A Guide to University Life

Contents

4 Student Profiles

6 Loans

7 Making Friends

8 Picking your Housemates

10 Negotiating Issues with your Lecturer

12 5 Best Student Life Hacks

14 6 Apps to Make Student Life Simpler

16 How to Resolve Housemate Conflict

18 Student Cooking

22 Staying Fit

24 Getting a Grad Job

27 How to Get a Part-Time Job

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Intro

Welcome students new and old to the Glide Guide to Student Life!Student living can be a fantastic experience, whether that comes from a sense of freedom from your folks or just eating biscuits for dinner, living away from home can be a tantalising taste of independence.

However, it can also be fraught with niggling doubts and disagreements, and few things cause more arguments in happy student households than utility bills.

This in fact happened to me, I lived with 3 other students in a privately rented house, and a major dispute over a £40 broadband and phone bill was an unfortunate inevitability. After the other students refused to pay for their share, I was left to foot the entire bill myself.

Out of frustration I sought solace at my local pub, and amidst the fresh haze of a morning hangover, the idea to provide a service that would take the headache out of bills (but not from beer) was born.

Fortunately, your experience doesn’t have to be fraught with the same disagreements as mine, let Glide help make your university experience a memorable one, with our Glide Guide to Student Life.

Have a drink for me!

James Villarreal

Hello!

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Student Profiles

Name: Emily Peddle

Age: 20

University: University of Leicester

Subject: English

What I Wish I Knew When I Started: I wish I knew that one day I’d be in a mouldy house with a few mice. I wish I’d known about mould removal sprays sooner.

More importantly, I wish I knew how to get the agency to help

us with this.

Best Thing I Did At Uni: Live with my best friends. Living in halls was fantastic for meeting great people, but the next year was like having a second family.

A good house dynamic is the best stress-reliever at uni.

What I Wish I Knew When I Started: How easy it is to lose the deposit on your house! I was really careless in my second year (broke the washing machine, scratched the table, lost my keys) and ended up getting almost none of my deposit back.

Best Thing I Did At Uni: Signing up for a summer field course in Italy. It was supposed to be a chance to study some serious science in an alpine environment, but the

Biggest University Regret: Experiences and surprises are what university is all about, so I wouldn’t say I regret anything.

Of course there are things I’d rather forget, but you leave university a totally different person for a reason – it’s best to see the silver lining in every situation.

chilled atmosphere and great accommodation made it more like a subsided holiday.

Biggest University Regret: I regret not choosing my halls of residence more carefully in my first year. I signed up for the first place that I saw on my open day without bothering to check out the alternatives. One positive was that it was pretty much the cheapest place to stay. But After a year of rats, grime and the quiet social scene I wished I’d looked into pricier options.

Name: Sam Joyce

Age: 21

University: University of Manchester

Subject: Biology

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Name: Rose Malleson

Age: 22

University: University of Durham

Subject: History

What I Wish I Knew When I Started: I wish I knew how to make the most of all the many services on offer! From the careers service, to the laptop clinic, library advisors (ok maybe not in first year!), and even those free personal training sessions in the gym! There are so many resources and staff out there for students, which I’m only starting to utilize properly now in my

final year.

What I Wish I Knew When I Started: It’s important to work hard for first year, but as it doesn’t count for most courses, it is the perfect time to get involved in sports, societies, and activities to bulk out your CV.

Best ThingI Did At Uni: I am involved in student-led welfare provision, so am involved in campaigning and I am a contact for any student looking for support. It’s hard work, but it’s so rewarding.

Best Thing I Did At Uni: The best thing I’ve done so far is hands down going on a year abroad. I got to spend a year in California, studying at UC Berkeley. It was sunny every single day, but I also got to take really inspiring classes, visit some incredible places, and make new friends from all over the world.

Biggest University Regret: Not exploring enough of this amazing city! The holidays seem to come around quicker every year, leaving a huge bucket list of places to go and things to see by the end of final year. My advice would be to make the most of the tourist sights when friends come to visit, and then spend the rest of term time seeking out those hidden local gems.

