Should I go to university?

Hello everyone, I hope you’re doing well! This week I wanted to talk to you about some important life choices. Well, one of the most important life choices I would say. That is: what to do after high school? Should I go to university? Should I have a gap year? Should I scrap going to university and go straight to work? What course should I study once I do go to university?

All of these questions went through my mind three years ago when I graduated from high school and had absolutely no idea what to do next with my life. I considered having a gap year, however, I knew after a gap year I wouldn’t even feel motivated enough to proceed with my studies, so it wasn’t an option for me. Not going to university at all was never really something I wanted to do as having a degree increases your employability massively and I am too much of a career oriented person to let that go. So there I was, deciding to go to university without having any idea of what I wanted to study or do for the rest of my life. So if you’re in the same boat, don’t worry at all. Many of us go through this. The uncertainty is so nerve wrecking and makes us all panic a little bit but here’s what I decided to do…

I attended events at my high school where they would talk about various universities and degrees that got me looking at various universities. One of the booklets that I took with me was UCB’s. Once I read through all of the courses I just tried to find something I would potentially be interested in. I found events management quite an interesting industry so I decided to look more into that. My brother actually advised me to choose a degree to cover multiple fields in order to make sure I’d like at least some parts of it. Also, that means you learn more about various fields, therefore resulting in more job opportunities. That is how I found Marketing & Events Management and I am so glad I did. Through the three years of my studies I have actually started to love marketing and dislike events management. This is why I can honestly recommend choosing a degree that has at least two different aspects to it if you are not certain of what to study but are determined to go to university. It was honestly the best decision of my life because I no longer feel lost and uncertain about the future. I know marketing is going to be my career and I could not be happier.

Now the tough part, choosing the university. I applied to University College Birmingham, University of Central Lancashire, University of Bedfordshire and University of Northampton (as you can see, I was determined to study in the UK as that has been my dream all my life). When I got into all of them, I was extremely confused of what to do next. I mainly looked at student satisfaction and the location of the university. UCB has amazing support facilities for international students and since I knew I’d be so far from home, that was very important to me. Also, Birmingham is the second largest city in the UK and I’ve always been a lover of big cities so it sounded like a dream to me. This is how I decided that I would move from a small city in Estonia to the second largest city in the United Kingdom. One of the scariest but best decisions I have ever made.

I just wanted to let you know that whatever you decide is okay. But I also want you to know that although going to university might be a scary idea, it does not have to feel like that. Also, whatever makes your heart race is probably worth doing.

– Helina x

Dealing with Stress

Life has been pretty stressful for me lately with all the assignments, my dissertation, work and other responsibilities happening at once. It can get extremely overwhelming at times, which is important to take the time to relax. I personally feel like I cannot take a break because I need to work on something every minute of every day. Most of the time I run everywhere last minute because there’s so much going on I simply start forgetting things. Yesterday I came home from work and told myself this can’t be how I deal with everything so I made a plan, relaxed and now I feel so much better so I thought I would let you know how I did it!

I got home from work, dropped all of my bags and fell onto bed. I felt guilty for just sitting there as I have so many things to do but then I told myself that I’m not going to get anything done if I just keep stressing over it. So I got up, took out my list making planner and wrote a list of all the responsibilities so I would have a clear idea of everything. I wrote down all of my meetings, assignment deadlines and appointments just so I would feel like I was on top of it all, which already made me feel a thousand times better.

AND NOW, it’s time to de-stress. I got into the comfiest pyjamas I own and filled my bed with comfy pillows and blankets. I got myself some hot chocolate, sat on my bed with one of my favourite books to read at stressful times named ‘Calm’. It is supposed to calm the mind and for me it certainly does. I used the app that comes with it to put some soothing music on in the background and it was so lovely. After feeling a bit better, I put on a face mask and grabbed a magazine to read that I have been meaning to read for months. I read about all the other things happening in the world, which made me forget all the problems of my own.

After that, it was time to get ready for bed! I took a loooooooong warm shower and used my favourite products. Then I used a lovely body cream to have that little extra pampering session. Finally, I sprayed my pillows with a ‘deep sleep pillow spray’, which always makes me fall asleep really fast and I get the best deep sleep.

