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Part- time jobs in exeter- how easy/ hard??!??
I am considering putting Exeter uni as my firm uni choice but i was wondering how hard is it to get a part time job there in Exeter?? Seeing as there are thousands of uni students living in Exeter, i expect like 99% have a part time job and the fact that Exeter is a small town.
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Reply 1
I don't think I know anyone who has a part time job here actually, so it's really not that common. Most people just work at home in the holidays. There are quite a lot of jobs you can get on campus though- in the shops, in the bar, in the nightclub, in the food places etc- and there are also all the high street shops, so it probably wouldn't be too hard to get one if you started looking early enough.
Reply 2
I managed to get a part time job by my second day in Exeter and there are allllways jobs sat/sun or part-time advertised in the high-street. Otherwise Tescos and Sainsbury's are often recruiting. It's a small place but there's an abundance of jobs for those who want them. Hardly anyone I know does though, a few do bar jobs and one works in Sainsbury's but that's it.
Reply 3
I asked the same question a while back and got pretty much the same response regarding not that many people having one.
People said then however that it outside of the uni, it was very hard to get one other than bar work.
People said then however that it outside of the uni, it was very hard to get one other than bar work.
Reply 4
19
It's quite difficult, in my experience.
There are only limited numbers of jobs on campus - probably fewer than 30 permanent jobs in the Lemmy, Ram, Guild shop, uni supermarket and Blackwell's combined. Plus, as you can imagine, applications for them are very competitive.
In my first year, the only work I was able to get was in the way of temporary jobs on campus - cleaning (yeeeeeurch), campus/accommodation tours and working as a cold caller for alumni relations (horrible job!). I also did some modelling for the art society and some paid experiments for the psychology department. While this sounds like a lot, it isn't - the work is very erratic and not too well paid, so while it was handy for a bit of occasional pocket money, that was about it. Despite writing to the uni bookshop and to all the supermarkets in the area before even arriving at Exeter, none of them replied, so there's no guarantee that you'll get a job even if it's designed for the most ignorant bozo of human beings
In my second year, I managed to get a job as a data capture clerk at an industrial estate as one of my housemates already worked there. The work was easy, well-paid and had co-operative and efficient management. The main bugbear, though, was the travel - I don't drive, so I had to walk 5 mins to the train station, have a 10-15 minute train journey, then a 15-minute walk the other side. This was fine in the daytime/in the summer but at night it was a bit of a worry. The hours were OK, although giving up my Saturday morning lie-in was a bit annoying! The hours where I worked were 5.30-9pm on Mondays and Thursdays (or was it Wednesdays? can't remember now...) and 8am-12.30pm on Saturday mornings. If you think you'd be OK with those hours, get in contact with Handle With Care Ltd at the Digby and Sowton Industrial Estate. Plus, there are a load of other businesses on the estate which I'm sure would come up if you googled. It's one option, anyway, as people don't tend to look out of town for jobs.
As far as retail goes, I know maybe one or two people that work in pubs and supermarkets. Maccy D's are always advertising too - however, beyond that, most retail outlets won't hire you unless you can transfer to a branch at home in the holidays, and sometimes they won't even hire you then (I was told at Next in Exeter that I could transfer to the one at home in the holidays, only to be told they had too many people doing transfers in the holidays at the moment and so they couldn't hire me
). In other words, you will be very very lucky if you can get a job in town. I work as a till monkey at the Spar at the moment, which is right in the middle of a student area (as is the Co-op) and they're happy to hire term-time only as the area is just dead in the holidays and so they can cope with minimal numbers of staff out of termtime. However, getting one of these jobs is highly dependent on being in the right place at the right time - the second we put a sign in the window to say there's a job available, the sign is taken down the same day as someone is always found instantly.
You'll have far more luck finding a job if you want to stay in Exeter in the summer of your second and third years (where house contracts often permit this) but in the first year there's no chance of this as you have to clear out of your uni accommodation the second the academic year ends (and sometimes at Easter and/or Christmas too). Plus, as the OP pointed out, there's only so much the job market can take - there is a saturation point, particularly as there are 12000 students at Exeter and nowhere near that many jobs available!
I hope that helps a bit. I can only relate my own experience to you, though, and others may have had a different experience, but I gather my case is fairly typical.