Biggest University Regret: Rushing to find a house for second year — we ended up with an expensive, small, and damp house. It’s definitely worth taking your time to find the perfect pad, rather than just picking the first one you find in a panic, and then you have more of a chance to get to know your house mates too.

Name: Hatti Sudell

Age: 23

University: The University of Edinburgh

Subject: English Literature & History

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Making Your Student Loan Stretch

When your student loan comes in it’s tempting to buy every little thing that catches your eye. Make sure you don’t fall into this common trap with our top tips.

Make a BudgetBudgeting is dull but it will pay off. Make realistic estimates for all your rent, food and any other bills- it’s better to have more money left than to not have enough. Anything left over can be split up for going out money and for non-essentials, like cute clothes and video games. It’d be wise to keep a bit left over for emergencies if you can afford it.

Get Yourself a Student Bank AccountHopefully this is what you already have but if not go into your bank asap. A student overdraft will get you a 0% overdraft making it an essential. This is a safety cushion in case of emergencies as life tends to avoid working to budget. If you do need to dip into your overdraft try not to go too deep- being in the red is never good.

Get a RailcardAt the beginning of the year there’s deals which’ll help you net a cool 20% discount on a student railcard. This’ll give you 1/3 off train tickets making it a must if you’re travelling around. At £30 for a year or £70 for

three years it’ll pay for itself in savings.

Student discountsLuckily students can use loads of discounts to get you bang for the buck. Sign up for sites like UniDays or StudentBeans to instantly get access to mouth-watering discounts. The best discount by far is the NUS Extra card, which costs £12. It’s worth looking over all the discounts you’ll get with it before you buy. With 20% off Odeon cinemas and 5% off Amazon.co.uk it’s generally well worth buying.

Shop aroundFirst of all, make sure you write a shopping list. This’ll help you to focus on what you need instead of buying whatever. Check out the prices on essentials in places like Lidl, Aldi and Poundland. It’s a lot more effort but you can get some great deals and cut your food costs in half. The reductions aisle

in your supermarket is good too- buy stuff when it’s cheap and freeze it until you need it.

By Hatti Sudell6

Making Friends in a New City

1. Start With Your HousematesIf it’s your first year, odds are high you’ll be living with other random students in halls. It’s great to get to know the people you’ll be living with but don’t force yourself on them. The first people you meet may not be the ones you click with and it may take time to find new besties. Either way, it’s always a good idea to be on talking terms with flatmates so get chatting.

2. Make The Most Of Freshers’ WeekChances are your university will have a Freshers’ Week on. Freshers’ events are usually great value for money and an awesome way to meet new people. Everyone at Freshers is in the same boat as you and everyone is trying to make new

friends. Chat around and see if there’s anyone you connect with, it could be the start of a lifelong friendship.

3. Continuing Old InterestsBeing in a new city doesn’t mean you have to drop all your old hobbies. There will be meetups for everything you’re interested in, from dance to board games. Start out by looking at the societies available at your university- there’s usually something for everyone. If you come up short have a look at meetup.com, there are tons of like-minded people for almost any hobby.

4. Talk To Your CoursematesGet chatting to people on your course (ideally not during lectures). You’ll definitely have

some things in common and conversation will come easily. Meeting up for lunch before or after your scheduled classes can get the ball rolling. Don’t limit yourself to talking to people on your course though - that person sat next to you in library could be your next friend!

5. Get Out And About‘Marathoning’ your favourite show on Netflix unfortunately won’t get you meeting new people. However, talking about your fave show? That’s a good idea. Explore the city, sit down in a coffee shop and have a breather. You aren’t guaranteed to meet new people this way but it’s a great way to get to know the city too. The first step to making new friends is to put yourself out there so get out there- you never know what’ll happen!

Moving away from everyone you know to attend university can be daunting. One of the best ways to get over those new city nerves is to start making friends. Here are our top tips on putting yourself out there and getting social.