Today, I feel like a completely new person ready to take on the world again. I hope this blog post made you feel less alone if you’re stressed like I am and gave you a few ideas on how to overcome it. Stay strong!

– Helina

FREE Student Essentials!

Hello, all my lovely blog readers! I hope you are well and not feeling too frozen in this icy cold weather. Now Christmas and New Year’s Eve have passed, most of our money has probably gone. That is why this week I thought I’d tell you a little bit about some FREE websites in order to…

• Save you some money!
• Enhance your uni work!

So here we go!

1. RefMe 

I cannot even tell you how much I use this. This makes referencing SO easy and I feel like everybody needs to know about it! It is completely free to use and it is so simple. You can either fill in the appropriate slots to create the reference or, most of the time, it finds the reference for you by either typing in the author or the title of the book. How amazing is that! It also lets you create folders for different subjects so it is always super organised and easy to look through everyone. This is a total student saviour and the referencing is 100% correct. As a final year student, I have never had a problem with it! AND it’s free to sign up! Perfect for students!

2. Prezi Presentation

This is amazing for all students but especially marketing students in order to stand out from usual PowerPoint presentations. Prezi is a presentation software online. These presentation slides are pre-made and animated yet still look very professional. They can be modified in all sorts of ways but I think it is an awesome program online and it makes presentations a thousand times more fun. It’s difficult to describe but go ahead and check it out yourself!

3. Unidays

Discounts. Yes, that is pretty much all I’ve got to say. It’s a website/app for you to get amazing student discounts, and guess what, it is completely free! All you have to do is sign up with your student email and you’re good to go. 40% off at ASK Italian, 10% off at Superdrug, 20% off at PureGym and so many more! Go have a look because it’s definitely worth signing up to!

4. Save The Student

This website has it all, from Student Finance information to getting a job and making money. It’s an amazing place to find freebies and incredible student discounts so I am constantly on the site looking for some student freebies! You’d be surprised how much there is! The website also provides help with finances, bills, jobs, housing and saving money. Everything in one place. I hope it helps you as much as it has helped me!

I hope this blog post saved you some money as well as gave you some ideas for creative uni work! I hope you’re having the best 2017 and doing amazing at your exams. Until next week!

– Helina x

Stationery Heaven

Hey, everyone! I hope you’re all well and I would just like to take this moment to say that you are all loved and cared about, no matter who you are or where you are in the world. Stay positive and stay happy.

This week I thought I’d talk about stationery because I’ve been using my sticky notes and planners more than ever. I have so many different items but I decided to show you my essentials as a university student. Hopefully this will help you find some cute little stationary pieces too to make you feel more organised.

She designed a life she loved.

Goals.

1. Sticky Notes / Planners

I’m used to just getting simple sticky notes so when I saw these two sets of various types of them I was super happy and intrigued haha. The first set is the biggest one in the picture. It is by Zoella (the design says ‘she designed a life she loved’ on the cover in copper) and it is the most beautiful and sophisticated set of sticky notes you’ll ever see. It even has a weekly planner inside – how cool is that! Also, it has a massive list for any plans or shopping, it has little sticky notes to put as reminders and also bigger ‘notes to self’. This set is absolutely amazing so if you have £10 to spare and are looking for something new – go get it!

The second one is by Gabriella (velvetgh0st on YouTube) and it is only £3 (from Primark)! It includes a big sticky note with some smaller ones that I use for all my university things as bookmarks. I also love the ‘list goals’ little sticky note! How cute!

2. Notebooks

Notebooks are pretty much an essential for any student so I suggest you get one that is very light but also quite big to fit all your notes in. I have the Gabriella notebook from Primark and I love everything about it. Obviously it’s up to you but this range has different sized notebooks so pop into Primark if you like them!

3. Sharpies / Pens

There’s nothing more satisfying than having multicoloured sharpies (wow don’t I just sound really cool haha). And on top of that, to make taking notes more interesting – you need cute pens, you just need them! That’s why I have a mustache pen as well as a little dancing man pen! Makes taking notes much more interesting.

