to try something new but we strive to be there for anyone who needs support. Whether that support is to learn about nutrition, environmental impacts or for more individual and tailored assistance, feel free to get in touch with us and our resources.
Starting a society during COVID-19 has been difficult, and unfortunately certain events we would have loved to put on face-to-face are currently impossible. However, we are making up for it with plenty of online events. Already within our first couple of months, we have hosted game nights, discussions and Netflix parties. For the future we are hoping to run cooking classes, book clubs, competitions and more! Suggestions are more than welcome as we try to tailor our events to our members.
We are proud to say that when you purchase a membership to the ARU Vegan Society, 50% of your membership fee is donated to a charity which is decided on by members. This was something that Sarah (our treasurer) and I were very determined to put into place.
As some of you may know, January is an exciting time for Vegans as Veganuary takes place. In honour of Veganuary we will be opening all of our January events to everyone (whether you have a membership with us or not) so for those who are unsure about whether to purchase a membership, you can drop into these events and see if they are something that you would like to continue with.
So whether you are looking for a place to share recipes, meet people with similar interests or to simply have fun, we look forward to meeting you!
By Jannah Campbell-Williams – In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, both the K-POP and Fandom societies have been doing all that they can to keep their activities running smoothly…
By Jannah Campbell-Williams – K-POP & Fandom Society
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, both the K-POP and Fandom societies have been doing all that they can to keep their activities running smoothly. In times like these, we feel that it is more important than ever to stay engaged with the outside world, even if it has to be done through a screen due to our current circumstances. We also believe that it is important to give people something to do through an activity schedule – it helps cure the inevitable bouts of lockdown boredom, it keeps your brain active, and it helps you to remember what day it is.
Weekly Kahoot Quizzes
To that end, the society has been hosting our regular Kahoot quizzes online. The K-POP Society Kahoot takes place every Wednesday at 3 PM, with questions based on K-POP (obviously), and the winner receives a £20 Amazon Gift Voucher each week! Alternatively, the Fandom Society Kahoot takes place every Saturday at 5 PM with questions based on a variety of topics such as movies, TV series, books, comics, and even games!
Both events are hosted live on Instagram, though if you can’t make it, don’t worry, both societies have set-up a number of interactive games to play on their respective Instagram stories as well – be it a game of Guess Who, or Drop One, Save One!
Follow @arukpopcam and @fandomsociety_aru on Instagram to get involved! Everyone’s welcome to join in, so we hope to see you there!
By Ciéra Cree & Joshua Dowding – On Friday 21st February, both The Ruskin Journal and the Creative Writing Society co-hosted an open mic event as part of LGBTQ+ History Month…
By Ciéra Cree & Joshua Dowding
On Friday 21st February, both The Ruskin Journal and the Creative Writing Society co-hosted an open mic event as part of LGBTQ+ History Month. For those of you that couldn’t attend, the event took place between 7 o’clock and 10 o’clock in The Academy hall on Cambridge campus.
The theme for this year’s LGBTQ+ History Month was ‘poetry, prose and playwrights’ – something that both of our societies know something about and saw as an opportunity to work together to bring an event to life.
“The open mic was open to all, it felt really inclusive to the diverse students that were able to showcase their talent in a safe space with safe people.”
Gabs Bennington, The Ruskin Journal & Attendee
Creating a space where people could share their passions, and feel accepted for who they are, was very important to us. The Students’ Union had decorated The Academy with various flags and accoutrements baring the symbols of the movement we sought to represent. And all throughout the planning stages of the event, something about this night felt special to us.
Each table a copy of The Ruskin Journal’s latest annual, as well as an assortment of snacks, and a variety of sexual health packs put together by Amanda Campbell, AHSS Vice President, as part of her ‘Best Night Out’ campaign. We’re told at least a few of them went!
“It’s a safe space, a small nook in Cambridge which attracted vibrant diverse people and reminded them that they have a place in the world.”
Shania Perera, Performer
At 7 o’clock, people started to fill the room. While some mingled, others took their seats. It was exciting to watch the event slowly come to life as more and more people turned up at the doors, poking their heads in first before their bodies joined them shortly after. And before too long, The Academy was nearly full – incredible, we thought. If only we’d started on time!
