University of Westminster Law: Reflection on Student Journey

This assignment is a reflection on a law student's first semester at the University of Westminster. The student discusses their initial expectations of university study and how they evolved. The reflection analyzes the skills the student believed were crucial for success, such as critical thinking, problem-solving, and communication, and how these assumptions were tested through coursework and practical experiences. The student identifies the most challenging aspects of university life, including balancing academics with social interactions and maintaining mental health, as well as the most enjoyable experiences, such as travel programs. The essay also highlights the importance of professors, parents, and friends in providing support. The student reflects on forming new ideas based on the first term's experiences, including learning behavior, focused skills, and innovation in learning. The student mentions the importance of these experiences in preparing for future semesters and projects.

Reflection on Student Journey
Student’s Name:
Student’s ID:

Reflection on experience and performance
I have great expectations of university study, but the expectations changed when I got admission
into the university and found a different environment. The University of Westminster provides
cutting-edge teaching along with the research environment. The University is full of academic
excellence, personal enrichment as well as cultural engagement. The university is located in west
London, and it provides me with an excellent studying experience. It offers different course
modules that help the students to work with different enterprises and change their lives. The
University of Westminster considered the students and staffs as global citizens and believes that
that can shape the future of the globe. I have experienced inspirational as well as practical travel
opportunities offered by the university. The university has provided me with adequate
knowledge and academic experience.
I have assumed several skills that were necessary to be a successful student. Different skills
required to be a successful student include collaboration across the community, imagination,
critical thinking, communication, analyzing, curiosity, adaptability, problem-solving and agility1.
I have developed these skills through various courses and conducting practical things. However,
the assumptions of some of these skills have been challenged by the teachers in the university.
Critical thinking, along with problem-solving skills, is challenged by assigning a project task on
a research topic. I have to critically think on the topic and provide a solution to the issue related
to the subject. I have used my skills and conduct research to critically think and evaluate various
problems along with solutions to complete the task. Besides this, oral communication skill is also
challenged while participating in a cultural event. In that event, I have to use my effective oral
communication skills for giving a speech on diverse cultural people and religion. I effectively
used communication skills and provided the speech, which makes the audience understand about
the diverse culture.
Furthermore, the student has to face many circumstances and difficulties while studying at the
university. As a student, the most difficult thing that I have to do is to focus on an academic basis
while considering social interaction along with sustain mental health. This is so because I am in a
new environment where I would learn about passions and cultivate new relationships with other
1 Anton JH Boonen and others, 'Word Problem Solving in Contemporary Math Education: A Plea for
Reading Comprehension Skills Training' (2016) 7.

students and professors. Besides this, I consider various activities of the environment and select
the activities to commit my time to obtain experiences. By developing an efficient relationship
with the professors and other students, I boost new skills and learn different academic ideas. In
addition, the most enjoyable thing has been a practical travel programme to different parts of the
globe outside London. During the travel programme, I had got the opportunity to learn various
things, develop skills and achieve practical experience related to my studies. I have acquired
ample knowledge during the programme and the semester.
As per my thinking, professors, parents and friends are the important parts of having the best
experiences in the studies and university. The first and most important experience during my
studies was a learning experience, which is compulsory for every student in order to get success
in studies. Another thing was the oral and written presentation skills that seem to be mandatory
for law student because without having effective oral skills, the students could not get success in
their work and unable to perform their task. Moreover, the last thing but not the least was social
interaction experience because the university allowed a number of students from different parts
of the globe having a different cultural background to learn there. It provides me with the
opportunity to interact with diversified cultural students and enhance my interaction skills2.
Several new ideas are formed as a result of the experiences in the first term. Based on the
experiences as a student, I have formed new ideas which include learning behavior, focused
skills, innovation in learning and positively interact with other students to develop social skills.
With the help of the new ideas formed in the first term, I could effectively perform all my tasks
in the second semester and conduct practical projects for effective learning in the dynamic
environment of the University of Westminster.
2 John West and Will Turner, 'Enhancing The Assessment Experience: Improving Student Perceptions,
Engagement And Understanding Using Online Video Feedback' (2016) 53.

References
Boonen A and others, 'Word Problem Solving In Contemporary Math Education: A Plea For
Reading Comprehension Skills Training' (2016) 7 Frontiers in psychology
West JW Turner, 'Enhancing The Assessment Experience: Improving Student Perceptions,
Engagement And Understanding Using Online Video Feedback' (2016) 53 Innovations in
Education and Teaching International