By Isabel Whiteley

By Hatti Sudell7

Extreme Adventurer Vs Total Recluse Having housemates with different personality types

can often cause problems.

If you aren’t a big party animal then you will resent living with someone who falls through the door and wakes you up every night at 4am. At the same time your social life is important and having a housemate that isn’t very sociable might not work.

If all they do is talk about

their pet rock collection,

you might find them annoying

to be around.

Neat Freak Vs Oscar The GrouchHow tidy your housemates are can have a massive impact on your wellbeing. If you are all messy people and don’t mind having to swim through a sea of dirty socks, that’s fine. Yet after a while the smell might become unbearable. Also, be careful

if one of your housemates

is obsessed with tidiness,

dropping one crumb on the ground could start a war.

Picking Your Housemates

Choosing to live with someone is a big decision. Yet when moving away for uni we often don’t have the luxury of being picky about our housemates. You will be spending a lot of time with these people unless you plan to live in the library and hide away from them. It is critical to find the right housemates so you can make lifelong friendships, have a good support system and help you make the most of your time.

“Housemates should be your uni family, people who you can share all your gossip, deep thoughts and ideas with.”

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The Reliability FactorFor a house to function it’s a good idea to set a rota for each housemate to do different jobs. Yet can you trust your housemates to actually do the work and not leave you high and dry to do it all yourself? You don’t want to live with people who will make you stressed having to spend hours cleaning and shopping for survival while they’re lying on their bed watching Netflix.

How Comfortable Are You With Your Housemates?Could you live a whole year repeating the same conversation every day? If your housemates don’t have any interest in expanding the conversation past ‘Hello, how are you?’ you may just go insane.

Housemates should be your uni family, people who you can share all your gossip, deep thoughts and ideas with. If you don’t bond with your housemates it can often make you dislike living

with them.

Choosing who to live with is a big deal. If you aren’t already friends with these people it can be a gamble. But, the people you live with often become your closest friends. Keep an open mind and don’t worry if they don’t tick every box on your ‘perfect housemate’ check list.

If you become close with these people, you will find a system that works for everyone and

will enjoy living together.

By Amy Moore

“Housemates should be your uni family, people who you can share all your gossip, deep thoughts and ideas with.”

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Negotiating Issues with Your Lecturer

University can be daunting; a new environment alongside a hefty workload can leave the best of us feeling stressed. Many students suffer from problems outside of university which can affect their learning, whether it is illness, bereavement or anxiety, you are entitled to help. So, if you ever feel like you need extra help or time with your work, here are a few things to do:

By Sarah Rousseau

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Negotiate Deadlines With Your LecturerAs soon as you have received your exam dates and assignment deadlines, assess whether you have sufficient time between them to revise. You should never experience a clash with exams however if you have multiple exams and/or deadlines in one day, tell your lecturers and hopefully they will be able to move a deadline in order to make revision more manageable.

Talk To Your Personal TutorIf you ever feel that your stress or health is potentially affecting your work, you should immediately talk to your personal tutor or academic advisor. Send them a brief email letting them know what is worrying you and then set up a meeting. Your personal tutor will not only provide support, but advice on what you can do, whether it is counselling or advice on applying for mitigated circumstances, they will be able to provide help for whatever worries you have.

Always Record Your IllnessShould you ever become ill,

be sure to record it and to tell your lecturer, this way they can be sure to send you any work you have missed so that you won’t fall behind. If you have missed

an exam or have become ill before a deadline, send an email to your tutor asking what the protocol is. Usually, you need to fill out a form and attach a doctor’s note to prove your illness. Once your tutor has received this information, they will provide you with an extended deadline and a new exam date (most exams are

re-sat during the summer).