It took until around quarter to 8 before the flow of people began to ease and the audience took their seats. But eventually, Merika and Ciera took to the stage to kick off the night in earnest with a short speech that went like this:
Thank you for coming along to our event, since planning for this started, we’ve all been very excited to see it unfold. We’re proud to be showing a unity not only between our two societies tonight but also one between us here together, supporting and accepting each other.
We hope that you leave this room feeling happy, comfortable and most importantly like you belong. No one should be made to feel that they aren’t accepted or allowed to be who they are.
We, first before anything, would like to thank you for taking the time to be here in support of your fellow friends and students. Our university holds such a beautiful diversity of cultures, ideas and beliefs, some of which we’re here to celebrate right now.
The night saw a total of 19 performances take place ranging from beautiful spoken word to poetry, from music to rap, and even some acapella performances to boot. Pieces like Shania Perera’s ‘A Distracted Physicist’, to Freddy’s infamous bars that got everyone joining in, to a glorious rendition of ‘Hallelujah’ by Ronnie to cap off the evening in style.
For the record, we have included a complete list of the night’s performances below:
(we’re sorry, we didn’t catch your name!) – 21:45 PM – Poem
Ronnie – 21:54 PM – Music (‘Hallelujah’ – Jeff Buckley)
After all was said and done, Merika Tencati took to the stage once again to thank everyone for making the event a night to remember. Sentiment was expressed, events were plugged, and the night drew neatly to a close – and what an incredible night it was.
“It was a great collaboration between Creative Writing, Ruskin Journal and the Students Union. I had a lot of fun and was happy to see so many students and staff supporting the LGBTQ+ community.”
Merika Tencati, Creative Writing Society & Co-Host
We would like to thank everyone who came to this, our inaugural open mic event, and thank you to the people who helped us make it all possible. We’ll see you at the next one!
By George Liu & Ankesh Gandhi – Are you interested in Cardiology and Cardiothoracics? Are you a student at the university’s Chelmsford Campus? Then our aptly named society is the one for you!…
Are you interested in Cardiology and Cardiothoracics? Are you a student at the university’s Chelmsford Campus? Then maybe our aptly named society is the one for you!
We, the CCTS committee, are dedicated and determined to bring you the best opportunities and assistance to enhance your portfolio, network with relevant contacts, and broaden your knowledge of the subject and its surrounding areas.
Cardiology and Cardiothoracics are both highly competitive medical specialities. Cardiology is the study and treatment of disorders relating to the heart and blood vessels. Whereas Cardiothoracic surgery is the field of medicine involved in the surgical treatment of organs inside the thorax – the chest – as well as the treatment of conditions relating to the heart and lungs.
According to credible sources, the majority of patients in the UK suffer from a cardiovascular condition, and heart conditions are one of the world’s leading causes of death and long-term illness. We, as a society, feel it is both insightful and incredibly important to look further into these areas of study.
Both Cardiology and Cardiothoracics are highly dynamic and involving fields to become engaged with, and both are fascinating to discuss. So much has been explored, yet so much more has yet to be discovered. What better place is there to discuss these topics than a student society like ours?
As a society, we’ve outlined a number of goals we’d like to attain over the coming year:
To widen people’s interests and understanding through talks and workshops.
To host a ‘Journal Club’ every two weeks providing members with the opportunity to analyse and critique papers as an aspiring healthcare professional. We aim to open this up for guest speakers and attendees to present their own papers as part of the SSC (Student Selected Component) of the Medicine MBChB course.
To network members with industry professionals working in the field.
To assist with portfolio building since CT surgery is one of the most difficult specialities to get into out of most medical professions.
This year, our focus has been to host the bi-weekly Journal Club sessions and we hope, in the forthcoming weeks, to begin publicising papers in small groups. Having a safe space for serious discussions is crucial in cultivating the necessary skills for the sector, as well as allowing everyone present the comfort of being able to voice their thoughts and opinions.
Regardless of whether you are a medical student or not, you are more than welcome to visit us as a prospective member, or as a taster to learn something new. Visit our Students’ Union webpage for more information.
By Ekaterina Zenina – Law has always been the most important part of a functioning society. It is also known as being the most mysterious and complicated area that people are not ready to venture in to understand…
This is the first post in a new series covering some of the different societies at Anglia Ruskin University. Would you like to showcase your society? Get in touch with The Ruskin Journal!
“Expand your knowledge and understanding of law, develop professionally and enhance your skills! – with the Anglia Law Society, Cambridge”
Law has always been the most important part of a functioning society. It is also known as being one of the most mysterious and complicated areas that ordinary people still struggle to understand – that is why lawyers are known for making money from people’s problems!