There are only limited numbers of jobs on campus - probably fewer than 30 permanent jobs in the Lemmy, Ram, Guild shop, uni supermarket and Blackwell's combined. Plus, as you can imagine, applications for them are very competitive.
In my first year, the only work I was able to get was in the way of temporary jobs on campus - cleaning (yeeeeeurch), campus/accommodation tours and working as a cold caller for alumni relations (horrible job!). I also did some modelling for the art society and some paid experiments for the psychology department. While this sounds like a lot, it isn't - the work is very erratic and not too well paid, so while it was handy for a bit of occasional pocket money, that was about it. Despite writing to the uni bookshop and to all the supermarkets in the area before even arriving at Exeter, none of them replied, so there's no guarantee that you'll get a job even if it's designed for the most ignorant bozo of human beings
In my second year, I managed to get a job as a data capture clerk at an industrial estate as one of my housemates already worked there. The work was easy, well-paid and had co-operative and efficient management. The main bugbear, though, was the travel - I don't drive, so I had to walk 5 mins to the train station, have a 10-15 minute train journey, then a 15-minute walk the other side. This was fine in the daytime/in the summer but at night it was a bit of a worry. The hours were OK, although giving up my Saturday morning lie-in was a bit annoying! The hours where I worked were 5.30-9pm on Mondays and Thursdays (or was it Wednesdays? can't remember now...) and 8am-12.30pm on Saturday mornings. If you think you'd be OK with those hours, get in contact with Handle With Care Ltd at the Digby and Sowton Industrial Estate. Plus, there are a load of other businesses on the estate which I'm sure would come up if you googled. It's one option, anyway, as people don't tend to look out of town for jobs.
As far as retail goes, I know maybe one or two people that work in pubs and supermarkets. Maccy D's are always advertising too - however, beyond that, most retail outlets won't hire you unless you can transfer to a branch at home in the holidays, and sometimes they won't even hire you then (I was told at Next in Exeter that I could transfer to the one at home in the holidays, only to be told they had too many people doing transfers in the holidays at the moment and so they couldn't hire me
). In other words, you will be very very lucky if you can get a job in town. I work as a till monkey at the Spar at the moment, which is right in the middle of a student area (as is the Co-op) and they're happy to hire term-time only as the area is just dead in the holidays and so they can cope with minimal numbers of staff out of termtime. However, getting one of these jobs is highly dependent on being in the right place at the right time - the second we put a sign in the window to say there's a job available, the sign is taken down the same day as someone is always found instantly.You'll have far more luck finding a job if you want to stay in Exeter in the summer of your second and third years (where house contracts often permit this) but in the first year there's no chance of this as you have to clear out of your uni accommodation the second the academic year ends (and sometimes at Easter and/or Christmas too). Plus, as the OP pointed out, there's only so much the job market can take - there is a saturation point, particularly as there are 12000 students at Exeter and nowhere near that many jobs available!
I hope that helps a bit. I can only relate my own experience to you, though, and others may have had a different experience, but I gather my case is fairly typical.
Reply 5
Almost all the temping agencies in exeter will have the kind of part time work you might be after, and they have a lot of positions they need to fill up. If you have bar tending experience that kind of work is really easy to get as well in town. There are also jobs always going at the telesales places in town none are a particularly far walk from campus either. Temping agencies will be your best bet though, few companies to get in contact with - Adecco, Office Angels, Huntress umm there’s a whole host of others as well which i can't remember right now.
Reply 6
19
Heh. I tried registering with them...got maybe 1 email?
Although since you're asking, you could try bluearrow and gradsouthwest.
Although since you're asking, you could try bluearrow and gradsouthwest.
Reply 7
I think you've quite a pessimistic outlook on finding a job Angelil (though I realise you base it on your experience). Anyone I've met who has decided they want a job has found one within a month, be it at Sainsbury's/Cafes/Riva etc. There is also the option to sign up with a catering company and do event work/waitressing etc.etc. There are a few department stores in town so there are often jobs in certain departments available there.
