Tag: work

My Sunday in Pictures: Young Adult Literature Festival and pub time with the girls

1 Comment

IMG_0515.JPG (2)

Although I’m still sniffly I made it out today to the YA Literature Festival with Joe! I bought lots of books, got involved in a lively debate, met a lovely author and some fantastic publishers (which now means the help of publishing work experience hopefully). After that dumping my bags and off to the pub to meet the girls whilst Aline is in the UK!

IMG_0509

The panel of authors debating gender in popular culture, which I got involved in.

IMG_0570

My stash of books that I bought today for £35…Oops! 

IMG_0566.JPG (2)

Eleanor and I at the pub.

IMG_0565.JPG (2)

Aline, Dani and Eleanor in where else…Spoons! 

Get Set For KU

Leave a comment

I’ve spent the past two days getting up at 6.30am and getting home at gone 8 at night. I’m not complaining in the slightest, especially as I actually woke up before my alarm on both days (proving just how excited I was). I’ve wanted to work a job like this since I became an ambassador so getting the confirmation was incredible. Believe it or not, I was nervous talking to my first attendee.

I became a bit of a match maker over the two days, I wanted the students to make friend at feel at home. I know how nerve racking it is and these students had never even been to Kingston before because they had come through clearing. I was pleased that when they left at the end of the day some of the groups I’d introduced were now friends, with some even looking for houses to share together now.

IMG_0192

Lunch with some of the lads at the event

As well as students I also had the chance, although not planned, to talk to a lot of parents annd had a good chat about university and the worries they had for their children. More than anything I loved talking to people, making them feel better, answering any questions that I could or pointing them to the right services.

The confidence and pride that I felt working this week was overwhelming. I felt good at what I done. Student’s thanked me, my bosses commented on how hard I worked and one of my ‘top tips’ won a student a prize. I got to laugh and make so many more friends with other ambassadors, we really hit it off and I can’t wait to work with them all again. I got especially close to another ambassador, Jo who made my sides ache from laughing so hard.

IMG_0196

Me, Jo and some new students on Campus Tours

As well as that? The food was incredible constant food, snacks, everything. I love my job so much and I can’t wait to get back and do more because this is something I know that I’m good at and it makes me feel incredible. How many people can say that their job makes them feel on top of the world?

IMG_0198One of THE cupcakes. Yes they were as good as they look

More than anything these past few days gave me what I needed. They reminded me that I am good at my job, that I’m a likeable and good person. I also got the news that I achieved my full grant scholarship, meaning that the likelihood of applying for my masters and being able to afford it is becoming more and more possible and that makes me happy beyond belief.

All in all an amazing few days and a great boost, I can’t wait to book more work now! 🙂

Last night!/We love KU!

Leave a comment

10417446_10152925908118206_699032724958692702_n

IMG_4218

 IMG_4222 IMG_4232

Last night was supposed to be some chilled out bowling, a drink or two and making some new friends. It turned out to be so, so much more than that and one of the best nights I’ve ever had at uni, although it could quite well have ended very differently.

I’d gone almost straight from work to meet the girls outside the bowling ally…apart from I didn’t know who I was meeting except from Daniela. Time passed and soon it was half past with no sight of anyone I recognised. Anxious didn’t even cover how I was feeling, I was trying not to cry and all sorts of horrible situations ran through my mind, maybe they didn’t want to hang out with me after all? I’d been surprised in the first place that anyone, girls, wanted to hang out with me. You can imagine how crushed I was when I thought no one was coming. Just as I had decided to go home and try not to be too upset then my phone lit up, Dani was apologising and saying to head to Spoons and I’ll see the girls.

From that point on the night was full of laughter, happiness and a night I wont forget. I went to two pubs and then I finally made it to Pryzm night club!!! The biggest surprise? I absolutely loved it! I drank a lot I danced, laughed, made friends and got home safe. I couldn’t be happier that someone has given me a chance to be one of the girls.

Fast forward to 6am, I had hardly slept, a few hours at most and I headed into work feeling a little off but otherwise good. I was at work for 7.45 and got straight into it. I love meeting people, talking to them and making sure they get all the info. I was able to work with people who remided me of me as well as a few disabled students. I got home exhausted but happy and started to pack. Overall the past week has been exhausting and amazing, I’m so damn excited for second year!

