Friday 20 June 2014

Should you take a gap year?

Should I take a gap year?

What is a gap year?

Whether you want to learn a new skill, raise your cultural awareness or buy yourself some thinking time before making the move into work or further study, a gap year could be the answer…

Traditionally, the phrase 'gap year' meant a period of time out taken by students after leaving college and before starting university. Now, gap years can happen at any stage, by anyone, and for varying amounts of time.

Examples of gap year activities include: conservation work; adventure travel programmes; summer schools; and internships. To find out more, see gap year opportunities.

What skills will I gain?

Depending on the type of gap year you choose to take, the skills you develop will vary. Make a list of the reasons why you want to take a gap year. Once you know what you want to get out of your time off, you will be able to narrow down your options.

Taking a gap year could:

develop your transferable skills, including your communication, leadership, time management and decision making;
increase your work experience, through paid employment or voluntary work;
allow you to learn a new craft, such as surfing, teaching English as a foreign language (TEFL), filmmaking, cookery or even the art of kung fu;
hone your existing skills, for example basic language skills, IT skills and teamwork;
increase your confidence and independence, by taking yourself out of your comfort zone.

How will I sell my gap year to employers?

Before taking a gap year, you need to create a plan with clear aims. What do you want to achieve from your time away from study and/or work? Think about the types of jobs you are interested in pursuing once you start your career. Which skills will help you to enter this industry? If you know the answers to these questions you can plan your gap year with great purpose and focus on building skills and experience that employers will be looking for in graduate applications.

That said, a gap year can still be incredibly useful and of great interest to prospective employers even if you haven't yet decided which industry you want to enter. Taking a gap year can be an opportunity to explore different sectors and jobs within them to get a taste for what might suit you.

While working in various roles and industries you will inevitably hone your transferable skills and experience things which you can then draw upon in future interviews. By having new experiences to refer to, you will give yourself more to talk about and your answers will be unique and therefore refreshing for your interviewers.

Are there any disadvantages?

The disadvantages will be different for everyone and you may not experience any at all.

Before you commit to taking a gap year, ask yourself:

If I take a gap year part-way through my studies, will I lose momentum for studying? If you take a considerable break from studying it may be difficult to get back into the swing of things once you return so it's important to think about when will be the right time for you. If you're unsure of whether time out will affect you, speak to your lecturers and friends and ask your university careers service if they offer any support for students planning time away from their studies.
Can I afford to take a gap year? How will I fund my trip? Cost is always a factor which will help to determine where you go and for how long.
What will I do during my time away to make myself more appealing to employers? If you don't plan or actively take part in anything during your gap year it will be difficult to justify your trip to potential employers and it could be seen as a negative gap on your CV.
Should I travel on my own or with friends? Whether you travel alone or as part of a group, problems can arise. Going solo may lead to feelings of loneliness, but travelling with the wrong people can be just as difficult. If you plan to travel with someone, make sure you plan your trip together and decide what you want to do and where you want to go before you book anything. Having different expectations and ideas once you've set off may put strain on a friendship.

Written by Editor, Graduate Prospects

Date:

March 2014

Thursday 19 June 2014

WHAT STUDENT FINANCE IS AVAILABLE TO NEW FULL-TIME STUDENTS 2014/15

https://www.gov.uk/apply-for-student-finance

http://www.practitioners.slc.co.uk/resources/201415-resources/factsheets.aspx

WHAT STUDENT FINANCE IS AVAILABLE TO NEW FULL-TIME STUDENTS
2014/15
The two main costs full-time students will have while studying are tuition fees and living costs. There’s student finance available to help with both. You should also look at the ‘Quick-start guide’ for more detail about how much student finance is available.
Tuition fees
Tuition Fee Loan
Universities and colleges can charge up to £9,000 a year for full-time courses – but need to meet strict criteria to make sure all eligible students, regardless of background, can access these courses. Most students won’t have to pay for tuition fees up front.
Every new student is entitled to a Tuition Fee Loan of up to £9,000 to cover their fees, which won’t have to be paid back until they’re making over £21,000 a year.
Living costs
Maintenance Grant (or Special Support Grant)
A grant of up to £3,387 to help with living costs. This doesn’t have to be repaid. How much a student can get depends on their household income.
The amount of Maintenance Grant a student can get will affect the amount of Maintenance Loan they can borrow. The amount of Maintenance Loan they can borrow will be reduced by £0.50 for every £1 of Maintenance Grant they’re entitled to.
The Special Support Grant replaces the Maintenance Grant for people who, as full-time students, can claim income- related benefits. Students can’t get both a Maintenance Grant and a Special Support Grant.

Household income	How much?
£25,000 or less	Maximum £3,387 grant
Between £25,001 and £42,620	Partial grant, depending on household income
More than £42,620	No grant

Student Finance England is a service provided by the Student Loans Company. We provide financial support on behalf of the UK Government to students from England entering higher education in the UK.

ENDORSED BY

SFEngland SF_England www.practitioners.slc.co.uk

August 2013

Section 2 - What student finance is available to new full-time students (page 2 of 3)

Maintenance Loan
Students can get up to £7,751, depending on their household income and where they’re living and studying, to help with living costs.
The basic rate of Maintenance Loan (65% of the maximum rate) doesn’t depend on the student’s household income but the remaining 35% does.
The Maintenance Loan has to be paid back but not until the student’s income is over £21,000 a year.

