Templeman Makes Shh Happen
The Spring Term is in full swing, and with the first assignments coming up, the number of seats available at Templeman library are getting rarer by the day. Named after the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Kent at Canterbury between 1963–1980, the University library is the heart of the campus and open 24/7. It supplies students with books, DVDs, and other resources, as well as PCs and printers. It even provides a cosy library café to grab hot or cold drinks, as well as snacks between 8am — 8pm on weekdays and 10am — 6pm on weekends. The IT desk will help you with most things from connecting to the campus Wi-Fi, to finding out how the library search system works. You can borrow up to 40 items for free, as long as you return it before the due date. But don’t worry, as long as no one reserves the item, your loan gets automatically renewed two days before it is due.
But most importantly, Templeman Library offers you a place to study in group or silent areas as well as PC rooms, far away from any distraction, noisy housemates, or the temptation of your Netflix account. It offers you a place to actually transform your ‘to do’s into ‘done’s at any time of day (or night). There are no rules about what time or place you are allowed to study — the only thing you don’t want to do is lay your head down and look like you are going for a kip, because before your head even hits the table, one of the library staff will come and explain to you that you cannot in any case sleep here (even if the head rest was just a sign of desperation and not fatigue).
Please also respect your fellow students and have common curtesy, especially in the silent study. To avert the evil eye, you want to avoid talking or being noisy. Don’t talk on the phone either, and please chew your gum quietly.
If you’re feeling fancy and want to have that homey feeling without being at home, you can book a study carrel for yourself or a room to study in with your friends. And if you feel even fancier, you can do the latter and borrow a DVD to watch after a successful day of studying as a reward for all the hard work you’ve done! Just make sure no one finds kernels of popcorn smashed below their feet the next day.
Whether you will prefer being at the library versus studying at home really depends on your study type. Some have told me that they don’t like the feeling of having been productive at the end of the day, because it gives them a false sense of achievement. If you’re like me, however, and always find something slightly more interesting than your paper at home, then coming to this temple of focus will be your saving grace.
