A Universal Debate // Study Abroad vs Placements

Hello again!

I just want to start off by thanking everyone their kind comments on my last post! I felt very vulnerable putting it up but I have never received so much love and support for something I have posted so thank you!

In today’s post I want to discuss what many people will be going through this time of year and that is whether you should apply to study abroad for a year, take a placement or continue to your final year at university.

I’m going to start off with my own experience, as it did not end how I expected. I started applying to placements in December 2017 and over the course of eight months I applied to numerous vacancies, went through several interview processes and got my hopes up a handful of times. This hunt took over everything during my summer resulting in me putting a lot of things on hold, including getting a part time role as I didn’t want to get a job and then leave if I had a placement…leaving me poor and bored.

Now then, it gets interesting when I went to a 12-hour field interview for a marketing company based in north London. This was the most intense procedure I had been through and when I was accepted for the role I was extremely grateful. However, this was not a marketing placement…at all. It entailed of me standing on the street and enticing members of the public to buy into the service we were selling. Standing on our feet for 12 hours a day and it was all commission based. I am not saying anything against the company or the role that they par-take, but this is not the marketing role as advertised. I expected to be in an office environment, learning on the job and boosting skills to benefit me in a later marketing role. With all this said, I quit on the second day and continued my search.

The deadline to find a placement was August 2018 and in the end, I came to the decision to return to university and complete my final year. Although it took me a while to come around to the idea, I realised I wouldn’t be completely alone as I still had some of the girls at uni and I would be able to stay in London with my family and boyfriend which would be a big benefit having been far away from them for two years.

Now then, let’s compare the two options. I spoke to 3 being doing a placement and 3 on study abroad, all with varying experiences and answering these questions.

So let's get into it...

The biggest difficulty of each.

So the struggles of both processes varies, from the length it takes to be accepted, deciding where to go and keeping the motivation up. A common misconception as said by Tommy Morris now completing a placement as an undergraduate analyst, is that you soon realise there are many more people applying for the same roles. “For instance in my first role, there were nearly 3,000 applicants for only 120 internships.” That’s a significant amount of people to be turned away and return to their job hunt. Of course, both study abroad applications and placement hunts take place during term time and data management sales associate Harry Sanders of Aston University stated that it was a struggle to juggle this search whilst prioritising exams and other academic pledges. 

Study abroad students found difficulties in various things and I spoke to three students from the University of Hertfordshire. Now living in Australia, Canada and America my previous housemates established that there was little time to prepare by the time their applications were completed, which is something I can definitely vouch for as I remember going home one day and Victoria Nelson now studying as Lismore University saying “Oh yeah I think I fly next month.” A month to prepare yourself for Australia?! 

Research.

Obviously this is the biggest part of any new adventure, especially when looking for a new country to live in or for a company which you will be with for 12 months+. The amount of research done depends on each individual but a common theme from those I spoke to was that they didn’t do enough. Both Tommy and Harry believed they should have started earlier, used more job sites as well as researching more related roles to deepen their options.

In terms of doing little or too much research, this may not be key for all though, as Emily Ball now studying at Kansas university stated ‘I personally wanted to go in knowing nothing’ so limited the amount she researched. Understandably this can add to the experience because I know that when I entered first year at Hertfordshire I went in blind, just like everyone else. So, this tactic can add to the natural feel of the experience lessoning any possible anxieties and fears which can build up from knowing and expecting certain things.

Application time.

The length of both processes differs person by person, Hannah Morgan-Johnson now studying at Quelth University (Canada) said it only took two months for her application to successfully go through, but Emily Ball said it felt much longer than that as she came across multiple complications to be discussed later. 

Placements can often take 6-9 months to come through due to the excessive numbers of people applying to each role. Nicole Whelan, who is completing a placement in Marketing was late to the party as she only started looking for a placement in August which saw her get accepted a week before the deadline. Many people do get lucky with their placements as did Tommy Morris who received multiple offers and has actually left one placement in order to settle in his current one. And then there’s me with 0 offers and no placement…not bitter though.

Support from the university.

University support is something people don’t always receive off the bat. Almost everyone I spoke to said that support was hard to get to and not offered throughout the process. Personally, if I wanted support then I had to go to them and even then, I didn’t leave feeling assured or safe in my options. One of the best things for support during this time, is to speak to people who have done it before! Having been there and done that, they have all of the hands on advice and previous experience to guide you in the right direction as well as giving you any do’s and don’ts. 

Best & worst experiences so far.

All in all, both of these options have a handful of pro’s and con’s as described by those I spoke to. Study abroad brings you new culture, new friends and new experiences you may not get in your own country. Although through all the highs there are a couple of lows, including missing home, trying to meet people in such as new and intimidating environment and lastly…poisonous snakes (in Australia that is.) 

An industrial placement brings you a taste of life after uni and each company of course has different perks. Harry Sanders was lucky enough to take part in a charity golf day at the prestigious course in Rickmansworth ‘The Grove’, however there are more professional benefits such as gaining experience in a full functioning working world and getting to work with big companies and having new responsibilities.

