Dear friends,

It is summer time. Some of you might want to have a break from the stressful exam periods during the academic year. However, there will be students who would want to work part-time, while they have more free time to earn money. That will allow them to continue studying next academic year. It is always a priority for students to increase or at least maintain their level of funds, while they are studying, because there are expenses constantly for food, accommodation, studying materials and social life.

For instance, for my module in Mathematics I had to buy a calculator, which was required by the University and was relatively expensive. Additionally, I had to buy textbooks, which were quite expensive as well. It is true that some of these textbooks were available in the library, nevertheless, there were only a few copies and I had to wait until a book was returned to the library by the borrower. Hence, it was more convenient to own a personal copy. At that time most textbooks were not available online and I preferred having a physical copy of a book. The feeling is different when you can touch the book, instead of accessing it online.

Food usually represents a relatively fixed expenditure as people need to buy some every week. It might be expensive for students, who are not informed how to use their money wisely. Accommodation is very large part of the monthly expenses and a part-time job is necessary for a lot of students. Moreover, social life requires to be prepared to spend unexpectedly an additional amount of money. Financial concerns have always been essential feature of student life. Thus, part-time jobs are prioritised.

If you want to work at the University of Surrey, you can register with Unitemps. The second step is to start applying for the jobs that are advertised on their website. For example, I applied to work during the Graduation week at Surrey. This is a time for celebrations and it is a good opportunity to help students, who are graduating and will start their careers, working as specialists in their chosen fields. The role required welcoming and serving drinks to students and their guests, maintaining the space clean and representable.

Another opportunity is to work part-time at Surrey Sports Park, which is near Manor Park (accommodation). The responsibilities include setting up different rooms for events, as well as cleaning and preparing these rooms for the next day, returning everything back to its initial place. For example, there might be a competition between Surrey team and a team from another University in a particular sport. If that is the case, the people, working that day, will also need to scan the tickets of spectators. In general, it is an interesting job, however, it may be physically demanding.

On the other hand, you might apply directly to the Students’ Union to work as a team member, meaning that you will need to work in Rubix, selling food and drinks to students. Nonetheless, this job is only for people who feel comfortable working during the night in order to support social life at University. Furthermore, outside of the University, working at Tesco could be a good option because you will get food discounts as an employee, which can support your finances.

Hence, do not worry too much about finding a part-time job as there are many options to choose from. There is always support, offered by the University of Surrey in relation to financial difficulties. The most important thing is to take care of your health and wellbeing.

Until next time,

Desi