Information School News

August marks the end of my dissertation, my course and my year at the University of Sheffield, and needless to say, this has been the most exciting year of my life so far. Moving abroad for the first time, and pursuing a postgraduate degree in a field I liked is an achievement I will always remember.  The excitement of studying abroad did, however, come with its own set of difficulties and hardships. Since I had never lived alone before, it was initially difficult for me to balance work, school, and, most importantly, cooking for myself every day. But as the saying goes, you learn best via challenging circumstances, and for me, that was the case. I wouldn't describe myself as a chef, but I do make nice meals (most of the time). This is one of the first pictures I took of this city, and I cannot count the number of times I used to get lost. But now that I even recognise the names of the smaller shops, I have certainly become familiar with this city. Becoming a student ambassador was...

From Environment to Information, I took a step ahead towards achieving one of my goals. As an environmental engineer with years of experience, I have always valued the contribution of Information in advancing my domain. So, after researching different universities and courses in the UK, I ended up choosing to study MSc Information Management at the Information School (iSchool). The University of Sheffield is one of the top universities in the world. It is particularly recognized for having highly distinguished information courses. The course itself is a mix of theoretical and practical modules, both of which are research-oriented. I found myself especially drawn to the practical ones. For example, in User-Centred Design and Human Computer Interaction, I learned about the psychology of human behaviour and how it affects people’s perception of and interaction with different interfaces. In general, the assignments are typically research essays. They are not difficult but would require e...

I chose to study Librarianship as I developed a love for libraries and archives during my undergraduate degree. Before applying to the University of Sheffield, I took a year out to volunteer for the NHS during the pandemic. From this experience, I was eager to get involved in a career that involved helping people. For me, becoming a librarian fit what I wanted to achieve as a future career and enrolling on the MA Librarianship course at the University of Sheffield was perfect. I was excited to learn more about the LIS field and discover which specific areas I would have a particular interest in. I was also super excited to get to know the city of Sheffield more and what it had to offer. It was nice to have the opportunity to go back to university and study a subject that I was particularly interested in. I did feel slightly nervous about my decision to commute to university, however, as I was worried that I would be missing out on the full university experience. I have found that thi...

 Looking for your next eco-adventure now Veganuary is over? There are plenty of opportunities to reduce your carbon footprint and promote sustainability across campus. What’s happening in the Information School? The Information School currently holds the Platinum Award for Green impact, meaning they have taken part in projects and actions to decrease their negative environmental impact. An example of one project which many students have been involved in is the Education for Sustainable Development initiative, which looks to assess student’s feelings around sustainability, and improve delivery of Education for Sustainable Development within the Information School. On top of this, the Information School holds the Bronze Athena Swan award, meaning it’s committed to gender equality and advancing the careers of women.   What’s happening on campus? There are plenty of ways to get involved. Reusable cups Take your reusable cup along to any on-campus café and receive a ...

Last September, I have joined the University of Sheffield, and specifically, the Information School as a student of MSc Information Management. I’m an international student but I have done my undergraduate studies in the UK, so luckily coming to Sheffield wasn’t as frightening as when I moved out from home for the first time. Moving to a new city by myself was still difficult, however I was able to settle down pretty easily. From what I have experienced so far, Sheffield is a very vibrant and multicultural city. I like that the University of Sheffield is a city university as previously I was studying at a campus university. I enjoy that the city centre is within a walking distance, and I can get a coffee or walk through shops in between my classes or just hang around Students Union. Moreover, Peak District is “just around the corner” and I can’t wait to go for a hike with friends since I haven’t had the time yet. The first semester at the Information School was, for me, very enjoyable ...