Reply 8
19
It's true that what I've said is due to my experience, but you have to ask why people you know have managed to get jobs - were they already working in a major chain at home and so were able to get a transfer? Are they able to stay in Exeter over the holidays? etc etc. Either of these advantages make it undoubtedly easier to get a job, and certainly my experience wasn't for lack of trying to get a job. I really don't see what more a person can do (which, in my first year, was to write to supermarkets and Blackwells before even arriving in Exeter and not even get a reply, and then to consistently look for a regular job throughout the year) - it's all well and good to not look at all and then moan about it, but that wasn't the case with me.
Just to let any prospective students that despite what Looks_Like_Rain says, it ain't all a bed of roses
Just to let any prospective students that despite what Looks_Like_Rain says, it ain't all a bed of roses
Reply 9
im at plymouth uni and i cant find a job and i would say plymouth is bigger (im from exeter btw)
unless u have bar experience or r willing to work in like maccy ds then ull find it hard but i think that might be the case where ever u go to uni
although the uni at exeter is right near the centre and theres loads of out skirts really near by
xxx
unless u have bar experience or r willing to work in like maccy ds then ull find it hard but i think that might be the case where ever u go to uni
although the uni at exeter is right near the centre and theres loads of out skirts really near by
xxx
Reply 10
the key is to get in early.
Reply 11
emmz23
OP
2
thanks for all the replies so far!! 
It looks like i'm gonna find it hard to get a job. I don't have any bar experience and probably wont stay in exeter during the hols. I really thought that most students at exeter uni had a job!! Is this mostly due to the fact that some have rich parents who can support them and can therefore afford to not have a job or the fact that it is really hard to get a job or both really?? How do you survive not having a job to enable to pay for all the expenses etc!!??
It looks like i'm gonna find it hard to get a job. I don't have any bar experience and probably wont stay in exeter during the hols. I really thought that most students at exeter uni had a job!! Is this mostly due to the fact that some have rich parents who can support them and can therefore afford to not have a job or the fact that it is really hard to get a job or both really?? How do you survive not having a job to enable to pay for all the expenses etc!!??
Reply 12
A lot of people do have jobs, just not in Exeter- they carry on with whatever job they had before in the holidays, but obviously that requries a) having a job at home before you go and b) having a flexible employer who'd let you work only in uni holidays. Personally I don't have a job and I find my loan and grant perfectly adequate to cover all my expenses, but that's probably because I don't go out much and I don't drink.
Reply 13
19
(Correct me if I'm wrong Kelly, but you're not on minimum loan are you?)
emmz, I think the lack of jobs/people having jobs can be attributable to several factors:
-Exeter is a city, but it's a very very small one, meaning there aren't as many jobs as you may expect.
-Many employers are not willing to take you if you can't stay over the holidays or get a transfer from your job at home.
-As I said earlier, there is a saturation point: there simply aren't the numbers of jobs available for the students that want them.
-On the flip side, some students are in the fortunate situation whereby they don't "need" a job.
-Some students simply don't want one.
-Some students are on courses such as physics or medicine, which have so many contact hours that they simply don't have the time for a part-time job.
-Jobs in retail are highly sought-after and the second a company advertises a vacancy, it's fulfilled very quickly.
By all means try (as you may get lucky), and definitely check out the industrial estate if that doesn't work out for you (they're really very good employers, on the whole).
emmz, I think the lack of jobs/people having jobs can be attributable to several factors:
-Exeter is a city, but it's a very very small one, meaning there aren't as many jobs as you may expect.
-Many employers are not willing to take you if you can't stay over the holidays or get a transfer from your job at home.
-As I said earlier, there is a saturation point: there simply aren't the numbers of jobs available for the students that want them.
-On the flip side, some students are in the fortunate situation whereby they don't "need" a job.
-Some students simply don't want one.
-Some students are on courses such as physics or medicine, which have so many contact hours that they simply don't have the time for a part-time job.
-Jobs in retail are highly sought-after and the second a company advertises a vacancy, it's fulfilled very quickly.
By all means try (as you may get lucky), and definitely check out the industrial estate if that doesn't work out for you (they're really very good employers, on the whole).
Reply 14
emmz23
thanks for all the replies so far!!
It looks like i'm gonna find it hard to get a job. I don't have any bar experience and probably wont stay in exeter during the hols. I really thought that most students at exeter uni had a job!! Is this mostly due to the fact that some have rich parents who can support them and can therefore afford to not have a job or the fact that it is really hard to get a job or both really?? How do you survive not having a job to enable to pay for all the expenses etc!!??