	Full rate (100%)	Doesn’t depend on household income (65%)	Depends on household income (35%)
Living with parents	Up to £4,418	£2,871	Up to £1,547
Studying in London and not living with parents	Up to £7,751	£5,038	Up to £2,713
Studying outside of London and not living with parents	Up to £5,555	£3,610	Up to £1,945
Living and studying abroad	£6,600	£4,290	Up to £2,310

Disabled Students’ Allowances (DSAs)
DSAs are available to students who have extra costs because of a disability, long-term health condition, mental- health condition or specific learning difficulty. DSAs don’t depend on household income. How much students get depends entirely on their circumstances.
DSAs don’t have to be paid back.

Specialist equipment allowance helps buy any equipment needed.	Up to £5,212 for the whole course
Non-medical helper allowance helps pay for any support workers needed, such as note takers or readers.	Up to £20,725 a year
General Allowance helps pay for other disability related spending such as braille paper.	Up to £1,741 a year
Travel allowance helps with any extra travel costs the student may have to pay.	Reasonable spending on extra travel costs the student may have to pay to attend their university or college course because of their disability.

For more information download the ‘Disabled Students’ Allowances’ factsheet from the resources section of the practitioner website.
Student Finance England is a service provided by the Student Loans Company. We provide financial support on behalf of the UK Government to students from England entering higher education in the UK.

ENDORSED BY

SFEngland SF_England www.practitioners.slc.co.uk

August 2013

Section 2 - What student finance is available to new full-time students (page 3 of 3)

Childcare Grant
The Childcare Grant helps with childcare costs if a student has dependent children under 15 (under 17 if the child has special educational needs) in registered or approved childcare. They can get up to £150.23 a week for one child or up to £257.55 a week for more than one child, depending on their household income. This doesn’t have to be paid back.
For more information download the ‘Childcare and adult dependants’ factsheet from the resources section of the practitioner website.
Parents’ Learning Allowance
Parents’ Learning Allowance is to help with course-related costs if a student has dependent children. They can get up to £1,523 a year depending on their income and the income of their dependants. This doesn’t have to be paid back.
For more information download the ‘Childcare and adult dependants’ factsheet from the resources section of the practitioner website.
Adult Dependants’ Grant
Adult Dependants’ Grant helps students who have an adult who depends on them financially. They can get up to £2,668 a year depending on their income and the income of their dependants.
For more information download the factsheet on ‘Childcare and adult dependants’ from the resources section of the practitioner website.
Bursaries and scholarships
Other sources of financial help may be available from the university or college such as a bursary or scholarship.
Often these depend on your household income and vary at different universities and on different courses. So it’s always worth looking on their website for details.

Student Finance England is a service provided by the Student Loans Company. We provide financial support on behalf of the UK Government to students from England entering higher education in the UK.

Personal Statements for University Application, top tips!

For more information on how to write your personal statement, check out the following links:

http://www.ucas.com/how-it-all-works/undergraduate/filling-your-application/your-personal-statement

http://www.studential.com/personalstatements/

http://university.which.co.uk/advice/10-things-to-put-in-your-personal-statement

http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/wiki/Personal_Statement_Library

Tuesday 17 June 2014

Filling out Application Forms...

https://nationalcareersservice.direct.gov.uk/advice/getajob/applications/Pages/default.aspx

Application forms

Some employers prefer you to fill in an application form rather than send a CV, particularly for public sector jobs. The main rules are to follow the application instructions, present the information neatly and sell your most relevant skills. Read on to find out how you can make your application form stand out.

Job application forms

Many employers prefer application forms to CVs. Forms are easier to compare because, unlike CVs, they follow the identical format.

If you're filling in an application form, you'll still need to work out the best way to present your skills and experience. This is why completing an application form often takes just as much time and effort as writing a CV and covering letter. However, the more forms you fill in, the quicker you'll get at doing it.

Some jobs ask you to apply online, which you might not have done before. Read the instructions on the form very carefully and follow them. Taking it step by step and using the guides on this site will help you to give it your best shot.

Online application forms

If the form is online, draft your application offline first – in a word processing package like Word – and save it to your computer. This way you'll be able to run a spell check before you copy the information into the online system. It also means you'll have a back-up if there's a problem with the form.

More and more sites offer the option of storing your application online and coming back to it. If you do this in more than one sitting, keep a record of any usernames and passwords so that you can get back in.

Online forms can be longer and more complicated than paper forms – follow the instructions carefully and check how many screens you have to fill in before you can submit your application. Some employers will ask for a ‘personal statement‘.

If necessary, copy all the questions into an offline document – that way there’s no danger of submitting an incomplete application.

Paper application forms

If you’re filling in a form by hand, write as neatly as you can in black ink. Use block capital letters if the form asks you to.

A good way to avoid mistakes and crossings-out on the final form is to photocopy the original and practise filling in this copy first. Take care of the original form – don’t spill anything on it or leave it in your bag to get creased!

Check and recheck

Get it right — whether your form is online or on paper you should:

read it over a few times to check for spelling and grammatical errors - these are one of the most common reasons applications are rejected
ask someone else to proofread it and check it for you
check you've filled in all the boxes that are relevant to you. If you leave an empty box the employer might think your form is incomplete. If a box isn't relevant, put 'N/A' (not applicable) in the space provided
photocopy or print out the finished form, so that you have a record of what you've written. You'll need to be able to refer back to it at the interview stage
take note of the closing date and send your application form to arrive in good time.

https://nationalcareersservice.direct.gov.uk/advice/getajob/applications/Pages/faqsaboutapplicationforms.aspx