Jobs!

For all of you out there who are working whilst studying, respect goes out to you because working and studying is not easy at all. Even though it is a part time job 4-6 hours a week, you could be using those hours to sleep, eat, or do coursework. That’s roughly 24 hours a month that you are dedicating to gain that extra pocket money.

It’s worthwhile finding a job based on the university campus such as Student Ambassador, or working with certain members of staff in departments (such as the international office). Be sure to check and sign up to www.prospects.ac.uk to receive daily updates so you don’t miss out!

You can also sign up to the Greenwich Employability Team to receive daily emails about the latest vacancies. Just check these emails instead of deleting them because you never know what position might strike an interest! I found my part time job in Avery Hill through this service and I love my work, there’s nothing better than working with other students who know what it’s like to work and study so we can all relate to each other. It’s also great because when one person is not able to work you can cover their shift on their behalf so it’s pretty flexible.

If you have an interview coming up or applying for jobs, you can arrange a drop in session with the GET team to review your CV and help prepare you for anything and everything! It’s such a great service and I would have definitely used this if I knew it existed last year. I used this drop in session to fix up my CV and it looks a lot better and way more professional than it did a few months ago. It’s important to utilise these services now while you can because once you finish your studies it’s can be difficult to receive this kind of support at your own convenience.

If you need any help in arranging the appointment just call the main university switchboard for your campus J

It’s that time of year again…

For the sake of my bloggers, I am not going to write a typical cliché lovey dovey Valentine’s blog because let’s face it, Valentine’s Day is over and I believe you should be treated special every day of the year not just one! There shouldn't be a need to buy gifts because it’s a certain day, buy gifts because you want to J

With that over, let’s have another look at where we are now. It’s approaching the end of February and last coursework submissions are going through and exams are just around the corner. One thing I've learnt from my first year is to be proactive with your time that you have for revision. Utilise the material that the tutors provide because textbooks are always there for wider reading, which should be done throughout the year not during exam time. However, accounting students do sometimes need to refer back to the textbooks for help with calculation methods. With financial accounting it is important to keep practicing the calculations as it only gets harder!

As long as you follow the advice given by your tutors, everything should run smoothly and you shouldn't experience any issues, if you do then contact them and let them know. They are busy people so you need to chase them up if you need help.

Apart from the exams, the summer holidays will be a nice break after 9 months of ‘hard work’. I am actually so excited to kick back and relax, even if it is in Britain with British weather! Some students have the benefit of completing a one year placement. I found that placement applications were so tedious and time consuming but I still put in the time and effort to find a company. Unfortunately, I did not succeed in most of the applications and I am assuming that this summer will be spent relaxing and working in my part time job at Avery Hill. It is worthwhile still applying for a placement because you never know which company might choose you to work with them and it’s a great kick start to your career once you have graduated. Sometimes, students who complete a placement will be offered a position to go straight into after graduating.

Some pointers to look out for or consider when going into your next year:

• Have you applied for student finance?
• Do you want to apply for a sandwich year? – speak to your course director to switch the mode of your course
• Have you applied for accommodation?
• International students: are you ready to pay the next instalment of fees?
• Do you know where to buy your next set of books from?

If you need any help with accommodation or fees then just pop by to the Student Centre or Accommodation Office and they will be able to help! J