“I travelled over 12,000 miles through 22 countries from The University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus to University Park on the back of an 110cc scooter to raise money for the Red Cross.”

“A lot of flat tyres and three months of sleeping in the ‘wild’ was not easy. But I miss the challenges of asking for directions, fighting traffic and treacherous roads, being cold and having to deal with passport control.

“I do not remember the challenges I have faced as being as heart tearing as they seemed when they appeared, but simply as part of the whole experience. Who wants to drive halfway across the world without facing any challenges... Just driving? No sir, not me.”

“The bridge crossing over the Bosporus, symbolising the end of Asia and the beginning of Europe was just a perfect day. After not being there for a year, arriving into my hometown of Norrkoeping, Sweden was also special after the cold and bike troubles that I had struggled with through Europe. It felt even better ending the day eating my mum’s food and sleeping in my own bed.”

“I would definitely recommend this trip to anyone thinking about doing something similar. I have proved you can do it on a low budget without much equipment. For me not planning every single step was my greatest success. Meticulous planning can heighten your expectations; individual experiences will leave a greater print if you don’t expect anything beforehand.

“We might be afraid of some of the places we go through and wonder if we are capable of overcoming some of the challenges we might encounter. But we have more capacity than we allow ourselves to believe. I would say that anyone with some spare money in the bank and a little bit of belief can do this.”

From the time I was in school I have been involved in many activities outside of my academic commitments. I have continued this at University and find it a good method of relaxing the mind while doing a very demanding course such as medicine. It's also a brilliant way of meeting new and interesting people.

In between my studies I have played water polo for the University and taken part in a bollywood concert, this year I want to try out Latin Dancing.

I have also been involved in the Sri Lankan Society from my first year and am now president of the society. This year we have organised a number of cultural events to bring a little bit of Sri Lanka to students in the UK and taken part in a once in a lifetime project – Rebuild Lanka.

Members of the Sri Lankan Society were thinking of some charity work that we could do in Sri Lanka. As many of the 32 volunteers are medical students we choose to help renovate a hospital and to work at a school, previously visited by one of our members.  

It was a tough project to organize as we had to do everything from scratch but looking back on it now it was completely worth it. The project ran almost flawlessly and we all had a lot of fun.

At the rural hospital in Kandy, we rebuilt the boundary fence which was in quite bad shape and also made an incinerator for the disposal of sharp objects. From the first day of work we realized this incinerator was much needed as we found many needles and drug vials carelessly tossed in the garden. We also donated some much needed equipment to the hospital.

The other part of the project was working at a school for children with special needs called The Blue Rose. We visited the school for a day and also organized a show for the pupils on the last day of the project. I will never forget the children, it was a great experience to be involved in teaching and to have the chance to dance and sing with them.

Seeing how some hospitals function without even the most basic pieces of equipment will definitely help keep my feet on the ground and remind me to make do with what I have, wherever I work.

Doctors in areas with less equipment have to rely on their clinical judgement when making decisions and this is something that I will have to learn if I am to work in Sri Lanka.

One of the main things I will take away from this project is working with children and the patience and kindness it takes. The teachers of the school have been there for over 25 years and their unwavering kindness and patience amazed me and is something that I hope will make an impact on my life as a doctor. The whole project was a really good experience and one that I will not forget for a long time!

The time, support and donations that a project such as this brings can do so much in areas where there is much need. Volunteers also learn so much and get a chance to experience new and interesting cultures, see life in other parts of the world, make friends with people who you would never have otherwise spoken to, do some challenging work and change the way you think about many things!

Thank you,
Charindri Wariyapola

We decided to go to Tanzania because we all wanted to go somewhere none of us had gone before, and go to a place where midwives work in difficult settings without the things that we take for granted in the NHS.

This placement also allowed us to encounter situations and scenarios that can often only be as simulations during our training in the UK.

The rate of Maternal Mortality in Tanzania is ten times greater than the UK, and the under five mortality rate is twenty one times higher. Obstetric emergencies in village settings have to be managed by midwives, and positive outcomes are attributable to their knowledge and skill, as access to medical staff and specialist equipment is limited.

The highlights were visiting an orphanage with AIDs workers and seeing traditional African Dancing. The people and scenery are also fabulous, and going as a group made the experience more special.

The main challenges were raising enough money to go, sorting out family commitments (three or us were mature students with children) and facing our fears of the unknown.

The University's annual fund grant provided us with over half of the costs, without this we would not have been able to go and o ur school gave us the time off to go.

You can find out more about the Annual Fund at: http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/supportus/annualfund/index.aspx

I feel much more confident about working independently here when I qualify, knowing that I can cope with just about anything that crops up. The midwives in Tanzania also taught me skills that UK midwives may have lost.