Blog: My year as a Data Science student Syeda Gulnoor Zahra  Study sessions in The Diamond will be missed Data Scientist has been classified as the ‘sexiest’ job of the 21st century by the Harvard Business Review. This explains its popularity and hype all around the world. MSc Data Science is also one of the most popular courses offered by the Information School (iSchool) and has a higher eligibility criterion than other courses to ensure the quality of the course. The iSchool at The University of Sheffield has been ranked Number 1 in the UK. Choosing to study this course at iSchool has proven to be one of my best decisions. Hence, I would like to take this opportunity to share my experience with you as both an MSc Data Science student and as a Student Ambassador at The University of Sheffield.  The course offers many interesting and technical modules. Out of which, my favourite ones have been Data Visualization, Database Design, Big Data Analytics and Data Minin...

Blog: My Year as a Library and Information Services Management Student by Rachel Colley Rachel Colley I’ve just finished my first year of my Master’s degree which is a Library and Information Services Management degree. This course has been challenging but in a way that has pushed me further in my academic studies. It has allowed me to write various types of assignments that I have not had experience of writing before in my undergraduate degree. These experiences have shown me that I am capable of more than I thought of when it came to my academic studies and assignments and what I have achieved because of this over the past year.  Two of my favourite modules that I have had so far have been the Libraries, Information and Society as well as Leadership, Strategy and Change modules. These modules have both taught me in detail how the mechanisms of libraries work with the key different aspects along with how the management structure works within the library and information services se...

Blog: My Year as a Librarianship Student By Bethan Morgan Bethan studied our Librarianship MA Whilst being in the midst of impending deadlines and the dread of job applications, I thought it would be a good opportunity to reflect on my year as an MA Librarianship student and a student ambassador for the Information School. Although it is fair to say that certain events (aka a global pandemic) have meant that my experience has been far from normal, it has nevertheless been a highly enjoyable and rewarding year.  I have to say that I was slightly perplexed to be given a box of lego during the first session of ‘Information Organisation’ in Semester 1. However, it very quickly became entirely natural to start arranging the bricks into different categories on a table in the library (probably resulting in a few strange looks). I think this best sums up what I liked most about the course, which is the range of teaching methods and assignments within each module. For example, for ‘Informat...

Blog: My Year as a Librarianship Student By Fernando Bravo  Fernando studied Librianship in 2019/20 Hello everyone, I am writing this text for prospective students interested in the University of Sheffield Information School. I’m a mature and international student who planned to study the MA Librarianship a long time ago after working some years in University, Public and National Libraries. The time here has been challenging, the overall course is one of the best in the world and with a very good reputation between the librarian community, certified for one of the most important professional associations in the world. U.K library information association: CILIP . During the course I have had the opportunity to assist activities related to my field, for instance, a Reference Training Session in the British Library in London, a session in Manchester with new professionals , also in Sheffield I visited the headquarters of the Children Library Service and the children book award , as w...

Blog: My Year as an Information Systems Student Ying Ji Ying Ji at the BBC I am an MSc Information System student this academic year, and also a Student Ambassador for the Information School. The year of living and studying in the iSchool has given me a very deep and beautiful memory. The Information School provides a variety of courses for student learning. In the two semesters, I have learned the knowledge related to information system modelling, planning and organization management, taken programming (JAVA), database design and business intelligence as my optional modules. In addition, I learned about the legal and ethical issues of computing and information systems in society, which expanded my background knowledge.  At University, we have lots of different learning methods such as lectures, seminars, lab classes and group meetings. In my opinion, most of these courses are based on the case of the enterprise work, so that students can be familiar with future real work tasks and...

Blog: My Year as an Information Management Student by Jie Dai Last year, I made my best decision to choose to study at The University of Sheffield as an MSc student in Information Management. In the year I have not only extended my academic vision and gained many technical skills, but stored a wonderful memory in Sheffield as well. Firstly, I have to say I believe that Information School is worthy of its ranking (World 2nd best). All the teaching staff in the School are experts in the academic field, using their understanding and experience, trying to illustrate complex concepts in a way that’s easy to understand. Some of them are very strict on students’ reading quantity, which means in your spare time, you need to read a lot and try to take a critical view on several topics. Others are patient in teaching trainees how to operate on programs. They go out of their way to meet the students’ requirements and make timely adjustments based on the feedback from students. I really appreciate...

