Student Stories: Ramon Luque, BA French and Spanish

¡Hola! My name is Ramon Luque and I studied a BA (Hons) in French and Spanish. I am extremely happy to say that I am part of the Coventry University family. Having studied abroad in two other countries I can’t recommend CU enough; from the way their courses are organised to the amazing staff. Since the first day I stepped into the George Elliot building I felt Coventry University was the right place, and four years down the line, I can happily say that enrolling at CU was one of the best decisions I have ever made.

Thanks to my course, I had the opportunity to live in France for a whole academic year. At first, I was a bit reluctant to the idea of moving again to another country, but now I would say it was one of the best experiences of my life. In Lyon, I made friends from all over the world, some of whom I am still in contact with. As well as university, I worked part-time in Zara in order to improve my everyday speaking (and folding) skills. Lyon is in a great location, almost bordering Italy and Switzerland. I made the most of this and travelled to cities like Turin and Geneva frequently. A great way to experience the different European cultures and cuisines – as well as practising Italian, learned as part of my Add+vantage course!

During my last year at Coventry University, my tutor and Italian Lecturer Tiziana, who knew my passion for teaching languages and working with kids, asked me if I would like to take part on a project called Language Horizons. Alongside Coventry University, this project gave me the opportunity to go to two schools in the West Midlands, to encourage and show Year 9 students how important is to study languages in a globalised world. I really enjoyed engaging with the kids and seeing how much fun they had with the activities that I prepared for each session. After finishing the project, the teachers were still in contact with me and, I am happy to say that nearly 80% of those students have changed their minds towards languages and decided to take Spanish or French for their GCSE.

Thanks to my inspirational Spanish and French lecturers, a great experience studying at Coventry University and the Language Horizons project, I have realised even more that teaching is definitely the path I want to follow. I then applied to study a PGCE for MFL in three different schools/universities in Birmingham. I was successful on each one of the interviews and decided to accept the school where I felt most comfortable teaching at this September. Turns out it’s the best comprehensive school in Birmingham and within the top 1% in the country.

As part of my studies for this coming academic year, I have applied for a scholarship for the PGCE programme from the British Council. I am really happy as I have recently received an email confirming that I have been shortlisted for an online interview. This scholarship gives students access to a range of professional development opportunities and resources, the opportunity to attend at conferences and events with cultural institutions in the UK, as well as generous financial support.

I would like to finish this post with a huge thank you to all the staff who have taught me during these four years. Every single one of you has helped to shape the person I have become, and I will be forever grateful to you all.

To those students who are thinking of studying at Coventry University, just go for it because you will not regret it. You will have an amazing team willing to support you all the way to your success!