However, the law is far from witchcraft. It involves the same essential skills that are applicable and appreciated in other professions. Lawyers need to be focused, punctual, capable of networking and negotiating professionally and arguing their position (which is also known as “mooting”). Of course, they also need to know their law.
If you are looking to develop any of these skills – and to learn a bit more about the law – Law Society’s events will be a perfect place to go.
We are building our annual to help and support you in developing your skills and expanding your knowledge of the different areas of law. We also aim to help you build your CV and network with professionals from the legal industry, which can be helpful regardless of whether you are studying HR, Marketing, Business, Medicine or, of course, Law and Criminology. All areas of our lives are regulated by the law and it wouldn’t hurt to know a bit more about how it applies to your area of study.
One of the brightest examples of a society event, which gave us all an opportunity to network and build our CVs, was the Law Panel and Networking event which took place in October 2019. Our panellists included a recruitment professional from a well-known recruitment firm, Nelson Chambers (Andrew Fragnito-Day), a Head of Fenners Chambers (Meryl Hughes), a solicitor and recruitment specialist from Tees (Helen Midgley) and a barrister and recruitment professional from Fenners Chambers (Joshua Walters). They talked about their career journeys, shared some tips and then spent time networking with our attendees over some wine, cheese and grapes. It was a wonderful evening which received fabulous feedback from both our guests and guest speakers.
Our guest speakers shared some invaluable advice on how to write the best CV and a covering letter, and how to let your personality shine through during your interview. Here is a sample of things we learnt:
You are all unique: there is something special about every one of you, whether it is a hobby, extracurricular activity or something you do for the community. Tell us about this in your CV, explain how it makes you a better person in an interview, and you will stand out! Go to your interview smiling, saying “Look at me!” – and we will (Meryl Hughes).
Find time to do something beyond your lectures: coming to the events, getting involved with the Law Clinic, immersing yourself in the world of a profession you want to have in the future by reading. These all count towards your future career and make you stand out (Andrew Fragnito-Day).
Ask questions, network, show interest and learn more about what you do and about other disciplines: develop yourself constantly. No recruiter is working FOR you – instead, YOU are trying to showcase yourself, and all the extra things you do will give you bonus marks when compared with others (Helen Midgley).
Be honest: in interviews, during internships and vacation schemes, in your CV. Don’t make up your “unique selling point” – be genuine with yourself and find out what it actually is. If in doubt – look at point One, made by Meryl. Lies will always be uncovered (Joshua Walters).
Guest speakers visiting the society
Last semester, we concentrated on our negotiation skills and building professional relationships, and held a Professional Negotiation Skills workshop in collaboration with the HR and Management Society. We worked hard to ensure that our members, mostly Law students, had a chance to network with those who may become their closest friends in future – HR, Business, Management students and also Entrepreneurs and peer Law students. That is why we closely collaborated (and will continue to do so!) with Entrepreneurship, HRM and Business Societies, Faculty of Business and Law and Anglia Law Clinic. We also introduced a Commercial Awareness Bulletin and Weekly Newsletter, which are sent to our members-only, to boost their commercial awareness and inform them about some amazing events happening on and off-campus.
As a recognition of our hard work, we were awarded the SU “Society of the Month” award in October due to the “huge difference [we made] to students by running events to support and encourage them in their career journeys”. In December, our president was commended as the SU “Committee member of the Month”, and in January 2020, for all the amazing things we have done, we received the SU Gold Accreditation from the SU.
‘Society of the Month’ award photo
But this was only the beginning. At the start of next semester, we are announcing our new agenda, full of exciting and useful events. Some of these are listed below:
Mooting Workshop and Demonstration – 20th January. Do you want to argue your point in court, workplace or personal life? Learn from lawyers! The Head of Law, Richard Mallett, will give you the best tips, and the ARU mooting team will demonstrate these in practice – all in Anglia School’s very own courtroom!
Refreshers with the Societies with HR and Entrepreneurship Societies – 22nd January. The evening of networking, games and refreshments, meeting new people from your faculty and beyond!
Surgery on trial: Legal Pitfalls of being a surgeon with a consultant surgeon and a Chair of Norfolk Law Society, Alexander Hardy – 11th February. This will be a talk about how medicine and law work together, and how well do they do so. Medical, Law and Criminology students should be the first in line, with everyone who has ever had any medical treatment to follow – this is definitely an area of law you need to know about!
