Interview: What’s it like studying Theatre & Performance at Warwick as an international student?

Recently, I was chatting with my friend Herman, who was nice enough to let me ask him a few questions about his experiences during his first year studying Theatre and Performance Studies.

It’s a different perspective than the one I’d be able to give you, so hopefully this is helpful to anyone who is considering studying at Warwick, whether you live in the UK or elsewhere.

How was your first year of studying Theatre & Performance at Warwick? 

Aah it was great! I thought that everyone was open minded and friendly and I found that the teaching fellows were easygoing and always willing to answer questions. They always solved the problem well! I thought it was cool that everyone was super knowledgeable about theatre which you’d kind of expect but still it was great.  

I loved getting to see different productions and I especially liked that quite often we could stay afterwards for a post-show talk with the creators of what we had just watched. It was so interesting hearing about the process and everything that went into making the performance.  

We always had great discussions as a class afterwards which was fun and it was great to hear everyone’s ideas and opinions about it all. I think that at some other places maybe you don’t get as many chances to see theatre but because the arts centre is easy to reach in the middle of campus it was really convenient and accessible!  

What made you choose to study at Warwick? 

First of all I think I’d say the campus honestly! Not all UK Universities are campus based and I didn’t like the idea of having everything spread out in a huge city, but the Warwick campus has everything you need! Like lots of green spaces and the library and supermarkets and restaurants… everything you need to live on campus! I liked the community sort of feeling. It felt like a safe place to be studying abroad.  

I also think that Warwick has good connections to the theatre as well as other industries for things like placements and overall career opportunities, which is obviously something good to have available! 

It’s also a very international campus, I think. People come from all sorts of cultural backgrounds which is something I love to see! 

How did you find adjusting to living and studying in the U.K.? 

Honestly, I didn’t find it too difficult, because I made some good friends! I loved being able to speak to so many people with either the same or different background to me. Young people are good at adjusting to new situations, so I think it was a good experience for me! Also, the personal tutor system worked well I think. I always felt comfortable to ask for any help that I needed.  

I think that perhaps one big adjustment though could be things like learning to cook for yourself! Maybe that’s something it would be useful to learn before you come. But overall I found it pretty easy to adjust to studying and living at Warwick. 

Do you have any tips for students who will be living and studying in the U.K. for the first time? 

Firstly I’d say pack enough clothes!! 

But secondly and maybe more importantly you should try to work on time management and planning skills. I was pretty bad at this and I didn’t manage to get to every lecture at first… as I said before , you have to adjust to cooking for yourself, but you also need to make time for stuff like laundry, sports, getting to the library to study, etc.  

You might be doing all of that by yourself for the first time and it’s important that you’re able to organise these things for yourself. If you’re organised then you can do well! So it’s important! 

What’s your favourite place to eat on campus? 

Easy! The Bread Oven! I think that’s the best salad in the whole of Coventry! You can DIY your own salad and they have so many options… you can get something like meat, or even vegetarian or vegan options too if you like… it’s great. Definitely the best place. 

What would you say to students living outside the U.K. who are considering studying at Warwick? 

You should come! As an international student, I found it a lot of fun meeting a lot of different people. I found the diversity here to be really attractive so if you like getting to learn about some other cultures then it’s a good place to be. I really liked it at Warwick so hopefully you would too! 

Do you have any overall tips for students about to start at university? 

Have fun, take it easy, but not too easy! If you miss a few lectures then don’t beat yourself up about it but it’s important to try your best.  

Be ready to make new friends, be open minded and get to know different people. Everyone you speak to you learn something new. I think that perhaps in the ‘real’ world you don’t get as many opportunities to meet so many different types of people so make the most of it. So, do your best and enjoy this nice period of time learning and being a student and making new friends.