Works night out!

Leave a comment

Image

 

Adam and I, I’m sure going to miss this guy! 

Tonight I found myself in the pub again but this time with different friends and making new friends! My job as a Student Ambassador lets me do a lot of things and tonight it was a night out with my fellow KUSAs to say goodbye and goodluck to the thirds years because we’re going to lose them.

I’m really proud of myself because I was so nervous and I really threw myself into the night out and made a lot of new friends. I absolutely loved it and may have had a few more ciders than I planned with dinner but it was all in fun despite the rain! I really love some of the third years and it’s going to be so weird having them leave and being a second year ambassador, I can only hope I can do as much by the time I’m a third year.

So there we are the second night in a row of having fun and actually being out and I’m really enjoying myself! It’s unbelievable how much passing my test has boosted my confidence and made myself feel better!

Surprise Payday and finally earning my own money again!

Leave a comment

Today was my first Student Ambassador payday, and I had absolutely no clue about it. I’d emailed a few weeks ago and been told that we were going to be put on the new payroll at the end of the month so training turned to excitement that I was finally earning again! I’ve been working since I was 16 and it’s incredibly important to me to earn my own money. Although I’ve taken the student loan it feels really odd to have money given to me and not have to earn it. I didn’t mind it but it’s always been in my head that I don’t want to live off my loan if I can help it. I love earning money and the feeling it gives. If I won the lottery I’d still do something, maybe not to earn but I’d probably travel, support charities and study many different things because to me a large amount of money would mean opportunities. 

So I’m not a millionaire from this job but I love the feeling of earning again, being able to save money. I get stupidly excited and pleased that I’m finally doing a job that I’m really passionate about. I get to blog and earn, it’s something of a dream to me which I never thought I would get to do after uni let alone during. So today has enabled me to put more of my student loan towards a nice flat to rent. We’re looking through estate agents now so fingers crossed. 

I was working again today 2-7, sacrificing seeing one of my oldest friends Grace but she understands that this was training I had to do for work. I’ll buy her a cider when I get home, after 10 years of being friends I get very emotional now she’s finally 18! We’ve been waiting for well over a year to go to the pub together and it can finally happen! 

So I’ll go to bed tonight with a smile on my face, I’m finally earning again and that masters doesn’t seem as impossible as it did before! 

Preparing for elfdom

Leave a comment

While many of you have been winding down with friends, family and festivities this evening I have been in the magical land of retail…that’s right I’ve been at work this evening and I’m pretty sure Santa might employ me as one of his elves next year, it’s one of the benefits of being small. I’ve spent the evening, moving, packing, unpacking and now I’m finally going to settle down in my new Sulley onesie in anticipation of tomorrow!! Will I get much sleep? I doubt it, I may be exhausted from work but I’m still a child inside! Let’s see what Santa is going to bring! 😀

Back to work

Leave a comment

Today I went back to real employment after quite a bit break today. To say I was nervous this morning is an understatement. I will be working at Paperchase for the next two weeks, reprising what used to be Ali’s job. Last Christmas Ali got the job and I won’t lie I was jealous, everyone seemed so nice and although it was busy he seemed happy whenever he was there. So when I got offered an interview this year (while Ali stays behind in London for a bit), I jumped at the chance and was offered the job. 

Today was odd, I’d forgotten about inductions and health and safety procedures and all that. So after a lot of paper work and a walk around the shop I got to work. I’m going to be doing stock and customer service stuff but today was getting into things slowly by ticketing. I have another shift tomorrow but I have no idea what I’m doing. 

I can feel my posts getting sorter and I’m not ok with that. I want to give you guys all the info about uni life but not everything is exciting. So in 2014 I’m going to try and do more for you guys, I might even start the vlogs again…maybe. 

5 ways to make sure you are on top of your deadlines

Leave a comment

The time of year is rolling around that has students stressed, tired and caffine addicted. Just as some mothers will be making ruthless trips to Toys ‘R’ Us and hasty calls to Santa when toys arn’t in stock, students will be taking their frustratoins out on the uni/college library and that can of redbull (I am one of the lucky ones who has red bull sold in the library..score!). One thing is for certain, both of them want the run up to Christmas to slow the hell down. December/Janurary marks the first set of deadlines for me and I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t strressed about one particular module, the key thing is I still have time.