We also learnt alot with regards to infant feeding, as the initiation and continuation rates of breast feeding are higher than in the UK, and we have been able to bring this knowledge back and share it with our colleagues. These diverse learning opportunities will be invaluable to us in our practice as qualified midwives.

We also now have a deeper understanding of diversity and culture, enhanced communication skills especially with non-English speaking women, and a greater ability to plan and prioritise care with limited resources.

All of these skills will contribute to our ability to offer excellent, woman-centred care, and subsequently enhance women’s perception of their childbearing experience, which will in turn contribute to improved long term health outcomes.

I would definitely encourage every student to go - in fact I think it should be compulsory. Students learn so much, and gain organizational skills from planning the trip.

The project was born out of an interest in gaining first hand physiotherapy experience in a new and exciting place, and without the luxury of equipment and support offered by NHS placements. A project based in Malaysia would also strengthen the ties between campuses, and so Grahame Pope, Head of School, sought to locate a Malaysian project in need of a physiotherapy input. Bukit Harapan in Kota Kinabalu was found and the ‘Malaysia – Making a Difference” project began to take shape.

By far the biggest and most interesting challenge of the project was overcoming cultural and communicative barriers. Despite learning basic Malaysian language skills prior to the trip, our communication skills were further challenged with this group of residents.

Perhaps the biggest achievement was realising one of the project’s objectives to create a legacy at Bukit Harapan. This was achieved by training care staff in basic physiotherapy treatments and exercise plans. Furthermore, on a personal note, this project provided me with the opportunity to enjoy two of my ultimate pursuits; climbing mountains and scuba diving. As a member of the Students’ Union scuba diving club, NUSAC, I was delighted to have the opportunity to dive off the island of Mabul on the east coast famed for its corals and marine life. I counted 25 turtles on a single dive.

Without the generosity of the Alumni Annual Fund donors, and the support of the Division of Physiotherapy, the travel and accommodation costs would have been too prohibitive for students to participate in this project. The DoP were particularly supportive in helping to raise additional funds, while links were also made with the Students’ Union’s Malaysian Society who generously gave up their free time to teach physiotherapy students about Malaysian culture and language.

Junior physiotherapist job descriptions contain eight key themes, and I believe that the experiences gained from this project provide evidence for each of these, particularly “contribute to the implementation of services”, a theme newly qualified physiotherapists can find difficult to evidence.

Furthermore, with the present changes within the NHS, Band 5/junior physiotherapy jobs are hard to come by and there is much competition when a scarce position is advertised. The experience and additional skills acquired during the project will undoubtedly add interest to CVs and will give you something of interest to help you stand out from the crowd in interviews.

Don’t sit around thinking about it. If you have a good idea, talk to friends and University staff who may be able to help make your project a reality. Consider contacting projects directly, rather than contacting a third party organisation in the UK, you can end up paying exuberant prices for local accommodation and food; money which your charity/project may not receive.

My years at Nottingham Uni were the best of my life so far. The opportunities for getting involved with extra-curricular activities mean that there is real potential for developing yourself as a person, whilst simultaneously gaining valuable experience that would be much harder to come by outside of the University environment.

As for highlights, I’ve got loads! Being able to organise Varsity Coverage for Radio, overseeing the development of the Student Sports Coaching Initiative and playing football for the University were all things that I look back on with genuine pride. I was also able to explore and participate in things that, before I arrived here, would have been beyond anything I could have imagined myself doing.

I’m a Sports Development Officer at the Nottingham University Malaysia Campus. It is my job to make the Physical Recreational side of being at University as rich as it can be for the students. I co-ordinate the Intra-Mural sports leagues that run throughout the academic year, and
I’m in charge of the Malaysian Tri-Campus Games team, who will go and compete against the other Nottingham Campuses at the end of the year.

It’s a great job for me as I’ve always loved sport and get to spend my working days in that kind of atmosphere and amongst people who have the same passion as me.

The job kind of landed in my lap really. Whilst at the Tri-Campus games in Malaysia, I met the University’s Assistant Director of Sport, Nigel Mayglothling, and I got talking to him about some ideas I had for developing sporting activities here at Nottingham. He backed my ideas and also told me that he was looking to send a graduate over to Malaysia to help organise the sports structure over there. Later in the year I mentioned the job to him and he said he would look into setting up the role, which turned out to be a goer and now here I am!

As for things that made me stand out, I can’t say that consciously I did anything. The fact is I got involved in things that I enjoyed and my enthusiasm for them made me a suitable candidate for a job that happened to be related to them.

For me, University is very much what you make of it. Getting involved in activities outside of your degree is something that makes you stand out as it shows you have a passion for something. Achieving things within it also can show that you have drive and ambition, two factors that employers really look for. University is unquestionably a place where there is a plethora of opportunities to develop your skills, which may in turn help you decide what you want to do.