Communication Is KeyWhether you are suffering from depression, a broken leg or you are struggling with your workload, do not be embarrassed or shy to discuss these problems with your lecturers and tutor. The sooner you let them know what is happening, the sooner they provide you with extra support and any other help you may need. Universities really do want to make sure that their students are happy and healthy, so they will always do their best to ensure this. So remember, whether you think your problem is small or large, be sure to discuss them so that you don’t fall behind or suffer bad marks.

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5 Best Student Life Hacks

Being a student can be difficult at times. You’re living with little money and time on your hands and always striving for an easy, stress-free life. It’s time to learn some valuable life hacks to pursue this sort of lifestyle. These will no doubt save precious hours that can be wasted on the more important things in life, like partying.

1. The Toilet Roll Miracle Always spend way too long unravelling and untangling cables, chargers and headphones? Your misery is about to end. All you need to do is simply put as many toilet roll holders as you need into a drawer and put one of your cables into each. Who knew a cardboard cylinder could be so useful. Start savings those toilet rolls now to take back all those frustrating hours you’ve spend untangling.

2. Bye Bye SpamAs a college student, you’re often forced to sign up with your email address to get various discounts and freebies.

The trouble is, after you’ve eaten that free slice of pizza or lost that free pen, your life becomes miserable. Companies will bombard you several times a day with emails, and it just isn’t worth it. It gets so bad that you end up having thousands of unread messages and struggle to find the important ones. Why not just create a separate email just for spam? You will be grateful for not having to read “this will change your life” offers every single day.

By Rose Malleson

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access to exam papers from other Universities which provide your module. Well look no further. All you have to do is type “site:edu [subject] exam” into Google. You’re welcome.

5. Be Better Than Jamie OliverStuck living on pasta and toast? Have a few random ingredients in your fridge but can’t think of how any of them would go

together? Save that brain energy. Simply type any

ingredients you have into myfridgefood.

com and all possible recipes

will be listed! You will be surprised what

it might come up with, or if you get the

dreaded ‘no results found’ you know

it’s time for a shopping

trip.

site:edu [subject] exam

“Who knew a cardboard cylinder could be so useful.”

3. #ShoppingtimeToo much effort to write out a shopping list? Always forgetting what you need when you hit the grocery store? Save all the hassle with this simple hack. Open the fridge wide and SNAP. Just take

a picture of the whole fridge and any place you keep your food in. Voilà! No need to remember whether you’ve run out of noodles yet. It’s all on your

smart phone.

4. Exam Stress? Google Has The AnswerHave you a horrible lecturer that gives barely any material or guidance for the exam? It could really help if you could have

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Six Apps to Make Student Life Simpler

Student life can be unpredictable, chaotic, and exciting. Unfortunately this means that the hot meals, daily wake-ups, and pre-paid bills that you might have taken for granted at home are long gone when September rolls around. Not only will you be trying to keep on top of your studies, but you are expected to look after yourself as well. Here are six apps that could change all of that in a simple click, by helping you to keep student life as simple as possible.

1. The Dictionary.com app is the world’s favourite free reference app. It is also a perfect way to boost your grades with a fancy new word or two. Not only can you check definitions at the tap of a screen, but you can also save your favourite words, check words offline, and learn new words with the Word of the Day feature. A procrastination technique that might actually impress your lecturers as well as your friends.

2. Genius Scanner makes creating PDF documents oh so easy by turning your phone into a fully functioning scanner. The app helps you to line up the optimum shot, sorts out the angles, organizes and archives your scan, and you can even export the PDF to email. While normal camera apps aren’t designed for capturing text close up, Genius Scanner is, so it’s perfect for the book you can’t check out of the library, or the worksheet from class that you need to digitize

for your laptop notes.

3. Whatever stage of university you are at, referencing is a necessary evil that every student panics about at least once. As the years progress, and as you become

a more efficient worker,

the bibliography list only gets longer. RefME stands for ‘Referencing Made Easy’, and it really does live up to its name. RefME automates the citation process so that you can search by title, ISBN, DOI, ISSN, and much more, or just copy and paste a webpage address.