It looks like i'm gonna find it hard to get a job. I don't have any bar experience and probably wont stay in exeter during the hols. I really thought that most students at exeter uni had a job!! Is this mostly due to the fact that some have rich parents who can support them and can therefore afford to not have a job or the fact that it is really hard to get a job or both really?? How do you survive not having a job to enable to pay for all the expenses etc!!??
It is very doable if u budget (OOO rude word) and dont go over board but ull prob find that its not just exeter uni that people cant get jobs (not trying to put u off going there)
but yeah u learn cheap ways to eat and ger drunk and have fun basicly thats all the fun of uni
hehe
xxxx
Reply 15
Angelil
(Correct me if I'm wrong Kelly, but you're not on minimum loan are you?)
No, I get a £3205 loan and a £1634 grant, so £4839 altogether. It was extremely difficult actually getting it from the useless incompetent muppets in charge of student finance though. The million phone calls and letters didn't work, so I had to make an official complaint before I got anywhere
Hopefully they'll get it right first time around for next year, but I doubt it somehow.Reply 16
19
Thanks
I didn't ask you that to be overly personal/intrusive - it was just to point out that while people who receive over the minimum loan probably can subsist on it quite happily without a part-time job, this (sadly!) isn't really possible when one only receives the minimum loan. Granted, most people who are entitled to minimum loan only probably receive help from their parents, but some don't, and with accommodation prices the way they are in Exeter, you can't get by on the minimum loan by a long way.
I didn't ask you that to be overly personal/intrusive - it was just to point out that while people who receive over the minimum loan probably can subsist on it quite happily without a part-time job, this (sadly!) isn't really possible when one only receives the minimum loan. Granted, most people who are entitled to minimum loan only probably receive help from their parents, but some don't, and with accommodation prices the way they are in Exeter, you can't get by on the minimum loan by a long way.
Reply 17
Angelil
Thanks
I didn't ask you that to be overly personal/intrusive - it was just to point out that while people who receive over the minimum loan probably can subsist on it quite happily without a part-time job, this (sadly!) isn't really possible when one only receives the minimum loan. Granted, most people who are entitled to minimum loan only probably receive help from their parents, but some don't, and with accommodation prices the way they are in Exeter, you can't get by on the minimum loan by a long way.
I didn't ask you that to be overly personal/intrusive - it was just to point out that while people who receive over the minimum loan probably can subsist on it quite happily without a part-time job, this (sadly!) isn't really possible when one only receives the minimum loan. Granted, most people who are entitled to minimum loan only probably receive help from their parents, but some don't, and with accommodation prices the way they are in Exeter, you can't get by on the minimum loan by a long way.
It's OK, I don't mind
Accommodation is ridiculously expensive in Exeter, but obviously it depends what you go for. I have so many friends in Holland/Birks who complain about how expensive it is and how they never have any money, yet they chose to live there! You can't have it both ways- luxury hotel standard accommodation and spending money! I'm in Lafrowda standard, which is the cheapest you can get at £60.34 a week plus food, so when you add that to me not going out much, not drinking and having saved a fair amount before I got here, I don't need a job. But if I insisted on living in ensuite accommodation with a typical student lifestyle, I'd be in trouble! Plus as you say, almost everyone I know who doesn't get a grant and just gets the minimum loan doesn't pay for their accommodation themselves anyway, their parents do, or at leas they contribute towards it.Reply 18
£60 a week = £240 a month. X2 (partner/friend) = £480 a month. Enough for a mortgage to buy a 2bed house. crazy eh?
Reply 19
I get around £4,000 a year for my student loan and I wouldn't agree that its possible to subsist on that. According to stats, Exeter is the 7th most expensive city in the country, as can be evidenced by rent prices that are well over the national average. As such, I pretty much live off my overdraft, which I will have to pay off very soon since I'm graduating in the summer...eek.
In my years here, I've earned a little money helping with careers fairs and doing some mind-numbing clerical work over the easter break, but as Angelil has quite accurately stated, it is very difficult to get a job unless you have experience and live in the city full-time.
In my years here, I've earned a little money helping with careers fairs and doing some mind-numbing clerical work over the easter break, but as Angelil has quite accurately stated, it is very difficult to get a job unless you have experience and live in the city full-time.
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