University life has officially arrived. It’s official, you’re either a bubbling mix of nerves and excitement as a newbie on campus, or you’re facing another year of ups and downs and have a year or two of wisdom behind you to make this year your best.
Either way, the process of getting settled, whether you’re a fresher or an elderly soon-to-be graduate, can be stressful. The biggest hinderance? Getting organised and finding your balance.
We understand that there’s a lot on your plate. There’s organising your subjects, class timetable, budgeting, finding/managing a job, not to mention seeing (and making) friends, joining campus societies and getting in as many fun experiences as possible. Oh, and you’ve got to fit studying and be ready for exam time.
No need to worry, we’ve been there. Here’s some simple tips to get ahead this semester.
Looking after mind, body & soul
It might sound like a cliché but if you slow down your breathing then your brain will naturally calm down, allowing you to prioritise and get focused.
Here’s a few Apps to help you get started:
Headspace. Meditation and Mindfulness. Mindfulness is all the rage but it really does work. Just a few minutes a day with this App will make you the Zen-master of your class.
MoveGb. Find it hard to motivate yourself to exercise? Need a class to go and mindlessly burn calories while being told what to do? With memberships from £1 per week Move Gb gives you access to Thousands of venues across the UK.
30-day Fitness challenge. Exercise has been proven to help with mental health, even improving memory function and this simple App helps by setting you a task and fitness goal for just 30 days (so you can take it easy when exam time hits). With reminders and visuals available, this App will keep your fitness on track and ensure you avoid the Freshman 15!
Managing the coursework
It’s an obvious one, we know. In fact, we all know that you should study progressively throughout the semester, instead of the day before the exam. But what about your job, the parties, those mid-term projects and family visits!?
Here’s a few engaging apps to help you stay ahead of your course-work.
Alarmy. This alarm is great simply because it makes you do something - other than click a button - to turn it off. Whether it’s taking a photo or solving a maths problem, you’ll need to wake yourself up to turn this one off. You'll never be late to class again.
Evernote. It’s a long semester ahead but a simple notepad is a good place to start. This App allows you scan handwritten notes and add to-do’s, photos, images, web pages, or even audio. It's simple but it's very effective and you'll thank yourself in week 12.
AntiSocial. How often have you sat down to study, only to end up going down a dark rabbit hole of Twitter debates or Instagram stalking? This nifty App allows you to track App-usage and temporarily disable the ones you overuse. Avoid the distractions of those addictive dopamine inducing apps without having to turn off your phone!
Balancing the dough
You can probably picture it now – you’re half way through the semester, strapped for cash and that arts course you thought was easy has week-by-week become progressively more time consuming and difficult.
It’s all about finding the balance. Here’s a few Apps to help you out:
UNiDAYS: Student Deals. The best thing about being a Uni-student is all the student deals you get! This App simply puts them all together in one spot. It’s a no-brainer to help balance the budget.
GIG. With platforms like GIG, you can work during the quietly periods and take time off during exams, without having to worry about job security or a pestering boss.
Monzo. Break down your bills and expenses and allocated yourself funds accordingly with this App. Want to know exactly how much you spent on Alcohol this month? This can help with that. No long will you be confused as to why you had £300 in the bank last week and now you have .31 pence.
We’re offering all our Seeker Students an extra 10% on their paychecks in October. That’s right, if you’re a full-time University student while registered with GIG then we’ll add 10% to your pay-check every week until the end of October.
Simply contact marketing@gigtogig.co.uk and provide your course details, University and Seeker details and once confirmed, you’ll have an extra 10% spending money!