Do you have to go to University? What other options are out there?

I've been thinking a lot recently about how much pressure there was in my last two years of school, especially at this time in my last year, to get everything ready to go to University. It was time to nail that perfect personal statement (the one that makes you seem like the best student, with top grades, three hundred hobbies and you-know, not full of yourself), finalise my uni choices and knuckle down to get the grades I needed. And I mean NEEDED because failure meant that I'd fall into a pit with no future, right?! 

Mental Health Resources Available to you at University

It's that time of year again: kids are back in school, and students are getting ready to head back to uni, or go for the first time. University can be incredible daunting, and even if you're excited about going, it can have an impact on your mental health. 
I was ecstatic to be going to uni. I was ready to embrace my new-found freedom, study a subject I loved and create a whole new me. At the time, it seemed like it would only help my mental health problems, but in reality they got worse before they got better. The freedom I found allowed me to engage in more self-destructive behaviours, with no one who knew me to keep an eye on me. I really needed help, and thankfully I found a good set of friends to keep me in check, but I totally relied on the resources my uni offered to help keep me afloat.
So, if you're worried about losing your support network from home, or think you'll be struggling with your mental health when you start uni, here are some really important resources that may be available. Every institution is different, so I'll cover as much as possible, but just be aware that you might not have access to all of these.
1.) Nightline. This is one of the best services some universities offer IMO. Nightline is open at night, and trained students are there to talk through any problems with you. You can email them, text them, call them, or drop in to wherever your Nightline is. It's a completely safe space. If seeing or talking to someone out loud makes your anxiety flare up then this is a great option. It also means that if anything goes wrong on a night out, or you feel alone and concerned, there's always somewhere to go where you'll be looked after.
2.) GPs. They can be a bit hit and miss, granted, but student GPs tend to be more aware of mental health problems that being at uni can exacerbate. They can also refer you onto other services like CBT (read about my experiences with it here) and CRISIS teams.
3.) Student counselling. This is something I was too nervous and unstable to take up when I was at uni, but I wish I had. Most institutions offer some form of counselling, and often they have a variety of forms. There can be one on one, group and email counselling. Look into what your university offers to see what would fit your needs most.
4,) Talk to your personal tutor or resident tutor. If you feel unsafe, or think your MH is going to start affecting your ability to do work, then talk to a mentor. They can advise you on how to proceed, and, if you need it, authorise things like deadline extensions.
5.) Visit a MH drop in centre. These offer you the chance to head into a safe space a couple of times a week to talk confidentially about what's affecting your mental health. 
6.) Call the Samaritans or 111 if you're struggling and nothing else is available at that time. The Samaritans is an invaluable resource. They're able to answer emails as well as phone calls, and are all fully trained on how to deal with crisis situations. They're there 24/7 and no call is unimportant: if you feel unsafe with yourself and your mental state, then contacting them can be incredibly useful. Their number is 116 123.
I really hope this is helpful! 
Follow me on Bloglovin | Twitter | Instagram | Youtube | Facebook

To the landlord who pulled out on us ...

