Meet student Dale Archer who has achieved a First Class Honours Degree in Business at Kingston College this year. He says: “The tutors were simply amazing. They couldn't have been any more helpful. They really know their stuff and are experts in their own field. The feedback they provide for all assignments is extremely detailed, clear and fair.”
Why did you choose this course? I chose this course as a natural progression from the Foundation Degree in Business I had from the University of Brighton.
Why did you choose Kingston College? I chose to go to Kingston College due to its good reputation and because I prefer smaller classes. When I contacted the College for more information, I found the staff to be very knowledgeable, friendly, and quick with their responses. The course head (Alan Garofall) was in particular, very friendly, and keen to help.
What are you plans once you've finished your course? Right now, I am currently doing a TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) course online and once I complete this I plan to work for the next 6 months. In February 2022, I plan to move to Seoul, South Korea to work as an English Teacher. One day, I hope to open up my own private school in Korea and run it as a successful business.
Favourite part of your course? The lessons. Every lecturer had their own style and way of teaching. Some really encouraged debates and team activities, whilst others liked showing videos and asking us questions about what we had learnt throughout the lecture. The lecturers themselves were extremely well informed and knew they industry very well. I found all of them to be very friendly, supportive and approachable. The feedback they gave for assignments were fair, clear and helpful.
Is College life what you expected? Have there been any surprises? It is what I expected, however due to the Covid-19 pandemic, I was only able to physically attend classes for the first 3 months. With that said, the online lectures through Microsoft Teams worked very well, and everyone (student and teachers) was able to adapt to the new set up, very quickly. The only surprise I had was how well all the students seemed to behave in the College. As a mature learner, I was a bit apprehensive about attending College during the Pandemic, but everyone maintained social distancing rules, wore masks and regularly sanitised their hands.
Any advice to those thinking about applying for your course? Make sure you apply for something you have a genuine interest in. When you get to Level 6, you will find the lectures can be quite advanced, hard to follow and pay attention to, unless you have a real interest in the content you are being taught. You will also be expected to work on quite a large number of assignments so make sure you learn how to manage your time before you start this course. If you are good at time management, attend all the lectures and make use of feedback, there is no reason as to why you shouldn't get a 1st class Degree as well.
Any opportunities you’ve enjoyed here that you particularly loved? The Digital Marketing module had guest speakers who were experts in their field. These experts really helped us when working on a Marketing Campaign assignment. The advice they gave was very professional and at the end of each speaking session, you could ask as many questions as you wanted.
