We are about to enter December which means a lot of students will be packing up, waving goodbye to their student digs for a few weeks and heading home in time for the festive season. Christmas time can go by in a flash, even for students who have loads of time off! If you want to make the most of your spare time this Christmas, then here are 6 things you could be doing…
Start your dissertation
If you’ve already made a start on yours then you are way ahead of the pack! Many students still put off this mammoth task and end up scrambling round in the last couple of weeks before the deadline, with sleepless nights and endless stress to complete what is the biggest decider of your final Degree grade! Wouldn’t it be nice to have those last couple of weeks before the deadline just checking over your work and making sure it’s presented correctly rather than writing the entire thing? If you have some quiet time at home over Christmas why not start planning or even writing your dissertation, 2019 you will thank you for it we promise!
Studying
I know it’s another dull suggestion, BUT the same principles apply! You’re probably going to have some time on your own at home with nothing much to do, so instead of binging a new box set on Netflix why not have a look at your lecture notes and reading list to get ahead of your exam revision? We’re not saying you need to be doing this for hours on end, but it could break up some of the time between mince pie eating and watching Christmas movies!
Catch up with friends
A lot of University students move away to different cities for University, so if your best friends from School are at Leeds Uni and you’re at Cardiff the chances are you don’t get to see them an awful lot when you’re on campus! Christmas time however a lot of students will head to their home towns and cities, making it a great time to catch up with friends without a lengthy train journey to do so! Make the most of being closer to people and get out to catch up! No idea what to give your husband or boyfriend for Christmas? Check out Shopsmith – The Perfect Gift For That Special Man in your life.
Take a temp position
Christmas is one of the best times to pick up a temporary job because it’s one of the busiest times for a lot of industries. Retailers have a lot of temporary vacancies at this time of year to handle the extra footfall from Christmas shoppers, and logistics companies may offer temporary courier positions to cope with the extra parcel deliveries too so if you have a driving licence and a car this is a great way to earn a bit extra! Don’t forget about bars, cafes and restaurants either, December is the busiest time of the year with Christmas parties happening and more and more people needing sustenance while out and about shopping, so you may be able to earn some extra cash here!
Have a blow out
Christmas can be a great time to get on top of coursework and earn some extra cash but there is no denying that it is also a great time to let your hair down, eat, drink and be merry! It wouldn’t be Christmas without a bit of a party and a blowout, and if you are in your third year of Uni then you can guarantee that January onwards is going to be pretty hectic, so this could be the perfect time to have a bit of a blow out and party without feeling guilty that you should be doing coursework!
Apply for a graduate role
It may seem like a million miles away but some of the most popular graduate employers start to look at hiring around January / February time, so if you want to get noticed then now is a great time to start planning your application! Depending on the company they may have a pretty lengthy application process, and it will also take you some time to research the company and the role to tailor your CV and application too. If you’re feeling extra creative then you might even want to try making an application that’s a bit out of the box check out this blog for some inspiration: Would You Stand Out from the Crowd to Land Your Dream Job?.
Whatever you decide to do with your time off University at Christmas have a great one! Remember if you are interested in keeping up to date with the latest IT and Digital graduate opportunities you can do so here.