University Guides August 26, 2010
- Students – Stay Safe Online
Student life involves a lot of studying
and note taking, and many students find a laptop convenient or this. During
your student life, you’re also likely to find yourself using a variety of other
locations with computer access, libraries, internet cafes, friend’s homes and
so forth. This can mean using shared computers a fair bit, saving your data to
a memory stick or other portable media, and then transferring it to your own
computer later on. Because of all this, it is important that you make sure you
keep your laptop safe from all the various risks that you might subject it to.Viruses One of
the biggest threats to your computer today is a virus. Viruses can cause your
computer to crash, or allow hackers access to your system so they can retrieve
information about you. To protect your computer from viruses, it is important
to do the following things:- Install good anti-virus software – there is a lot of
choice of anti-virus software, some cost, and others can be downloaded free
from the internet. Whichever you opt for, make sure you set it to update daily. - Scan your computer daily for viruses – if
you find a virus, remove it immediately before you spread it elsewhere. - Scan all drives automatically – set your
software to scan all incoming data whether it’s on your pen drive, a CD or DVD
or anything else. - Scan all incoming data – set your system
to scan all incoming data from e-mails, instant messenger systems. If you open
an attachment without scanning it you could inadvertently let a virus into your
system.
Passwords and usernames Keep your data secure by remembering a few
key rules when you set up and use usernames and passwords:- Set a secure password
– a password should be something that’s not easy to guess, avoid using things
like your name, place you live, birthday etc. Try and make it 8 characters or
more, and use some random numbers and non-alpha numeric characters too. - Always remember to log out of any site
that you had to log into especially if you use shared computers, and never
store your details on a shared computer. - Change your passwords regularly – it’s
best to try and change your passwords every 1-3 months rather than leaving them
the same for a long period of time. - Never use the same password for lots of
sites – choose different passwords for different sites, this way, if one site
is hacked, you do not compromise all the other sites you use. If you find this
too hard, then at least make passwords different on important sites such as
banking and finance sites. - If you think your system has been hacked,
disconnect from the internet, scan the system, and re-set all the passwords for
your system immediately before you re-connect anything.
Firewalls Security is a priority if you are
connecting your laptop to different networks. It is impossible to tell how
secure a system is that you are linking to, but as long as you keep your system
secure, you shouldn’t find yourself compromised.- Install good quality firewall
software and make sure that you keep it switched on all the time. A
firewall is your primary method of safety to stop your computer system from
being hacked. Set your internet security to a medium to high level as well, as
this will also help to protect your system and will warn you if a site looks
like it might cause you problems.
- Install good anti-virus software – there is a lot of
- Students Look Abroad to Find British Degrees
A record number of British students are looking abroad for their university education this year, and one of the beneficaries could be the reputation of British university qualifications.
An increasing number of UK universities have campuses or have signed collaboration agreements with international universities and colleges to deliver their degrees. Prague College in the Czech Republic offers Teesside University degrees in International Business and Management. It has seen a huge increased in British visitors to its website, to the extent that it has appointed a dedicated team of advisors to help British students.
Mark Huntington, Managing Director of A Star Future Ltd, a
UK based marketing consultancy has been recommending Prague to British students
for a number of years with some success. This year, however, is proving to be a
breakthrough. He says “Prague College offers a range of different subjects from
business to computer studies. With the exception of its graphic design and fine
art courses which are now completely full there are places available for
students starting on 27 September 2010. Unlike many European
universities Prague College also has its own hall of residence and can offer
incoming students a place in halls for their first year. Tuition fees are
around £3,000 a year and therefore cheaper than studying at a British
university while living costs are estimated at around two thirds the cost of a
major city in the United Kingdom.”Commenting on the rush to find places abroad, Mark
Huntington said, “We are not surprised that international universities are
looking very attractive to British students at the moment. While there are options available, this
is no way to make up for the estimated shortfall of 170,000 places in British
higher education. While we understand that students are keen to get on with
their studies, going abroad without proper planning can make for a bumpy transition.
However, for those who are committed to getting on with their higher education
no matter what it takes this might be a small price to pay.”A number of European universities have announced placed for this coming term and details of all available courses can be found online at www.astarfuture.co.uk.
For further advice, The Complete University Guide has lots of information for prospective university students, including Choosing a Course, Choosing a University and Studying Overseas.
- Choose the right A levels for your future university course
The London School of Economics is open about some of its ’not preferred’ subjects – including drama and business studies – but at present but no other top university seems prepared to be quite so frank. In the past Cambridge has admitted to less preferred subjects, but this year their spokesman denied that students having one of those subjects at A level would be disadvantaged.
As this year’s students face the toughest competition for a decade for university places, Dr Wendy Piatt, Director General of the Russell Group of top 20 UK universities, has denied the existence of blacklisted subjects that would cause applicants to be rejected outright.
She said all Russell Group universities give positive lists of which subjects are most desirable for particular courses - for example chemistry is a required subject for those applying to study medicine. They do not list subjects that might be considered undesirable but provide ‘very clear and comprehensive information on required A-level subjects and which ones will not be considered when making admissions decisions’.But John Bangs, former head of education at the National Union of Teachers, is one of those who strongly suspects the top universities do have an unofficial blacklist. He told the Guardian newspaper, ‘The list is built on the assumption that these subjects are easier than others and not academic enough.’He believed the Russell Group were ’using a filter to stop people they don’t want from getting into their universities’ and added ’they have no concern about fairness. … If they have this list, let them publish it and show us the evidence that these subjects are easier.’When selecting A levels future students can check out the Complete University Guide’s advice on course requirements - Wendy Piatt says students should take ‘very careful note’ of the requirements for their desired degree courses before picking supplementary A-levels.