For the past four months, me and my partner have been living in one room with an ensuite. One room means no proper TV, no kitchen, no lounge, and an incredible strain on our relationship. You see, after uni finished, we moved to his home town to live in an outbuilding near his parent's house until we both had stable jobs and had saved up enough to put down a deposit on a rented house or flat, and have enough money to buy furniture. Because the graduate job market is a bitch, we had to wait until the beginning of September for both of us to have secured jobs, and even by then we were itching to have our own home.
'Home' is a bit of a weird word for me now, it's something I've been lusting after for so long, but just haven't had for years. Student housing isn't a home, and going to your parent's house for the holidays is just really displacing. Having a place to live that is solely ours is something that occupies the majority of my daydreams, and I have countless pins on my 'Home Inspo' Pinterest board.
On Monday we found our dream property. There were so many things that we wanted in a place, but were willing to compromise on, but this place had exactly what we wanted. I spent all day in a feeling of euphoria: finally there was an end goal to our saving and wishing and dreaming. We went fruit picking later in the day (I know it's Autumn, but hey, it was fab), and the PYO was growing Christmas trees ready for the festive season. We had the best time talking about having a real tree this year, imagining where it would go in our new home, and even discussing getting a baby one for our bedroom. I've never seen my boyfriend so excited, and I was on Cloud Nine.
Later on in the day, we paid all of our agency fees, and the initial forms were sent over for us to fill out to get the ball rolling on our future. We paid everything we needed to straight away, and I felt the most at-ease I have felt in months.
Then, on Tuesday morning the estate agents called to let us know that the landlord had pulled out. And what was it over? Our hamsters. Now, we weren't sneaky little bastards, pretending that we had no pets until we had secured the property. From the very first moment we told the agency about the hammies, and got them to check and then double check over the phone with the landlady that she was okay with us having them. The irony of this is that we made sure this was done before we viewed the property so that there was no chance of us falling in love with it and then being turned away because of the pets. 
Our hamsters are pretty old - like I have to check if they're still there every morning old - and we've never left the cage open. Even if there was a chance of that happening they more than likely wouldn't free themselves, preferring to stay in their cosy little nests, and we always keep the door to whatever room they're in closed, so that if the worst does happen they're not going to be roaming the house. 
I can hear you all going yes, yes, maybe some landlords just don't want pets in their home. And that's fair enough, but why can't people just be upfront and say no from the start?! 
Ultimately, we are now once again home-less, having to start looking all over again with a three week deadline on when we need to move in. I do shift work, which includes all weekend and most evenings, and my partner works 9-5. It's hard for us to find time to view properties together, and we were hoping that this would be the last one that one of us had to take time off of work to see. 
The most frustrating thing of all is that we did nothing wrong, and showed ourselves to be good potential tenants. We were honest from the start. We paid our agency fees within five hours of viewing the property. We were keen and open to moving in whenever the landlord wanted us. All in all, you missed out on the opportunity to have tenants you could trust, and we're left angry that we've been mistreated this way.
Have you had a similar problem when house hunting?
Follow me on Bloglovin | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Youtube

