What is it about Swansea that draws university students back to stay?
There has always been a special bond between Swansea University and the city itself, with many students finding themselves doing something that they had never imagined when they pitched up for the first time. Some never left and others returned to live, all seduced perhaps by memories of studying by the sea. Those who just stayed seemed not to want to let go and, for others, a yearning remained to recapture the spirit of Swansea, and back they came. Many would remember only the Singleton Campus, just a hop to the beach, but these days that maritime theme has been strengthened with the arrival of the Bay Campus. So for the new academic year and for the years that follow, more students will get the chance to sample the unique flavour which comes with the territory at Swansea University. It has been more than enough to attract these former students back to stay, as they explained as part of last year's university centenary celebrations. And as it prepares to welcome a new influx, they also took time out to sum up what Swansea means to them. Becky Burgoyne and Joe Davies  It was September 20, 2014, when then arts and humanities student Becky Burgoyne met her partner Joe Davies when they were housed together on the third floor of the Preseli building on Singleton Campus. The encounter which proved so significant in their lives took place in an alcove kitchen. "Since then, we have both completed our BA degrees in Swansea, moved to Yorkshire for a year, moved back to Swansea to complete our MA degrees, moved to London for a year, and have just moved back to Swansea to live permanently," said Becky. "We've never been able to leave without wanting to come back to the place we first met!" She is currently completing a PhD in Medieval Studies at the University of Bristol, and Joe is a statistician for the Welsh Government, but thoughts frequently turn to their time together at Swansea University. "Being assigned to my room on Floor 3 changed my life in many ways, and my time at Swansea was beyond my wildest expectations for so many reasons - but the best thing was definitely meeting Joe," said Becky. "We have a lot of happy memories of our time at university in Swansea, made a wonderful group of friends in our flat and I think we can both agree it was one of the best years of our lives," she said. "We also love the area - we love the beach, the pride people take in being from Swansea, the fact that there is always something going on. "There's so much culture, and the city is constantly changing but always stays the same underneath (in a good way!). I know everyone always says it's the graveyard of ambition - I like to think of this as a compliment, as you might come here with grand plans and the added stress of getting there, but you realise not a lot else matters if you love where you already are." David O'Carroll  David was a student between 1970-74 and has fond memories of working on Crefft, the student newspaper. "In the 1970s the Crefft office was the hub of my student day," he said. "It is difficult to remember whether any of us aspired to become journalists. Certainly, we spent many hours typing out news reports and articles on two mechanical typewriters; trying to make some sense out of the rugby teams' match reports; smoking too many French cigarettes; and talking on the phone between puffs in the hope of getting a scoop - that never happened. "Two of us interviewed the principal: the closest thing to a scoop and in the same issue a third journalist wrote a withering critique of an elderly economics lecturer. As I was the editor for that edition (we had a rota) it was me who faced rustication and me who had to make the apologetic phone call to the lecturers wife. "We never won any prizes for best university newspaper but quite often we were asked by other universities if they could copy an article for their paper. Plaudit enough. My studies in economics and politics did not prove immediately useful for my career in the Civil Service, though in 1978 I worked for a junior minister in charge of press relations in Jim Callaghans ailing government." David, who was appointed an OBE, came to Swansea from London to study and met and married a Swansea girl. "We left to join the Civil Service and returned when we retired," he said. Our happy memories, our family and it's a beautiful place to live." Jane Tonks and Tony Clements  "My partner Tony and I met in the college bar on 7 October, 1978, and were still together, three children, two rewarding careers and 42 years later," said Jane. "I was a fresher and my partner had graduated from University College Swansea (as it was then) a few years before and returned with his friends that night to the college bar. "Neither of us was from Swansea but we settled here and our children were all born here. We enjoyed fulfilling careers, thanks to our education at Swansea, and every few years we return to the college bar on our anniversary to celebrate the importance it played in our lives." They found Swansea hard to let go of, and nearly 43 years later still not far away, just across Singleton Park. "Swansea has it all," said Jane. "There are the great beaches and open spaces that everyone talks about and enjoys, but also theres a real sense of community here which makes us feel anchored and part of something bigger, and which originally made us so welcome." G aining your place at Swansea University  The first thing to say is that the university will try and be as flexible as possible. It understands the pressures that students have gone through and will be flexible when it comes to results day. If you've already applied and are worried about your offer/place, get in touch. There will still be places available in August through the clearing process, which matches applicants to university places that haven't been filled. It is very handy if you've changed your mind about the university at which you wish to study or you havent quite achieved the grades you were expecting. It could come into play if you have achieved better grades than expected or you want to change to another course. Find out more here. How Swansea University will welcome you in September  Teaching in September is likely to be a mixture of on-campus and in-person where it is safe to do so. Large lectures will still be online. However, it will continue to follow Welsh Government guidelines, so everyone will need to fall in line with the regulations as they stand at the time. But the approach is a friendly and safe one, continuing the process since the pandemic began with outdoor social spaces and support during self-isolation just two of the features. Read Swansea University's Covid-19 guidance here. To find out more about clearing - another opportunity to study at Swansea University - visit the website.