Summer is a special time for students. The weather’s fine, exams are (hopefully) finished, and you have a few blissful weeks of fun with your friends before you have to head home until the autumn. Making the most of student summers takes some doing: you have lots of different choices, academic work to finish up and other responsibilities like moving house to take into account.
Today we’re giving you a quick guide so the student in summer can be a happy creature, not tripped up by unpleasant surprises.
Avoid Falling Behind
The temptation to drop out and enjoy the sun is strong, but if you do that at the cost of your academic responsibilities, job or other admin you need to accomplish you’ll regret during the long months of winter.
As the end of term approaches make a list of the key things you need to accomplish: essays turned in, hours logged and so on that you can schedule and tick off as you accomplish them. Even if you’re a first year, by the summer you should have a good idea of how long this kind of work takes you, so you should be able to make a realistic timetable that will let you judge exactly how long you have left to go.
If you don’t have a house arranged for next year, you need to make researching the area and finding one a priority. There’s a huge variety available so simply searching “Sheffield Hallam accommodation” won’t fit the bill. You need to know how much space you want, the sort of people you want to live with and where you want to live to find the right thing for you.
Having Fun
You can schedule all this work so it doesn’t come between you and sun too much. Working late or rising early leaves more of the day clear to spend with friends, as well as letting you work when the heat of the day isn’t too oppressive. Also, shifting the bulk of your studying to the weekend means you won’t be competing for space in parks, at beaches or attractions with the 9-5 crowd. Work at the weekends and enjoy your leisure in the weekdays, when it’s quieter.
Remember to be spontaneous. It’s no good having the flexibility of the student life if you don’t enjoy it. Part of the joy of being a student is in tearing up your time table and taking off with friends for the day so when the opportunity rears it’s head, seize it!