10 Ways to make a student house a home

We all know how glad I was to leave my student house, but as uni season is about to start once more I thought I would do a little post on tips to make your uni house feel a little more homely. Moving away from home for the first time can, frankly, be terrifying, and moving in with your friends (or friends of friends) can be more than a little daunting too. 
Most of the time, student homes can be a tad grotty. In our third and fourth years in a student home, the people I lived with and myself opted for the cheapest accommodation we could find. It was pretty rank to begin with, so adding the combination of four boys and one very messy Steph to that mix hardly helped the situation. However, over the four years I spent in student accommodation, I came up with some pretty nifty little tricks to make everything feel more comfortable. The anxiety that I suffer from is worst in places that I don't feel are really 'me' or are cosy and comfy, so this was really important to me! Without any more rambling, here are my top ten tips:
1.) Ensure you have a space that is entirely yours. I know this sounds pretty simple, but as I lived with my partner at uni, this was something we really worked hard at making sure we had. Having a space that you can completely call your own means that when you don't want to be disturbed, you can go back to your space and have a little 'me time'.
2.) Make sure a weekly clean is done of shared areas and your room. One of my favourite parts about visiting home when I was at uni was that I could actually touch anything without being worried that I would end up with sticky hands or a whole horde of germs. Even if you don't like cleaning yourself, discuss hiring a cleaner with your flatmates - splitting the cost would make it minimal. We all feel better in a clean and tidy environment, so making sure your student house is one is bound to make you feel a little better.
3.) Candles. Lots of them. Living with four boys in my third year at uni made me realise that sports bring home a lot of unpleasant odours. Now, I'm not saying this is solely a male thing, but as the only non sportsperson in the house, I do like to think that I wasn't the one making everywhere smell of mud and grass and BO. Who knows. So, I set up candles in the living/dining area and one in my bedroom. It made sure that our house didn't smell too student-y and was also really comforting for me when I was working. I'm used to having a tonne of candles on at home whilst doing work, so it made me feel very relaxed.
4.) A teddy, blanket or pillow from home. I know this one sounds super childish, but do you know what? Out of the six different people that I lived with at uni, every one of them had either a teddy or blanket from home. Even if they wouldn't admit it to the average Joe. Curling up with one of these on a night when you're feeling a bit shitty and missing home is the best, especially if it still smells like home!
5.) A throw and cute cushions to cover an ugly-ass sofa. I don't know why landlords of student housing love the most horrendous sofas, but they seem to. I'm pretty sure half of the ones I've seen were taken off of a skip they're so old. They're also usually looking pretty dirty and untrustworthy. A nice pale throw can really help to brighten up a gloomy living room, and cushions are sometimes totally necessary so you don't fall into the sofa's uncomfortable bones. 
6.) Flowers. I only discovered the wonder of fresh flowers in my final year and I really feel like I missed out before. They just add some extra brightness to the living room, and seem to perk everyone's mood up a little.
7.) Throw open the curtains and windows to let in some air every so often. I have so many memories of me whining at school or at home when teachers or my mum decided to 'let some air in' like ugh I was cosy, can you not. BUT, when you're spending seven or eight hours at your desk working on uni stuff, it's really helpful to open some windows for an hour or so to get some fresh air in. This also helps to stop your room smelling musty. We got into such a bad habit at all of my student houses of just not opening the curtains, and keeping up with that to let in some light every day not only makes things feel a lot less cramped and miserable, but also makes it harder for mould to grow. 
8.) Bring some old movies with you. Snuggling down with a 90s or Disney movie and some snacks is one of my favourite things to do when I'm feeling low. I don't know about you, but watching movies from my childhood definitely makes me feel more at home, and it's even better if you can persuade everyone else to have a uni house movie watching night!
9.) Have special snacks in your room/food cupboard. Okay, this one is a little biased to all you fellow emotional eaters out there. I have some foods that definitely remind me of home, or that I like to eat when I feel rubbish. Cheese smothered nachos and fruit dipped in melted chocolate (not together) are my go-to when I'm feeling really miserable, for example. Boiled eggs with faces drawn on are my go-to when I'm feeling homesick and need a little morning pick-me-up. Whatever your go-to is, have some hidden away in the house for when the stress of uni life gets on top of you.
10.) Put fresh sheets on your bed every week or fortnight. Is there a better feeling than popping on clean PJs and getting into fresh sheets? I really don't think so. I found it SO hard to keep up with this when I first started uni and my mum wasn't there to help me anymore, but sleeping in grotty sheets is pretty miserable. Plus, going out and choosing some new duvet sets for when you start uni really makes the bed feel as if it's your own.
What would you add to the list? I really hope this post was helpful!
Follow me on Bloglovin | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Youtube

My Summer in Pictures

This post is something that I've been wanting to do for so long. I love reading other peoples' photo diary posts, and basically having a good ol' nose at what they've been up to, so I figured I would finally do one of my own. I've also been feeling a little bit 'meh' and a weeny bit lost in the past week or so, so writing this post is a great reminder for myself of all the cool things I've done and all the things I've achieved in the past few months.

So, we're kicking off this photo diary with my birthday (of course), which was wayyyy back in the beginning of June. I was still living in my student house at this point, and was so excited to get out of there and move to my new town. I packed up and moved a week after my birthday - totes 'feeling 22' by the way - and my birthday weekend was spent in a mad scramble of packing, visiting Birmingham and having one last barbecue in Leamington.

June was also a month of (albeit tiny) personal achievements for me. I overcame my anxiety and dealt with moving to a completely new town in which I knew no one, and still can count the number of people I do know on my fingers. I also finally learnt how to Dutch braid my hair, and even made a little tutorial for you guys on it. This is something that I've always wanted to do, and I feel like it gets neater every time I give it a go!

The end of June saw me heading to my first ever real blogger event in London, and I had so much fun! I got to meet a whole crowd of absolutely lovely bloggers, and I've written up my experiences in a post here. It gave me the chance to push myself out of my comfort zone and get in touch with a few brands too.