The app then instantly creates a full citation in one of over 6500 styles, chosen by you. Recently the ability to scan a book’s barcode has just been added to the smartphone app making this even easier.

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4.

5.

1.

3.

2.

6.

Bibliographies are stored in the cloud and easily exportable to all your favourite word processing

applications.

4.Student life gets even more complicated when it comes to living with friends for the first time, and splitting the bills. Glide eases this process by combining all your regular monthly utilities into one easier bill.

It then charges each housemate separately, so you can spend less time arguing over payments, and more time enjoying student life. The new app allows you to manage your account and outgoings even more efficiently. You can get a quote, track your energy usage, upload meter readings, and view your account balance, without the need for multiple pieces of paperwork.

A lifesaver for student houses and young professionals living under one roof.

5.A good day of studying starts with a great night’s sleep.

Sleep Cycle works by analyzing your sleep patterns, and waking you up in your lightest sleep phase. You can then compare graphs of each night, and track your progress in gaining quality hours of slumber. Perfect for the serial partyer, the Netflix-obsessed fresher, or just the work-exhausted third year: give yourself the best possible start to the day.

6.The Student Cook app is a great tool for the culinary-challenged student. Including recipes, tips, and photos. The app is arranged in chapters like a cookbook. It really is designed for the true beginner, and makes sure to cover what might seem the most basic of steps, to fill you with cooking confidence. With integrated shopping lists, timers, and guidelines, you’ll be cooking up a storm in no time.

By Hatti Sudell

15

How to Resolve Housemate Conflict

It can be hard living with people - everyone has their own way of doing things, and their own expectations. Even your best friends can sometimes turn out to be annoying! But here are some good tips on how to deal with these problems as they arise.

1. Nip It In The BudFirstly, to avoid conflict over things like bills and housework, think ahead — installing an app like Glide will help you divide up your bills hassle-free. A good cleaning rota can work wonders too. Make sure it covers every possible chore, so that you will be able to see who’s pulling their weight, and who may need some gentle encouragement! Have a discussion with all of your housemates at the beginning, to find out what everyone’s expectations are, and how everyone will handle them.

2. CompromiseThis one is really important.

You need to decide what is really important to you before you confront someone about it

- if you try to fight every battle,

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no matter how insignificant,

your housemates might see

you as controlling, and resist your requests. For example,

if someone has had a really busy or difficult week, and not done their chores, it might be worth letting that one slide.

3. Don’t Be A PushoverOn the other hand, if there is something really stressing you out, then tell them how you feel in a friendly way, go in with some solutions, and be nice! Also, try

not to charge in at the moment that you’re feeling annoyed or angry, give it a couple of hours, sleep on it, write down your feelings. You might decide that it’s not worth an argument,

or if you still think it needs to be discussed, you will have a clearer idea about what you want to say.

4. Be respectfulIf you may want to play loud music throughout the day, put some headphones in sometimes, to give your housemates some peace and quiet. If you’re cooking with smelly food,

put the fan on, or open a window. Don’t leave your washing up for too long, or leave it in the sink for days. These are some simple things you can do, which your housemates will really appreciate, and will really improve your relationship

with them.

5. VolunteerThere is nearly always one person in the house who sorts everything out — bills, washing-up liquid, the broken kettle.

Of course, the choice to take on that role is up to them, but if you occasionally offer to do one of these tasks, such as pick up the toilet roll without being asked, they will be very grateful, and will be less stressed about the other things they take on.

By Rose Malleson

“You need to decide what is really important to you before you confront someone about it.”

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Method

Chop the butternut squash into chunks, place in a baking tray and cover with oil. If you’re using chili powder instead of fresh chili then sprinkle it over the squash chunks right away. Add enough oil so that all the pieces are finely coated and leave in the oven for around 35-40 minutes at 180 degrees to roast.

Repeat this step for the sweet potato and parsnips. Be sure to cut out the middle section of the parsnips before you roast them otherwise you will end up with the stringy, fibrous core in your soup.