Using LinkedIn for professional purposes with Emma Jennings – 25th February. Have you heard about LinkedIn and a massive boost it gave to e-hireability? The tips shared by Emma will be equally great for all students, and all online recruitment platforms!
Employment law talk and case study with Claire Sleep – 10th March. This talk, given by a highly commended employment lawyer and a partner in a large firm, Ashtons Legal, will provide a lot of information about how employment conflicts are solved, and about some aspects of employment law that can be affected by Brexit.
There are even more events planned, and more information about those already described, on the SU events calendar, the Law Society webpage and our social media. Follow us and stay tuned!
By Blessing Raimi – Running the K-Pop Society alongside the other committee members has been a great and rewarding experience so far. Initial planning for the karaoke night event began over the summer, which involved taking over one of the…
By Blessing Raimi
Running the K-Pop Society alongside the other committee members has been a great and rewarding experience so far. Initial planning for the karaoke night event began over the summer, which involved taking over one of the Chill Out Tuesday events that is a regular feature on The Academy calendar. This then led to the event taking place at the end of October.
The society was founded in autumn of last year and since then, has grown in popularity with our involvement in wider university events such as Global Week. Our presence at Fresher’s Fair gave us more visibility to new and returning students who attended. An Erasmus student studying Sociology said that she joined after: “Seeing the society at Fresher’s Fair and attending the taster sessions with my roommate”, proving that the opportunity of the society being at Fresher’s Fair raised more awareness about it and the trial period assured students of what they could look forward to if they became an official member.
At the start of the semester, taster sessions were offered for students in order for them to gain an idea of the sort of activities that would be taking place over the forthcoming year. Events such as:
Korean traditional games
Snacks
K-Pop dance workshops.
An MSc student studying Biomedical Sciences stated:“It’s a very friendly environment and I joined because I enjoy K-Pop and wanted friends with the same interests.”It was encouraging to see new and returning students interested in signing up and getting involved with the society and our taster sessions. These sessions were very successful with members.
When the event finally took place, there was a great turn out and everyone had a great time. There were a mix of society members and those who were just interested in having a go at karaoke. There were different Korean snacks available to try and a variety of performances in different languages – Portuguese, Spanish, English and Korean to name a few. What made the night great was the encouragement from students during the performances. It didn’t matter how people sung or if the song was well known or not, the focus was on having a good time in a fun and relaxed atmosphere.
One of the attendees gave a review of the night:
“I think the karaoke night was a success. It was a perfect opportunity to belt out our favourite songs among the people who really appreciate the true value of the music. Not to mention the fan chants for Fake Love. It was truly a moment of pure happiness, bliss and fun.”
Couldn’t make it to our launch party? Or just want to be nosey and see pictures from the launch? I’ve put together a quick sum up of the Ruskin Journal along with how the launch went, accompanying it with pictures from our photographers…
Couldn’t make it to our launch party? Or just want to be nosey and see pictures from the launch? I’ve put together a quick sum up of the Ruskin Journal along with how the launch went, accompanying it with pictures from our photographers!
How did we get to where we are today? The Ruskin Journal was created by Elle Haywood and Hanushka Karnani in 2017. They founded the idea on the basis that they wanted to create the first online newspaper here at Anglia Ruskin University which obviously, has succeeded VERY well! With the success of the online newspaper, the 2017 committee aspired to create the first Annual Print Edition of the Ruskin Journal. With copious amounts of work put in, fresh new articles from all members and help from University staff, the Physical Paper (all 1500 copies!) was ready for launch throughout Graduation Week in October 2018.
The theme for the paper is student life. With articles ranging from graduating to work experience to leisurely articles regarding film and music – there is an article for everyone to relate too.
The launch party was a great way for the old and new committee to meet and celebrate the success of the Physical Paper; being able to finally share with students, parents and lecturers. With glasses of prosecco and copies of the paper scattered around, it was a fab way to have everyone involved all in one place.
Rolling forward to week 5 of the semester and we have enrolled almost 30 new members. It is great to see how the Ruskin Journal has expanded throughout the year and we cannot wait to see what happens next.
If you are interested in writing for the Ruskin Journal, feel free to drop me or any other committee members an email! (All details found on the website)
(Thanks to our writer Bronté & the SU for taking our photos!)
The Ruskin Journal 