July really felt like such a 'nothing' month for me until I started really thinking about it. I did a whole bunch of pretty awesome things, but they were so spread out it definitely felt like not much went on! I finally found a job that I was (and still am) really happy in to go alongside my freelance work, which has taken a heap of stress off of my finances! 

I went back to Leamington to visit my two closest friends, have a little cocktail making session and get a lil' broody over a beautiful newborn boy that one of them had just had. It definitely helped to ease my homesickness and make me feel less lonely, but it was so hard to leave all over again after a couple of days there!

I did my first fashion post in over six months in July, which really helped me feel more confident after gaining a lot of weight in the last year or so. It was nice to feel sassy and pretty again in a little photo shoot in the nature reserve behind our house!

We also started exploring our local area more in July. The Tewkesbury food festival was my absolute favourite outing of the month. We tried lots of local cider, tasty treats and walked away with some homemade fudge to munch on, mmmm. 

Finally, August saw me do my first bit of UK travel in quite a few months. I headed into Camden to spend a day browsing the markets and hitting the Cereal Killer Cafe with my sister for her birthday. It was the best day I had all summer (possibly), and has me totally inspired to travel more of the UK in the coming months! 
Follow me on Bloglovin | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Youtube

Visiting Leamington Spa and Making Cocktails

Moving away from the town that has been my home for the past three years broke my heart a little, I'm not going to lie. I've made some of the best of friends there, worked my absolute butt off, got my first real job, graduated and bought my first ever pet that's really mine in that town. Although I was super glad to move out of my student house, moving to a new town has definitely been tough for me, especially with my mental health. I've moved away from living with one of my closest friends, and living five doors down from another, to being in the middle of nowhere in a town in which my social life is non-existent. 
So, when one of these lovely ladies had her beautiful baby boy a couple of weeks ago I knew I had to go back. Me and my boyfriend needed to sort out the final bits on our student house, which we'll be officially free of after paying our final bills (thank god!), so it was the perfect time to head down for a couple of days. I had the best of time having newborn baby cuddles with the weeniest little two week old bubba and it was so nice to catch up with his mum, a lady that I couldn't miss more now that I live far away!
We then headed over to a different part of Leamington to spend the evening and stay the night with my old housemate. It feels so strange not to live with her anymore - no more facemask and Vampire Diaries binge nights for me *cue crying*! So, we decided to make the night extra special with a little round of cocktail making (of course). Is there anything better than a night in with your girly in your PJs and a cheeky glass of tipple? Nah. She's a little more experienced than me in the cocktail making department, so I handed the responsibility over and designated myself as Number One Cocktail Taster and Photographer. Of course. 
Here's how we made the gorgeous cocktails I snapped above. To start, we bought a cocktail syrup set with simple coloured sugar and a bottle of prosecco. We had mango, raspberry, mandarin and grapefruit flavours and they were heavenly. This set actually came from ALDI, so it was by no means an expensive cocktail making session! Sorting out the sugar rim was the hardest part for sure: we had to pop the sugar on a plate, make the rim of the glass wet and then swirl it in the sugar. We then popped a shot's worth of syrup in each glass, and filled the rest up with prosecco. Finally we slotted a raspberry on the rim of the glass, because, aesthetics y'know? 
These were such fun and easy to cocktails to make and I had a great time visiting a town that opened its arms to me!
Follow me on Bloglovin | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Youtube

What is living with your partner at uni like?