I hope this helped you a little bit! If you purchase any of these items (or if you already own them), be sure to tweet your pictures to us at @UCBloggers! Have an amazing weekend!

– Helina x

Stressed Out?

Hello, everyone! I hope you’ve had a wonderful week and cannot wait for the weekend to begin! However, if you have felt a bit stressed about all the uni work or about anything else, I totally feel you.

This week I have been given an uncountable number of assignment remits and my head just wants to explode. Weekly case studies? Seminars? Reports? Essays? Presentations? It can all get a bit too much when it all gets thrown at you at once. But don’t worry, we’re all in this together (yes, this was an High School Musical reference, don’t judge me haha).

1. Write It All Down

Whenever I get all these assignments given to me, I take a step back to write them all down in my diary so I actually have an overview of the deadlines rather than trying to make sense of it all in my head. This helps me prioritise what needs to be done first. Take one step at a time (yes, this is a song reference… again).

2.  Take a Break and Read

Take a break from it all afterwards because otherwise your brain will turn into mushy peas and you definitely do not want that, trust me! Come back to it all later and take out your first assignment and look at what you need to do. Just look, you don’t even have to do anything else! This will help you realise that it’s probably not all that bad. Also, next time you go to the library you will know exactly which resources to get.

3. No Last Minute Work!

Don’t leave your assignments until last minute. There is nothing more stressful than trying to come up with 2,500 words in one evening. It’s just not good! This will also most likely affect the quality of your work and imagine how disappointed you’d be to get a really bad grade. Start a few weeks early and do it in your own pace. Maybe one page per day. Whatever works best for you.

4. Celebrate!

Once you’ve completed it all in time (hopefully way before the deadline), celebrate! You’ve done it! All the hard work has paid off and you’ve successfully managed to do your assignment, you are amazing! Have some chocolate, maybe even some pizza and ice cream if you think you’ve worked extra hard this time. Watch your favourite film in bed and don’t forget to submit the assignment! Don’t celebrate for too long because you probably have another assignment to be working on – but that will be a piece of cake!

I hope this helped you to feel less alone in this assignment stress. We’ve all been there and I am currently overloaded with work. But that’s okay! If you’re busy it means you’re doing something with your life. Take it easy on yourself.

– Helina x

Studying with Music

Hello, everyone! How are you all doing? I hope your first week back at university has been lovely and you feel ready for the year ahead!

I had so many ideas for a blog post this week but none of them felt quite right. This is when I thought of music – we all listen to it every day, whether we want to or not. You hear it in supermarkets, when someone’s phone is ringing, on the TV and so on. I personally love listening to music, there’s never a time I sit in silence. I went to a music school for years so it’s something I’ve been close to for a long part of my life. Also, since it’s our first week back at uni, I’ve been overwhelmed by all the assignments coming my way and I thought I’d try to help you guys out the best way I can think of – through music.

I know a lot of people enjoy listening to classical music when they work on their assignments, which is supposed to simulate your brain. My favourite way to find new music to listen to every time I work on something is through Spotify (which you can get a discount for – 50% off for students OR just enjoy the free version). Spotify provides so many pre-made playlists designed to help you concentrate on your studies. I put together a list of playlists I’ve found and there should be something for everyone (click on the links below). The best thing about these is that the music does not include any lyrics. If you listen to songs with lyrics it will make you feel distracted as you will most likely want to sing along like I do haha.

1. Deep Focus 
2. Reading 
3. Late Night Reading
4. Jazz Backdrop
5. Acoustic
6. House Remixes

Of course, during breaks, you should blast your speakers, listen to the latest tracks and sing along as loud as you possibly can to get out all the assignment frustration. My personal favourites include:

1. Ellie Goulding – Still Falling For You
2. Major Lazer & Justin Bieber – Cold Water
3. AJR – I’m Not Famous
4. Justin Bieber – Sorry
5. Kiiara – Intention
6. Drake – One Dance
7. Fifth Harmony – Worth It
8. The Chainsmokers – Roses
9. Selena Gomez – Hands To Myself
10. Ariana Grande – Let Me Love You

I hope this helped you if you’re someone like me who just simply cannot live without music and wants to listen to it even while studying! Until next week!

– Helina x