Surviving final year at University

Something a little different today! As it's September and lots of you lucky devils are still at University (stay as long as possible, take many degrees), I thought it would be appropriate to reminisce on my final year and offer up some words of wisdom. Well, some words at least!

1. Get organised! Even if you're the type that works under pressure aka the last minute, you still need to get organised as your dissertation consumes a lot of time and you still have a gazillion* other subjects. There will be time like this...

Image from weheartit

So, make sure you get a diary, post it notes, folders etc or at least find a way to remember when you have things coming up. Here's some diaries that I thought were too adorbs!

1, 2 & 4 from Paperchase
3 WHSmith
5 & 6 Liberty

2. Look after yourself! Did you know I'm your mum? Seriously though, make sure you eat well, drink lots of water and maybe take the odd yakult here and there. With the number of people arriving from all around the world, Fresher's Flu and other horrible lurgies can knock you off your feet. I don't mean don't have an afternoon tea session at your house though...

Food courtesy of my gorgeous friend Jessica, who makes one mean afternoon tea (mojitos are also another forte!)

3. De-stress your mind and body! 'Oh great, she's getting all spiritual on our asses!" I'm not, I assure you. What I mean by this is when your working away or just a student in general you spend a lot of time sitting round studying/eating/watching tv/drinking and your body becomes restless, resulting in a bad nights sleep. I would recommend exercise like the gym, classes or going for a run with your mates if your strapped for cash.

Image from weheartit

4. Don't dread the dissertation! I remember thinking "I will never be able to write that many words", panicking about the subject and the title and thinking "Jeez, I hope this makes sense!", but it all worked out in the end. I think because it's big compared to your other essays you almost try harder and focus more.

Your tutors will tell you this but it's always a good idea to pick a part of your subject you enjoy and have maybe wrote about before if poss (you can re-use sections of your work and you have a better knowledge base). I would personally recommend really getting to grips with the Harvard Referencing System (or whichever your uni uses) and employing a trusty friend (thank Lauren!) to proof read your work throughout the year, so you don't make silly mistakes. 

Image from weheartit

5. Don't forget to have fun! This isn't hard for most people, but in the final year you can get caught up on the quest to a 2:1 (or whatever grade you have in your mind) and forget that it's your last year. I was living with a new group of girls in my final year (we all had placements in 3rd year) and we just had the best time ever. I'm pretty sure our house had the best parties ha, we went bike riding in the New Forest, ate a LOT and played sardines with all our mates in the house! (to name a few of our antics!) 

 "i want to ride my bicycle"

Me and my gals at our summer ball, we're enchanted forest people aka it was cheap!

Enjoy, work hard and stay in touch with everyone when you leave.  

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*genuine number of subjects I had

Random acts of kindness

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I finished University in June this year and fortunately managed to get a full-time job for when I finished, meaning I have been working full time for 6 months at the end of December. Like most students I have been absolutely skint for the past four years, relying on my overdraft and only shopping in clothes shops where there is student discount (not that its always cheaper!). However, I now have a nice income coming in each month, a savings account (yawn) and I am paying of the overdraft (slowly).

Having this disposable income around Christmas time made me think of all the people who are truly skint this Christmas and how that might not change anytime soon. Although I work hard for the money I get and have been through university to get a degree etc there are so many people who don't even have the opportunity to get as far as that, which is where my 'Random act of kindness' was born. I have decided that I want to make a difference this Christmas and help some people who are less fortunate than myself.

I have chosen to help the homeless this year for many reasons. One of the most obvious reasons for helping the homeless in the winter is the weather! I was muttering under my breath this morning when my car needed defrosting and wouldn't start, but imagine having to sleep outside? Not good. I have decided to donate to the local hostel that provide hot drinks and snacks to the homeless this Christmas, as well as putting together some Christmas care packages/gifts for those that will be visiting the shelter this year. It's actually pretty easy and cost effective as you can donate tea, biscuits, coffee, sugar, sweets, toiletries, rucksacks and gloves which you can find on deals or at local discount stores. And it's always nice to see your good deed being used straight away!

I was telling my best bud Lauren about this idea over dinner last night when we were tucking into an epic pizza at ZiZi's (note to self: the pizzas are massive there, you do not need one each). When we were leaving the restaurant we had almost a whole pizza in a take away box when we came across a homeless woman and her dog in the freezing cold. After the conversation about helping others and the size of our post pizza tummy's, we decided to give her our pizza, which was hilarious. For two reasons, firstly because she said 'Urm, what's on it?' which made me laugh as I was like 'Really?! You're being picky right now' and then because Lauren recited the exact description from the menu 'This pizza features a slow cured Italian ham and Buffalo mozzarella topped with a generous sprinkling of rocket'.

After she fondled both pizzas and kept insisting we kept one half, she finally accepted the offer. Walking away she said 'Are any of them spicy?!'. We showed her the one that featured jalapeno peppers and said 'Do not give that one to the dog!!'. We finally left in stitches and praying our good deed wouldn't go bad in the form of a dog dying via death by jalapeno pepper, fingers crossed!

If you want some other ideas of how you can help others this Christmas, you can:

Volunteer: You can work at a soup kitchen, charity parties, church etc

Give blood: This is something I do regularly and it literally takes 10mins to do and could save a life. The winter is the worst time for blood stocks, but its this time of the year where people need it most. If you are in need of the 'feel good factor' this is a great one to try as you really do make an immediate difference. Also, anyone scared of needles or seeing their own blood I can reassure you that the nurses are SO good and they do it in a way that you will hardly notice you're even giving blood

Care Packages: You can make or donate money to send gifts to sick children, old people and soldiers through various charities

Send Christmas cards: You can do something simple like spread the joy of Christmas through cards to as many people as you want. If you decide to send to strangers, you need to make sure they don't sound creepy as stalker-vibes deffo kill the Christmas spirit

Donate: You can donate money, clothes, time or items to various charities, just pick one you want to support!

 Let me know if you decide to take part in any 'Random acts of kindness' this Christmas!