Peel and finely chop the garlic cloves, ginger and onions. Put them in a large pot, add oil, cover with a lid and leave to sweat on a low heat for 10 minutes. After the 10 minutes are done your onions should be see through and slightly golden.

Dissolve a vegetable stock cube in a litre of boiling water.

Student Cooking

Aside from those few magical weeks after loan payment days, you’re likely to spend many of your uni days finding out how to get by on a tight budget. Learning how to save money can only be a good thing. But the logic behind what we as students decide to cut back on can often be slightly troubling. Most parents wouldn’t be overly thrilled at the thought of their child living off plain pasta for weeks in order to afford a Glastonbury deposit, summer clothes or any of the other countless things we convince ourselves that we just need. But hey - you’re only young once. So in order to make the whole process a lot easier, we’ve have put together a few recipes which are cheap, simple and well suited for making in bulk. Just stock up on tupperware and you’re good to go!

Roast Butternut Squash and Sweet Potato Soup

Ingredients1 butternut squash

1 large white onion

2 sweet potatoes

3 parsnips

1 red chili (or chili powder)

fresh ginger (to taste, but roughly a 10cm X 10cm square)

3 cloves of garlic

vegetable stock

olive oil

salt

pepper

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Once your root vegetables are roasted through, add them into the pot with the onions.

Pour in the stock mixture. At this stage you may need to add more water in order to fully cover the vegetables. It’s fine to add the water by eye but don’t add more stock as the soup will end up too salty.

Heat the mixture on a medium heat.

Blend the ingredients with a hand blender until the mixture is smooth.

De-seed the chili and add it in finely chopped.

Season with salt and pepper.

General TipDon’t worry too much about having a million pots and pans. Everyone will bring some and most flats sort out a way to share kitchen equipment. If you’re bothered about getting your things back at the end of the year make small marks on the underside of the handles with nail varnish. Then no one will be able to claim them as their own when move out day comes!

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Method

Chop and fry the garlic and onion on a medium heat until golden brown.

Chop the red pepper and courgette and add to the pan. Continue to heat the vegetables through. After around 7 minutes, add the tomato sauce and oregano.

Place the streaky bacon on a sheet of foil on a tray and grill until crispy on both sides.

Cut the bacon into small squares - put a handful of the squares aside. Add the rest into your tomato mixture

Pour a third of the mix into a deep oven proof tray and place a layer of lasagna sheets on top. Repeat this process until you have three layers of pasta.

Add a layer of tomato sauce on to the top layer of your pasta. Coat this with grated cheddar cheese.

Heat the oven to 180 degrees and cook for 40 minutes.

Once your lasagna is ready, sprinkle the remaining crispy bacon squares on top and add fresh basil to garnish.

Crispy Bacon Lasagne

Ingredients

A pack of lasagne pasta sheets

8 rashers of streaky bacon

1 courgette

1 onion

1 red pepper

2 garlic cloves

400g cheddar cheese

2 jars tomato sauce (or 1 large jar)

vegetable/olive oil

oregano

fresh basil

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Method

Finely chop the onion and fry in butter on a medium heat until see through/slightly golden

Add in the risotto rice. Stir in and fry for 3-5 mins.

Dissolve the stock cube in a litre of water and add to the onions and rice. Make sure you keep stirring the rice around - don’t let it sit and cook at the bottom of the pan. Keep adding more water as the mixture evaporates. Repeat this process until the rice is fully cooked through.

In a separate pan fry the mushrooms in butter. Cook on a medium heat for 5 minutes then add them into the risotto mixture.

Add in a handful of rocket, the grated parmesan and season with salt and pepper.

Mushroom Risotto

Ingredients

1 onion

300g risotto rice

250g mushrooms

rocket

50 g parmesan

a knob of butter

salt

pepper

vegetable stock

General Tips

Online shopping is amazing for long life foods. Bulk buying huge bags of the essentials - pasta, rice, etc- will save you so much money and hassle. Well worth doing a massive shop at the beginning of each term.