I hope you found this post enjoyable, although not relatable to everyone! The stress I experienced from trying to find a placement was excremental and I wish I had a deeper insight into the whole process before deciding to dedicate my whole summer to it! 

Until next time,

Shannon xx

University // The Truth

Hello again!

I’m back today with a topic I feel is relevant to this time of the year for a number of people; the bigger picture of university, living away from home and daily struggles I have experienced through my past two years. It's a long one so grab a cuppa and get ready.

Ok so first things first, this blog isn’t going to be all negative. University is an extremely independence boosting experience in which you grow as a person in so many ways and I am grateful for that experience of course. Moving away from home can be terrifying at first and it is really easy to feel lonely, but with a good set of people around you, you’ll be fine! I’ve written more positive posts in the past so check them out if that’s what you’re looking for!

However, there is a dark side of university that isn’t highlighted half as much as it should be. It is often referred to as the best years of your life, but this isn’t true for everyone and mental health is a major factor when considering uni. If you searched on twitter ‘uni and mental health’, you would find endless tweets of people complaining about the decline of their mental state and comfort…surely this is something to be considered and highlighted to prospecting students.

As mentioned earlier it’s easy to fall under the spell of loneliness and self-doubt (thinking people don’t want to be with you). And that is totally understandable, you’re living with people you’ve never met/lived with before and it can be hard to judge other’s signs and signals. Whether you’re living in a hall of 12 or a house of 6 by no means are you written out of the possibilities of feeling alone.

I definitely have fallen victim to this, however this is of course no fault of those I’ve lived with. Being the omnivert I am I find it difficult to throw myself into situations if I feel uncomfortable or shy; which in the beginning of both years was very apparent as I sat in my room a lot, but once you find people you’re comfortable with and begin to slowly push yourself out of your comfort zone you will be fine! The best thing to do at uni is anything that makes you happy.

In addition to this, multiple newspapers have published articles over the summer of 2018 raising the concerns of mental health declines in relation to university. A big part of this discussion was again the best years of your life mindset. When researching and applying to universities at school, this is something you’re told on a daily basis and this type of mantra can pressurise students to make sure they feel this is true. It can lead you to feeling bad for not having a good time because it is supposed to be all highs and no lows, but this isn’t realistic. University can be hard. And it’s okay to accept that, hold your hands up and look for help, because a lot of students don’t and this can makes things worse!

Finally something I have struggled with, is the support university give you. Whether it be academic/welfare related or other, universities claim that they have services available to everyone for everything, but from my experience this is a lot easier said than done. During the beginning of my second year I was struggling staying in a new house and being away from home, so I contacted the student wellbeing team but to no avail – apart from 2 weeks later. More recently though, this summer I was on the hunt for a placement (as part of a sandwich year) and when I say hunt that is no exaggeration. No matter how much I struggled, every time I went to a career advisor they just gave me more websites to search on, no application help or even links to relatable placements.

This meant I spent my whole summer searching for a placement, and putting part time jobs on hold as I thought I would find a placement…I didn’t. This ended up in me being unemployed for 3 months, the prime time when everyone wants to go out for drinks/dinners and days out but I had no money of my own. Whilst I had the emotional support and financial aid of my mum, it was difficult because at the age of 20 you don’t really want to be dependent on your parent’s, do you? 

I began avoiding going out, seeing or speaking to friends because I felt like I had nothing to really 'give' and no one really understood the situation. I couldn't afford to go and do what I wanted whenever or go to the gym or go shopping. I was at my lowest point and resented the situation I had been put in which was hard because although I had the greatest support from my family and boyfriend who would tell me daily not to give up and that things would look up, this was a temporary fix and I would end up going over and over my current situation in my head, only making me feel worse about myself.

Of course, this doesn’t last forever, and at 3 ½ months I was hired at a company I’d previously worked with which I knew was going to work alongside my uni lifestyle as I will now be a commuting student. It is still difficult accepting the fact I will be returning/commuting to university without those closest to me as well as the fact that I was unsuccessful in finding a placement when other friends were able to, the biggest part of this though is ACCEPTING that this is all part of life.

Highlighting the lows isn’t a means to put people off the idea of university at all but to help those understand that it is so common for students to go through times of loneliness/depression and anxiety due to academic/social or professional matters. It’s important that students know it’s okay to reach out for help or to talk about how they’re feeling, everyone’s university experience is different.

If you made it to the end then, I hope you enjoyed today’s somewhat heavier blog, and please share to those you think may need it!

Until next time,

Shannon xx 

5 Months Later // All of the Good Things

Hello and yes, I have been MIA for 5 months but with good reason!

The second semester of university had its demands and although I finished late April, I’ve been on the hunt for a placement endlessly since December, but that’s another story! So what has been happening?! Just like the title says, all of the good things…

~ I finished my second year at university and low and behold, I secured a 2:1 which is a cause for celebration in my eyes. Moving forward from this, the girls I lived with all got accepted for study abroad so my decision to do a placement for a year was pretty fitting. I have to say though the hunt for an industrial placement is incredibly hard, but that’s for another blog. Coming back home after months living in my own house is a shock to the system though, whilst you still have most of your independence nothing compares to the life you live at university.

