Working part time at uni?

Hi, ill hopefully be going to uni this September to study computer science. i currently do 12 hours a week to pay for my car insurance, £116 a month. How common is it to work at uni? i would do about 8-12 hours a week but will it affect my social life and grades?

Thanks, Rob

Reply 1

username1342947

I managed to do 12 hours over the weekend and still gain good grades. it all depends on if youre dedicated to do work after work and uni.

Reply 2

Dougieowner

I know a few people who work (mainly people who live locally and who have kept the jobs they had before starting university, but you should be able to get a job when you get there, and you have experience which will be helpful when applying). I think my university recommends around 8 hours a week maximum; although I don't have a job I don't think this would affect my grades (I probably spend that amount of time procrastinating anyway...)

Reply 3

JustGeorgeJ

Original post by Robert8x

Hello,

It's very common for students to work during their time at university. There are a lot of places providing students with work. You can work as much or as little as you want at university - at the end of the day, it depends on how much you can do and how well you can balance everything. It won't affect your social life and grades if you have everything balanced.

Reply 4

Robert8x

Thanks for the help guys :smile:

Reply 5

doodle_333

you can work 10-15 hours a week at uni as long as you're careful about managing your time

to be honest though I'd consider whether you really need the car, people with cars at uni tend to spend a lot of time driving people around (and struggling to recoup petrol money) and there are very few places you can't get by with a bike/public transport

Reply 6

Meekle72

If I want to stay on at my current job, but switch from full time to part time I have to do 20 hours as a minimum. Quite a few people where I work have taken that route and seem to be managing fine. Lad on my team just graduated with a 2:1, so it's doable. However, if you're looking to join clubs and fully immerse yourself in the student life, including nightlife then 10-15 would probably be sufficient. I'll be giving up my Saturday and Sunday mornings and early afternoons, and an afternoon midweek which isn't ideal but I won't be clubbing, purely focussing on my assignments and exam prep. As a 25 year old mature student, that's fine by me though. Just be sure not to bite off more than you can chew, manage your time well and you'll do fine :smile:

Reply 7

Robert8x

Original post by doodle_333

The car actually isnt coming with me, its just gonna end up costing me more in the long run just selling it for 2 years, instead it just stays at home while im at uni getting my no claims up :smile:

Original post by Meekle72

Ill probably do around 8, i wont go out too much anyway and join load of clubs, im not like that, but obviously i still want a bit of a student life if you get me :smile:

Reply 8

The Empire Odyssey

It's very common for students to get jobs during uni... Actually getting the jobs are difficult because you will not be the only person win the exact same boat. I suggest if you have a job already, work through that over summer and you're more likely to get more better jobs like pub and bar work which pay so much better than a customer assistant at Tesco.

If you NEED a job, then go and apply to many. I would seriously suggest you apply like late July and August. That's the best time to apply for jobs in your uni city. That's what I did and I got 5 interviews. They are all thirsty for students 'cause they know they'll be begging for jobs.