Bring a lot of tupperware.

It’s easily the most useful thing to have in a uni kitchen.

Pack lunches will save you a fortune on library lunchtimes.

If you buy your fruit and veg from local shops you’ll almost always get fresher, tastier ingredients to work with. Just try not to get distracted by the delicious but heavily priced extras them are stocked alongside them. Green and Blacks chocolate got me

every time.By Isabel Whiteley21

Staying Fit as a Student

Staying fit as a student is surprisingly easy, especially if your course has less contact hours. It’s also a great way to de-stress, stay mentally fit, and work off those nights out. However, during essay and exam season, it easily slips the mind. Here are our tips on staying fit as a student.

“If money is anissue – go outdoors! A jog in the summer evening is brilliant to unwind from uni. ”

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1. Where to Go?The obvious choice is joining a sports society. Most of them

only ask for one upfront joining fee during fresher’s fair, and all are affordable for students.

If your skills don’t lie in competitive sports, consider joining a fitness society –

e.g a dance class or yoga.

University gyms are great value for money with good equipment. If it’s based on campus or in halls, it’s easier to pop into the gym before or after lectures. Look around before you pay, and try out a free session if you can.

Always take advantage of free classes, free fitness tests or free personal trainer sessions.

If money is an issue – go outdoors! A jog in the summer evening is brilliant to unwind from uni. Search on Youtube for endless fitness videos that you can do from your bedroom.

2. Getting MotivatedHere’s the tough part – making sure you maintain it. Make a schedule and stick to it – try to fit in at least one workout a week. Turn it into a routine that

you can’t break.

Another good idea is to have a gym buddy. Go to the gym with a housemate, and motivate each other to go – that way, you can’t make excuses. Another great way to get motivated is to follow a few fitness accounts on social media. There’s nothing like seeing a new tutorial on Instagram to get you out of bed.

3. Finding out What Works for YouDon’t feel intimidated by people who seem like fitness gods in the gym. Sign up for a personal trainer session and try new things to figure out what works best for your body. Making a plan will help you get fit in less time. It’s better to do 30 minutes of high intensity cardio and leave than to waste an extra hour sweating away.

4. ‘Abs are Made in the Kitchen.’It’s true that if you spend hours in the gym but don’t refuel your body correctly, you won’t be as fit as you can be. Make an effort to eat clean and balanced meals – your body needs the energy, especially if you’re working on finals. Start off each day with lots of water to cleanse, and you’ll notice the difference

straight away.

By Emily Peddle

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Getting a Graduate Job

Nobody tells you about this, but the process of getting a graduate job starts as soon as you get to university. It is a long journey where much preparation is needed to ensure that when you have found your dream job, you have everything in place to apply for the role. Here is some advice on what you should do to prepare, the types of experience you want to be looking for and how to find the perfect job to apply for during your time at University.

DiversityDon’t be afraid to volunteer in different areas as you never know whether it may be the diversity of your experiences which makes you memorable and interesting to prospective employers.

Societies and ResponsibilitiesTake advantage of the societies available to you. However, don’t just stop at joining a society, think about joining a committee, founding a society or taking up any other responsibilities your society has to offer.

Other Opportunities at UniversityAt university, there are many opportunities available such as mentoring younger students, field trips with lecturers to watch them give a seminar or being

a university ambassador.

Jobs & InternshipsIf you have a specific career in mind while at university, try to dedicate some of your spare time on finding a part time job or internships during the summer. Even if you don’t know exactly what you want to do once you

graduate, getting experience within certain careers can open your eyes as to what types of jobs are available and whether these are the jobs for you.

Citizenship and VolunteeringTaking the time to give back to society through volunteering is a great way to add diversity to your experience and will not only reflect well upon you as a person but also your interpersonal skills.

Experience

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Careers ServicesOnce you have some experience, make sure to take advantage of the careers services at your university. They can help you with finding the right career path, putting together your CV or even finding work experience and internships. They can also proof read your CV and Cover Letters to ensure that they are perfect before sending them

off to any prospective jobs.

