Struggling to find a part-time job to finance uni

Does anyone have any suggestions of types of jobs that are particularly suited to students, i.e., not too mentally demanding, flexible hours? Something that I can start myself, maybe?

Also, I've found that I find it hard to sound enthusiastic in my CV because I'm having to apply for jobs regardless of whether I'm interested in them or not. That, combined with only 20 hours of work experience, likely gives a very weak impression. Does anyone have any tips regarding this problem? Thanks.

Reply 1

Liverpool Hope Student Ambassador

Official Rep

Original post by AH_DUYP

Does anyone have any suggestions of types of jobs that are particularly suited to students, i.e., not too mentally demanding, flexible hours? Something that I can start myself, maybe?
Also, I've found that I find it hard to sound enthusiastic in my CV because I'm having to apply for jobs regardless of whether I'm interested in them or not. That, combined with only 20 hours of work experience, likely gives a very weak impression. Does anyone have any tips regarding this problem? Thanks.

Hey AH_DUYP,

Have you considered applying for any part time jobs within the university almost all uni's have some kind of ambassador programmes set up. These roles are typically flexible and focus on bigger events organised by the university like Open Days/ Offer Holder Days/ Campus Tour events and much more. Alternatively retail and hospitality jobs are perfect for students particularly if you are studying in a city - these jobs are often relatively easy to come by and again are designed to be flexible!

I'd also recommend arranging an appointment with the university careers service who would be able to help with your search as well as making suggestions to build your CV.

Good luck and happy job hunting 🙂

Billie
Liverpool Hope University
Student Ambassador

Reply 2

De Montfort University

Official Rep

Original post by AH_DUYP

Does anyone have any suggestions of types of jobs that are particularly suited to students, i.e., not too mentally demanding, flexible hours? Something that I can start myself, maybe?
Also, I've found that I find it hard to sound enthusiastic in my CV because I'm having to apply for jobs regardless of whether I'm interested in them or not. That, combined with only 20 hours of work experience, likely gives a very weak impression. Does anyone have any tips regarding this problem? Thanks.

Hiya! 😄

It's great to hear that you are looking for a part-time job but I am sorry it has been difficult so far 🙁 Please keep up the search and it is also great to hear that you are considering factors such as being flexible and not too mentally draining – these are incredibly important to think about especially when being a student as your top priority should always be your studies and of course you won’t always be available 24/7 especially if you have any upcoming assignments or are in lectures.

I would recommend getting in contact with your Career’s Team at the university (if you haven’t done so already) and looking at the university website for student jobs. By speaking to the career's team, they can inform you on any jobs within the university and possibly what's available in the area. In addition, the jobs advertised may seem more lenient if you haven’t got any previous work experience and understand the prior commitments you have as a student (e.g. attending lectures, reading weeks, additional readings etc.) For example, at De Montfort University we have Student Ambassador jobs (which is one of my part time jobs) and this role is incredibly flexible, optional and enjoyable as I have had some incredible opportunities presented to me through this role. Another role, which I am starting soon is being a Front runner and this is a contract of 10 hours a week and again should be a great opportunity during my studies and to add to my CV, perhaps have a look if your university does anything similar to this.

Unitemps is a great website - they are university owned and operate from numerous universities across the UK; (being an ambassador at DMU is through this company) perhaps you can see if Unitemps have a branch at your university 😃 Besides Unitemps, I would also recommend looking at Linkedin, Indeed and Google. I would also recommend, for you to follow a few local business on their social media - as sometimes they may advertise a job on here.

If you have moved to a new city / town I would suggest walking around with copies of your CV just incase any where has notice signs about job vacancies - this way you are already pre-pared by having a printed off version of your CV. In addition, you could even ask if you can just leave your CV with them incase something crops up in the future. This may seem quite intimidating but the worse they can say is no, and I am sure they can relate to a time when they were struggling to find some work 🙂

From my friends' experiences as students some of them don't work, some work in hospitality and retail jobs, some work in areas that they want to pursue in the future and some just work when they are back home during the holidays. You can always ask around too, see what other students do for work and perhaps they are aware of any vacancies.

Even if you don't have lots of experience some is better than none and we all started from somewhere 🙂 just try to think about the key transferable skills you have learnt and how this can be applied. For just an idea, while being at university you may have developed your communication skills, organisation, independence, team work, written skills etc. Without knowing any information, this can come across a bit vague but you can take this and add personal touches. Also, if you were/are part of any clubs, or achieved anything you can always include this in your CV just to bulk it out

I hope this helps, and I am sure something will be available soon

-Maddie, second year Health and well-being in society student at De Montfort University

Reply 3

Lancaster Student Ambassador

Official Rep

Original post by AH_DUYP

Does anyone have any suggestions of types of jobs that are particularly suited to students, i.e., not too mentally demanding, flexible hours? Something that I can start myself, maybe?
Also, I've found that I find it hard to sound enthusiastic in my CV because I'm having to apply for jobs regardless of whether I'm interested in them or not. That, combined with only 20 hours of work experience, likely gives a very weak impression. Does anyone have any tips regarding this problem? Thanks.

Hi @AH_DUYP !

I'm guessing it's similar to most universities but at Lancaster University we have an Employment and Recruitment Service with job vacancies for students and non-students. At Lancaster, you can work as a Student Ambassador and request shifts so the hours you work are catered to your availability. I'm sure Student Ambassador programmes are available at other unis too- it's a very flexible, sociable and rewarding job!

Poppy - Student Ambassador 😀

Reply 4

UCLan Student

Official Rep

Original post by AH_DUYP

Does anyone have any suggestions of types of jobs that are particularly suited to students, i.e., not too mentally demanding, flexible hours? Something that I can start myself, maybe?
Also, I've found that I find it hard to sound enthusiastic in my CV because I'm having to apply for jobs regardless of whether I'm interested in them or not. That, combined with only 20 hours of work experience, likely gives a very weak impression. Does anyone have any tips regarding this problem? Thanks.

Hi there!

I work as a student ambassador at university and I find that this is a really great job as it’s flexible around your studies and also allows you to build up a CV along side.

UCLan also have a careers service which helps students to find local jobs so it’s worth seeing if you’re university has something similar to this!

I hope this helps!

Rebecca, UCLan

Reply 5