In the Department of English Literature at the University of Reading we decided that a blog might be a good way to show school and college students what it is like in a university department such as ours, and we thought university students, too, might like a peek behind the scenes. Our departmental blog is always busy, with announcements about events and posts about what we are all up to. Here we hope to provide something a little more reflective, giving you a good sense of the feel of a university department: what it is like to work here and, as much as we can, what it is like to study here.

 Each week there will be a post to the blog by me, Dr Cindy Becker. A tiny bit about me before we get going: I was a student here in the English Lit department where I am now an Associate Professor, so I have been here (and loved being here) for a good many years. I teach across a broad range of modules and I am also placement tutor for the department. I occasionally deliver professional training courses away from the university, so I get to see graduates in the workplace as well as students on campus. I write books for students and so have the pleasure of hearing from students across the world about their lives in academia.