Maths and EnglishSome interviews now contain

a literacy and numeracy section. Most students will have competent

literacy skills however if your degree doesn’t require maths, I would recommend doing some online practice.

Cover Letters and CVIf you are applying for a variety of graduate roles, ensure that your CV is job specific as well as your Cover Letter. Do not create a singular CV for all jobs; they must be tailored to each role.

ResearchWhen applying for any role, do as much research about the company you are applying for beforehand. This should be reflected in your Cover Letter and in your interview.

Friends and FamilyWhen you have typed up your CV and Cover Letters, share them with somebody who is in a relevant field or whose opinion you trust. Also, don’t forget to practice interviews and presentations also, even if you can’t do it face to face, practice over Skype or record it.

Taking Initiative: Blogs and Social MediaThe final thing you can do to gain experience in your job area is to start a blog or promote any of your work on social media. Showing off your skills online

and putting your own personal time and effort into such work will reflect greatly alongside

any other experience you have gained.

Preparation

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Networking

Careers FairsVisiting Careers Fairs is a great way of finding out what jobs are available and which companies are looking for new graduates. You can be job specific when choosing which fairs to go to or visit them all. However, if there is a company you are hoping to work with in the future, try to make an impression rather than just picking up a booklet at their stall.

University Seminars & Other OpportunitiesYour school or department will usually hold seminars or workshops on careers related to your degree. These are excellent as they are more intimate than fairs and may give you the opportunity to meet people in the industry and gain specific advice.

Agency and Job Search PlatformsThere are many graduate job websites, many require for you to upload your CV and record which jobs you have applied for. From this information, employers may contact you directly if they have been impressed by your CV or the website may suggest other jobs within your field to apply for. There are a multitude of platforms, some are field specific and others aren’t. Do your research, get advice from your careers centre and ask fellow students on which websites they have had success with.

Linkedin and Social MediaFinally, make use of social media and Linkedin. Create online profiles which reflect well on you as a professional. Ensure that your Facebook isn’t full of crude picture and names.

You can also use Twitter to find new job openings and internships or even to get into contact with certain companies, it pays to be persistent.

By Sarah Rousseau

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By Rachel Shapiro

How to Get a Part-Time Job in University

Every university student needs a little cash, but if you don’t have much work experience, it can be hard to know where to start looking for a job. Here are a few ideas for places to turn for a part-time job while you’re a student.

Use your Career ServicesYour first stop should always be your university’s career services. Every university has one and it can be super helpful for finding part time jobs relevant to your skills. Most career services have an online jobs board that advertises part-time jobs in the local area. You can also go and meet with a career counselor. They’ll look at your CV and give you ideas for what kind of jobs you may be qualified for.

Look for On-Campus JobsBefore you take your job search off-campus, you should first see if you can get a job at your university. These jobs are good for students because they’re often very flexible, so you’ll be able to work around your class schedule. Plus, you won’t have to worry about taking time off from work when you’re on breaks from classes, because the university will be closed then anyways. Try applying to your student union, or ask your professors if there are any openings for assistants in their department. University admissions is also a good place for students to find a job, and they’re often looking for students to work as tour guides for visiting families.

Try Shops in the City CentreIf you haven’t found anything at your university, head to the city centre and try to get a job at one of the shops there. Take your CV from shop-to-shop, and ask to speak to the manager. If the manager is in and will talk to you, give them your CV and tell them you’re a university student looking for a part-time job. If you’re lucky, they may even give you an interview right then and there. If they’re not hiring, that’s fine. There are plenty more shops out there for you to try.

Be PersistentThe job search can take a while, especially if you don’t have much prior experience. Keep applying to jobs at your university and in shops throughout the city. Don’t stop even if you’re not hearing back from anyone, or if you can’t get past the interview stage.

If you keep trying, eventually

you will get hired.

By Rachel Shapiro

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