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A Week in the life of Philip Ashon

See how the Tullow Oil Scholarship winner spends his time on campus and off.

Monday

Students working with video recording equipment in a classroom.

The week starts on a very serious note. Depending on specialisations, different rooms are allocated for studies to be engaged in.

Lectures commence at 09:00 and go all the way till 17:00. There are short breaks after every hour, though. Lunch break is usually for an hour and a few minutes. There are some days when we have more practical sessions where we do some filming or other work.

Tuesday

Lecturer standing in front of a room full of students in a lecture hall.

The major highlight for Tuesday is catching up with all of my colleagues in the course. There are several hours of lectures.

Occasionally, we have seminars instead. Several hours in the library, however, fill up most of the day for research and personal study. Soccer training or some minutes in the gym usually close my day. Staying fit is imperative if you want to keep up with all the work to be done.

Wednesday

Man standing in front of the Wales Millennium Centre.

This is my favourite day. No lectures! However, between reading the news on Xpress Radio, completing assignments, finishing up readings, playing soccer matches with the Social Science team in the campus tournament and turning up for meetings with tutors, there is very little time to play around.

Thursday

Student standing in front of a large projector screen.

Lectures are fewer on Thursdays. However, seminars and open debate sessions make it one to look forward to. The library or video editing suite take up the most of this day. I also produce my show, Rhythms on campus radio, Xpress Radio, on this day.

Friday

Lecturer standing in front of a room full of students on laptops.

Fridays are almost a direct replica of Mondays. However, the idea of the weekend being  a few hours away helps one get through it quite quickly. There is more practical work done on Fridays and usually is more relaxed than Monday.

Saturday

Three people standing in front of a microphone in a recording studio.

My mornings are spent preparing my playlist for the show, Rhythms, which goes on-air at 13:00. I interview various kinds of people on my show and play afro-pop, afro-Caribbean and hi life tunes on the show.

Several basic household duties are also completed before the show, such as washing and simply having a chat with my housemates.

Sunday

Orchestra playing on a stage in a grand room.

The day is usually split between a church service in the morning and some good rest and catching up with friends. A man must rest.