The Hub is a modern studying environment equipped with technology, collaborative study spaces and some pretty cool study rooms.
Level 4, the level you enter when you walk in, has a range of cafes and places to buy food. These outlets are great catering for everything from Chinese food to baguettes, coffee, snacks and everything in between.
Level 3, is where the main facilities are though. There are quite a few desks and benches and couches. You are allowed to rearrange the furniture as you wish and there are quite a few Macs and PC's around the place. You can also quickly hop across to the Barr Smith library on this level too as the two buildings are connected.
Whilst being a great open plan study environment and a must go for university students, it does have a few issues that I am sure will be improved over the coming years. The first of which is the fact that it is borderline impossible to find a place to sit between 10am and 2pm each day as the place is packed. On quite a few occasions, I have had to venture down two flights of stairs to level 1 of the Barr Smith Library to get a spot to study.
The toilets are also far from numerous too. While there is a decent sized one on level 4, level 3 houses only one male toilet with a small urinal and a small cubicle. More often than not, I find myself having to go upstairs or downstairs as the toilet is usually occupied.
Also power points can be an issue. While there are quite a few outlets, the places where they are present tend to go first. If you need to charge your devices and the hub is busy, then level 1 of the Barr Smith Library is probably your best bet.
A really good thing about this place is the fact it houses the Writing Centre and Maths Learning Centre. These services are free and can be used by students to help get feedback on essays or to get support with mathematics. The two centers are on level 3 and are open 10am - 4pm Monday to Friday,
If you have to study at night or on the weekend, you can access the hub 24/7 during the year (except for during the summer holidays, Christmas and New Year's Day) by using your student card. I went here on the Good Friday public holiday to finish an assignment.
All in all, this place is great for individual study and collaborative learning, it just is very busy and could perhaps do with being slightly larger. read more