This is where my total pain in the arse organizational skills come in handy, I’ve been reading these lists for a few weeks. I’ve tried to memorise when work is due in so that I’m not caught off guard. Luckily my module guides have been handy and I’ve also picked up some tips along the way.

1. Know when your work needs to be handed in

I think the absolute worst thing is having no idea when everything has to be done by, it can mess with your grade at the end. Now all of my deadlines are pretty close together at the moment, in fact I’ve just written them all out to see how much space I have between each. The whole point of knowing these isn’t so you can stress out for months on end, it’s so you can fit things in. Just make a note of big deadlines in a diary or notebook (believe me I am religiously obsessed with noting things down in my academic diary!)

2. Plan when you are going to do things

As I hinted at above I like to plan when I am going to do things. Not everyone works well with pressure, so why not write a to-do list. I find these help more as I can put things in order of what needs to be done and I feel satisfied when I tick it off at the end of the day. I also do a rough plan of when in the week I need to do things and what I have on that week, I’m not goign to lie and say that this can be concrete because things change but a rough guideline can make a world of difference.

3. If you are unclear on what to do ASK!

I think I drive my tutors mad with questions but apparently they think it’sa better idea than getting stuck. Tutors will be much more willing to help you two weeks before the deadline NOT two days. It’s a good idea just to get clarification if your unsure of what it is you need to do.

4.PRIORITISE

This is something I struggle with sometimes, I know that I have to get my Creative writign work done but it doesn’t mean I don’t try and skip. Try and stick to what is due in soonest not what you want to do first. It works both ways though don’t try to get ahead so much that you forget what you have to do for a particular week. Also consider going out, it is still important you know…

5.Make sure you have time for work and play

Which leads me to my last point. It’s all well and good to work hard and get a good grade but you need to have some fun. Fun for you  might be going to Hippodrome and getting so drunk you forget about that assignment until tomorrow or it might be reading a book. Basically whatever you do to relax/have fun make sure you do this too because otherwise you’ll wonder why the hell you’re here.

I’m Dyslexic!

1 Comment

After 19 years on the planet and 14 years in the education system I can finally say I am dyslexic! Today I trudged to my appointment quite nervous but I didn’t need to be my assessor was so lovely and made me completely at ease. There was one thing though, I found the tests a lot more difficult that I thought I would. In the past I’d taken similar tests and hadn’t found them that hard, which is why nothing was made much of an issue, I wonder now though if I had been trying too hard. As you’ll probably know from earlier blog posts I don’t like failing at anything. If my assessor hadn’t been so lovely I would have got incredibly nervous and stressed when I started struggling.

The end result was that I was obviously dyslexic, something I should have known before. I don’t have the final report but I have a problem with my short term memory, the way I hear things such as phonics and sounds and the rate my brain processes things is a lot slower than the average person. There are a few other things too but I can’t quite remember, either way so many things make sense now! I got incredibly excited when she began explaining what the tests meant and when I asked her about certain situations she said it was part of my dyslexia.

I’ll be talking to my driving instructor about this too as now it’s confirmed there can be special allowances made in my test to allow for the slow processing.I would also like to point out that there are so many different types of dyslexia that it doesn’t just meant people can’t read and write there are many different things. I struggle in particular with spelling, grammar, punctuation as well as that I REALLY struggle with telling my left from my right (which was incredibly embarrassing the older I got). Now I have to talk to the DSA so I can get help with my studies in the form of a mentor who specialises in dyslexia. So a tip for any of you out there who are struggling and feel you could have dyslexia, talk to your uni! I was able to get my test for free because of my household income (otherwise they are £300). It really could help you get the grade you deserve!

Interview time!!

Leave a comment

Today I attempted to get back into the world of work by going to an interview for a student job with the uni. This will only be a short post as I don’t have much going on right now (especially after yesterday). I thought I was going to freak out while I was waiting eagerly outside the interview room, I haven’t worked for a good few months and haven’t had a formal interview in nearly two years. I think it went ok and even if it didn’t I can re apply next year now I know I can handle it.

Wish me luck!