Unsure of Future... help!

I have just finished my second year at University. (I had to retake parts of my first year) and I am in a bit of a puddle. My two friends are doing an MA (they strarted in the same year as I did but didnt retake). We were planning to move into a three beedroom house/flat at the end of the month, and continue/begin our studies. However, due to circumstances that are beyond our control, we have been unable to find a house and our initial plans have fallen out of the window.

As I live thirty miles away from our uni, I decided it may be a good idea to commute by train up to uni for my lectures and live at home. However, after researching the train prices, including busses to the train station and back, I noticed that I would not be able to afforrd it within my student loan (I currently do not have a job).

I have also wondered whether it would be a good idea to take a few years out of uni, get a job and save up a bit to go back to Uni in a few years. Its not a sudden urge to go out and work. I went to a local college after school and did three more A-Levels and for about a year or two I've had a urge to go out and work and stop my education for a while.

If I do leave uni to work, my main question is what kind of job could I do? I have never had a full time job and only worked on weekends. I'm really unsure what kinds of job I could do, and where I could go to find them. The only two jobs Ive had is working in a resturaunt cleaning tables, and in a music shop on weekends so I'm a bit clueless to the whole ideal.

Thanks for reading the whole post and any tips and ideas would be more than welcome.

(I was unsure where to post this but I thought this would be the best place)

Original post by Shaun056

I have just finished my second year at University. (I had to retake parts of my first year) and I am in a bit of a puddle. My two friends are doing an MA (they strarted in the same year as I did but didnt retake). We were planning to move into a three beedroom house/flat at the end of the month, and continue/begin our studies. However, due to circumstances that are beyond our control, we have been unable to find a house and our initial plans have fallen out of the window.

As I live thirty miles away from our uni, I decided it may be a good idea to commute by train up to uni for my lectures and live at home. However, after researching the train prices, including busses to the train station and back, I noticed that I would not be able to afforrd it within my student loan (I currently do not have a job).

I have also wondered whether it would be a good idea to take a few years out of uni, get a job and save up a bit to go back to Uni in a few years. Its not a sudden urge to go out and work. I went to a local college after school and did three more A-Levels and for about a year or two I've had a urge to go out and work and stop my education for a while.

If I do leave uni to work, my main question is what kind of job could I do? I have never had a full time job and only worked on weekends. I'm really unsure what kinds of job I could do, and where I could go to find them. The only two jobs Ive had is working in a resturaunt cleaning tables, and in a music shop on weekends so I'm a bit clueless to the whole ideal.

Thanks for reading the whole post and any tips and ideas would be more than welcome.

(I was unsure where to post this but I thought this would be the best place)

You are confusing completely different things.

One problem is whether you want to continue with university or not.

The next problem is if you do go back to university, how are you going to afford it.

At the moment we can ignore the first problem because you don't have any job, or any clue what you want to do if you don't go back to university, so that isn't any sort of real option.

So now we get back to the university option and the travel problem.

1.

First of all, have you priced it against season tickets for both buses and trains, as they are considerably cheaper?

2.

Have you considered that if you are living at home, you may well have significantly lower costs, and so more money available for travel?

3.

Have you looked to see if your uni has a car share scheme, where even if you don't have a car, you may be able to contribute to travel costs (I see your notes say Bristol, I know Bristol and UWE both have car share schemes)

4.

Could you get a part time or vacation job to raise more funds?

Reply 2

Shaun056

OP

Thanks for the response
1. I have priced it against season tickets for buses and trains. A year long ticket is around 2,000 pounds for the train, but I was unable to check whether there was any significant deductin with a 16-25 travel card. For buses, in my city there are student cards but you have to be going to a college/uni/school in that city and I wont qualify for one. A return to the train station is £4 per day.
2. Yes but my parents have said they would like me to pay a bit of rent (which is fair enough) which would drastically reduce the the amount of money for a travel.
3. I dont go to either Bristol or UWE and I am pretty sure that my uni does not have a care share scheme.
4. I could, and in fact, I have been looking for a job all my 3 years at uni. So far I have had a load of interviews but no job offer.

The problem is that I do want to continue with uni, but that travel/living costs far outway the income I could possibly get. I am not quitting uni just like that however and do attend to finish off in a few years once I have saved up a bit of money.

Original post by Shaun056

Thanks for the response
1. I have priced it against season tickets for buses and trains. A year long ticket is around 2,000 pounds for the train, but I was unable to check whether there was any significant deductin with a 16-25 travel card. For buses, in my city there are student cards but you have to be going to a college/uni/school in that city and I wont qualify for one. A return to the train station is £4 per day.
2. Yes but my parents have said they would like me to pay a bit of rent (which is fair enough) which would drastically reduce the the amount of money for a travel.
3. I dont go to either Bristol or UWE and I am pretty sure that my uni does not have a care share scheme.
4. I could, and in fact, I have been looking for a job all my 3 years at uni. So far I have had a load of interviews but no job offer.

The problem is that I do want to continue with uni, but that travel/living costs far outway the income I could possibly get. I am not quitting uni just like that however and do attend to finish off in a few years once I have saved up a bit of money.

OK, well you don't need a full year season ticket, you need to work out term dates (3x12 at most) and work out costs for weekly/monthly season tickets just for the period you need. Train season tickets don't need calendar months so that makes them more efficient. They don't discount season tickets further by other concession cards. A season ticket is usually the same as 3-4 days of full price travel at peak times.

Every university city has some sort of discounted bus tickets scheme, with weekly tickets. Failing that, buy a bike and cycle, it it's £4 per day, it can't be that far.

Discuss rent with your parents. It's fine that they ask for rent, but if that means that you have to give up uni, it's fairly self defeating.

Check on the car share, nearly all universities have them.

You need to go to your University Careers centre and ask for some advice about interview technique - they may even offer video practice and feedback sessions. If you are regularly getting interviews for jobs, which are probably interviewing 6/100 applicants, you should be converting interviews to job offers more regularly. There must be something in your interview technique that is letting you down.

Unsure of Future... help!

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