Studying at the University of Sheffield Jamie is from Hong Kong and is studying MA Librarianship February 2019, I was still in my undergraduate studies. February 2020, I am halfway through the Librarianship programme at the University of Sheffield, getting ready for the next semester. Everything happened so quickly. Sometimes I feel like I am still the Linguistics student who analysed word particles, corrected people’s grammar, made the same grammar mistakes myself and got away by saying that language is descriptive, not prescriptive. But sometimes it also feels like that was a long time ago. I am now a Librarianship student. I love it and my teachers and coursemates never fail to remind me that I am one of them. Everyone in the course is passionate about libraries in one way or another. It feels magical that you get to talk about the gorgeous architecture of a library, the cuteness in the children’s section, the bold selections in materials, the cutting edge technology and th...

I’ve been a Student Ambassador for the Information School this academic year, which mostly involved talking to prospective students for my course, MA Librarianship, during Open Days. As well as (hopefully) helping them make a decision about where to study, I also found this really useful for myself; I got to talk to other people working, or wanting to work, in the same profession as me, and it also gave me a chance to reflect on my own experiences so far. I also really enjoyed getting to know other Student Ambassadors from other courses in the Information School – it was good to check in with them throughout the year, particularly when the dissertation period rolled around! With fellow student ambassador, MSc Data Science student Na Li I had the chance to try out some other skills when I took on a special project for the School. I filmed myself on a day out around Sheffield where I tried out as many free activities as I could (find out what I got up to here ). This was a gre...

作为谢菲尔德大学信息学院的学生大使，我本人的情况是在英国读过本科，但学的不是信息管理专业，没有上语言课。如果是没有在英国读过本科的人，上语言课可能是个比较好的选择，既能提高自己的英文能力，也能提前适应在英国读书的生活。 在开学之前会有一个写论文的小测试，就是需要写700字的文献综述，不占分数，老师会鼓励大家写这个文章， 能帮助大家了解自己写作中擅长以及需要提升的地方，以后写论文的时候可以避免低分的情况发生。同时学校也会给每个学生安排学术性写作以及数字技能的课程，教大家怎么写学术性写作以及如何使用学校的网站，怎么搜索书籍等等很实用的技巧。每个人都会有个人导师，有生活或者学业上的问题是可以跟导师约时间交流的。在谢菲尔德大学的学联是很出名的，大家可以在课余时间参与一些社团活动，充实一下自己的生活。 众所周知，信息管理是世界第二的专业，很多中国人都慕名而来。不少必修课都是大课，当然也有可以不少可供选择的选修课。课程的作业都是以不同的形式以不同比例来展现的，比如个人作业占百分之60和小组作业占总成绩的百分之40，有的必修课是需要机考的。在这些课程里, 建模的授课模式是我喜欢的，小班制，与中国教学不同的是上课之前需要看老师提前录制好的课程，课堂上主要是老师和学生的互动，老师会随机分组，并且分配任务，课上会有助教，帮助解答不会的问题。而且每节课都有回放，也不用担心听不懂或者错过课程。如果像我一样本科不是这个专业的学生，也不用担心建模很难，只需要跟着老师每节课把分配的任务做好就可以了。 除了课程以外，在谢菲有著名古老的电梯，漂亮的达西庄园，可爱的羊驼，有好吃的中餐，有方便的电车。谢菲的物价感人并且相对安全。 赵欣颜 (This blog is also available in English here )

As a student ambassador at the Information school, my personal situation is that I have studied my undergraduate degree in the UK, but I did not study Information Management before coming here. If you are a person who has not studied at undergraduate level in the UK, a language class may be a good choice, not only improve your English ability but also help you to adapt to studying in the UK. Before your course properly starts in the Information School, there will be a small test, where you need to write a 700-word literature review, which is not credit-bearing. The teachers will encourage you to write this essay, which will help you to find where you need to improve, to avoid low marks in next assignments. The School also arranges academic writing and digital skills courses for each student, teaching you how to write academic writing and how to use the School's website, how to search for books and so on. Every student has a personal tutor. If you have a personal or academic pro...