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Podding along: studying a distance learning MA as a mature student

It seems a lifetime ago when I was timidly embarking upon the Applied English Distance Learning MA back in 2020. I remember feeling waves of self-doubt about completing MA – after so many years away from Higher Education – questions played on repeat through my mind, haunting me with fears of not being good enough, …

Enjoying a topic that I did not expect to enjoy

As someone who loved English Literature A’ Level, I couldn’t wait to get started on my English BA degree at the University of Nottingham back in 2018. There was just one small thing niggling at the back of my mind. While all the other universities that I’d applied to were for an “English Literature” course, …

How did it all start for you?

Mae govannen, mellon nín!* Without contest, one of the most exciting discoveries in my journey as a language enthusiast was the world created by J.R.R. Tolkien, brought to life in no small part by the native tongues of each of the characters. A philologist, Tolkien delighted in crafting these in great detail, and there are …

BAAL Vocabulary Studies SIG conference

This blog was written by Ana Pellicer–Sánchez, Assistant Professor in Applied Linguistics The School of English at the University of Nottingham hosted the annual meeting of the BAAL Vocabulary Studies special interest group (SIG) on the 7th and 8th of July. The event was a great success with over 60 attendees from different countries, including the …

BAAL Vocabulary Special Interest Group Conference

This blog was written by Norbert Schmitt, Professor of Applied Linguistics, School of English. Thursday 7th July, 2016, 13.00-17.00 and Friday 8th July, 2016, 10.00-16.30 University of Nottingham Vocabulary is an essential aspect of learning any language.  While much of vocabulary is acquired incidentally as a young child when learning a first language, second language learners often struggle …

Q&A with Svenja Adolphs, GRT Lead for Cultures and Communication

Taken from the Research Blog posted on April 1, 2016, by Michael Jennings This is the fourth of our monthly Q&As with our five Global Research Theme (GRT) leads, for you to find out about who they are, their research and what it means to lead one of the University’s five GRTs. Read previous Q&As …

Are you a friend of Ron Carter?

I am eating delicious but unidentifiable sashimi, and looking out at the inside of the dormant caldera of a volcano. There is grass growing on the cold lava rock, and it feels like I am on top of a Bond villain’s lair. This is Kyushu, in Japan, and I’m here representing the university, a million …

The Viking Berserker

This blog post was written by PhD student Ruarigh Dale, who has just submitted his PhD theory on this topic.  The meaning of berserkr Publicity for the current Viking exhbition at the British Museum invites potential visitors to ‘go berserk’. The meaning of modern English ‘berserk(er)’ can be traced to the thirteenth-century Icelander Snorri Sturluson, …

The meaning of Ragnarok

The Jorvik Viking Centre is currently advertising its annual Viking Festival by claiming that Ragnarok will take place on the 22nd of February this year. Most people are familiar with Ragnarok as the cataclysmic event of Old Norse mythology in which the old gods and their world are destroyed when the forces of evil are …

Distance Learning Summer School 2012

25-29th June 2012 More than 20 students, including those from both our on-site and distance learning programmes, participated in this year’s Summer School. It was a great experience for everyone involved. It was the perfect opportunity for the distance learning students to meet their tutors and other students, share experiences and expand their knowledge about …