~ I’ve had the pleasure to see my two favourite female artists; Dua Lipa and Demi Lovato, which have hands down been some of the best concerts I have been to. Alexandra Palace saw Dua Lipa take over and ignite the venue with a burst of energy and radiance as she performed some of her best songs including ‘IDGAF’ and ’Hotter Than Hell’. The entirety of the show was an exciting and positive experience with everyone leaving with a smile of their face and jump in their step. I’ll definitely be seeing Dua live again, very soon.

Secondly, Miss Lovato at The O2. Again, an iconic and empowering female artist who shared her personality and passion as she performed on stage. We were lucky enough to have floor seating directly in front of the stage, so our view was 10/10, just as the show itself. Having been a fan of Demi for a forgetful amount of years, seeing her live was a dream come true and is something I will live to remember forever!

~ I also managed to go on a sun filled holiday this year with my boyfriend to the Balearic island of Majorca (more specifically Magaluf). Although traditionally a party island, this didn’t affect our somewhat ‘romantic’ holiday, as we filled each day with either an exploration around our hotel (BH Majorca), exotic mini golf along the coastline or even an oversold boat party, yes we were slightly scammed into that one! It was such a breath of fresh air to get away to another country, have no responsibilities and just relax as much as we wanted. Living at different universities makes it difficult to see each other as much so every moment of the holiday was treasured, even when I was being thrown off the inflatable donut.

~ Lastly, I went to Community Festival in Finsbury Park at the start of the month. Officially my favourite day of the year, the sun was shining, there were amazing bands playing and the company topped it off. I was able to see some bands I’ve followed for years now including You Me At Six, Circa Waves and Two Door Cinema Club, I was left with a smile on my face all day and quite a bit of alcohol spilt over me from standing in the crowds. In all honesty, you could go to this festival knowing two out of the how ever many bands, because the experience and atmosphere of it all is just as thrilling as my boyfriend has found these past two years. Another prosecco filled day down and I await the same again next year!

So there we have it, a quick catch up as to where I’ve been and why I’ve been so incredibly MIA! However, I have been planning a placement V study abroad post but I don’t want to write it until I have all the perfect information!! Keep your eyes out for more blogs coming your way with all my free time!

Until next time,

Shannon xx 

2018 // Selfishness

Hello and happy belated new year!

Yes, I am back with a new post, on a freshly renovated blog! Although this post is later than expected I am going to go straight into things, which by the way should include monthly updates!

So, what’s been happening? Well it’s 2018 and I’m in my second term of my second year at university, stressful but exciting times. Anyway, something I wanted to focus on in the first post back was being selfish. However, this isn’t going go to be a negative blog post, it focuses more on self-love, self-acceptance and finding happiness. Living away from home, this is something I have had the time to do due to lower times of homesickness and moments of loneliness.

Sometimes it’s important to take a step back and think about what’s not working in your life and essentially isn’t making you happy. Which means doing a few things I believe:

Review and relieve yourself from stress.

Stress I think can be an uncover hit man. You could think “Oh yeah, I’ve got a good routine at the moment, I’m going to do this, then this, then this and same again tomorrow’ no.

This sort of cycle builds up and subconsciously you are pushing yourself to fulfil this routine daily without giving yourself chance to breathe. Give yourself a time to relax, prioritise things and think about what you can do at a later date. It’s too easy to burn yourself out.

Don’t make effort where it won’t be returned.

Relationships are a two-way street, there’s no way around that. Friends, family or partners there is an equal amount of effort on each behalf. 

However, this isn’t always the case. Sometimes you might feel it’s your responsibility to go that bit further when you think someone else isn’t but it comes to a point when you’re essentially working towards a dead end. This can be draining and it’s a waste of your energy for no reason. If your time and effort isn’t appreciated, then find somewhere, where it will be.

Accept the ‘grey cloud’ days.

A lot like the weather there will be good and bad days. The only thing that can makes this easier is accepting them.

I saw this on Twitter recently and couldn’t agree more, no matter what age 20+, 30+ or more, everything is okay in the end and as this blog says everything happens for a reason. What might feel like the crushing end of the world to which there is no solution, you’re wrong. Of course, this is obvious, but it’s remembering it which is the difficult bit.

Don’t bottle it up.

Easy to say hard to do? Yes. Beneficial in the long run? 100%. This is pretty self-explanatory so I’m not going to go crazy on this one, but even when you think you have no one, you’ll have someone that wants to listen and help.

Living away from home and the people you’re most comfortable with can be difficult, but having a positive mind can help you through it more than you know. This doesn’t just benefit you either, people around you will notice. Don’t be afraid to put yourself first when you need it, the time you take to work and improve yourself is well spent and when you look back on it, you’ll feel like a fresh version of yourself.

Don’t be too hard on yourself, life your best life.

Until next time,

Shannon xx