Uni is pretty darn stressful at the best of times, let alone when you have to decide whether or not to live with your partner as a student. For starters you now have to motivate yourself entirely to work, and then you have to cook for yourself and do your own laundry? Ew. Thankfully I was a little prepared in these departments, so I actually got to focus on, y'know, reading an unrealistic amount of literature each week. If you've read my 20 things I won't miss about living in a student house post, then you'll know how stressful I still found the whole shabang!
Me and my boyfriend of almost four years now (whaat?!) started dating early on in our first year, and ended up within the same friendship group. So, it was natural that when we all began house hunting, we were taken as a pair. Our uni was one at which you could only live on campus for the first year, after which you had to move to a (sort of) nearby town and fend for yourself. In the end we were in student housing in Leamington for three years. We both learnt a lot about what it was like to live in such close quarters with a partner, and were also faced with a tonne of prejudice and questions about life together. So, I'm *hopefully* going to dispel some of those prejudices and actually talk about what it was like to live together. 
For starters, we never lived on our own, it was always with other people. This actually took the pressure off quite a bit, rather than making things more intense. If we ever fought, or wanted extra space, then we always had someone else to talk to/spend time with. The obvious downside of that is that student houses have small walls, so if we did argue you can be sure everyone who was in the heard. Yes, this did sometimes put them in a bit of an awkward position, but no, we didn't exploit it - it would have been totally unfair to have requested people to take sides, and so we avoided doing that.
I can't even count anymore how many times I've had people say 'oh my god I would HATE that' in a way that suggests I should too. I didn't. Obviously. There are a few things that were a little hateful yes, but I believe we organised our living arrangements in a way that made sure we totally had our own space, and if worst came to worst, we wouldn't be trampling on each others toes all the time after a break-up.
For starters, we made sure we each had our own room in every house we lived in over the three years. Although we had a 'main' room that we shared at night, we had our own separate spaces that we could chill out in, and decorate however we wished. We also had our own friends, as well as the main friendship group we were part of together. This meant that we could go out separately, and weren't totally reliant on each other socially.
Another aspect of life we decided to keep separate as much as possible was food. I am not a sharer by any means, and anyone who has ever lived with me knows that I will absolutely rage if you touch my food without permission. So, I knew this would totally be a point of argument between us if we shared. We probably came together to cook once a week, and tried to eat meals together on other days, but all in all we bought our food separately and cooked whatever we wanted. 
Cooking and cleaning are things that possibly cause the most arguments within student houses, perhaps apart from money. You don't want to come across every single plate being hoarded and a little mouldy in someone's bedroom, and sadly this kind of this sometimes takes place. I would say that if you are living with others, make sure everyone has their fair share of chores and attempts to keep the place a little tidy so that you and your partner don't end up stressed out at each other about it.
I've also been told repeatedly that we've wasted some of the best years of our lives by being in a relationship at uni in which you live together (read: well you can't shag anyone else or do it behind their back? Why would you bother?). I've even been repeatedly told that the whole thing was a waste of time because we would just break up as soon as uni was over and we weren't students anymore, and that we should therefore break up. Even though (assumedly) these things came from the heart of the people telling me, it really isn't helpful - don't you think someone who has taken the plunge to do this would have thought things through?
I'm so glad I don't have to endlessly justify myself anymore. And do you know what? Even if we had broken up I wouldn't have regretted our time together. Ultimately I always had someone I could turn to in the darkest hours (literally and metaphorically), who would perk me up when I felt low, and who would have my back in an argument - whether it be with friends, professors, estate agents, or random drunks on a night out. So yes, OMG I lived with my boyfriend whilst I was at uni, and no I don't regret it.
If you have any questions about it, or are thinking of living with a partner at uni yourself feel free to drop me a tweet/DM/email!
Follow me on Bloglovin | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Youtube

20 Things I Won't Miss About Living in a Student House

As of three days ago I officially left student housing for good and oh my word I could not be happier. I've spent four years altogether in various types of student accommodation, so this day couldn't come sooner for me. Now that I'm free (y'know free to pay council tax and become a responsible adult), I've made this list of all the things I will never miss about student housing. 
I've gathered a few pictures for you of my new abode as I can finally actually have nice things, and an official blogging and freelance space (wooo!). 
This is by no means a bitter attack on the people I have lived with in the past - I've loved sharing, but now I really feel is a time when I just need to be in a 'real' home. So, here's my top 20 things I won't miss about student living:
 1.) Endless washing up. In an 'every surface is covered and there are no forks left' kind of way.
2.) Stray hairs. Everywhere. In the bathtub, on the shower walls, on the floor, on the sofa, Like how much do we all really shed?!
3.) Having no space that is really 100% mine and off-limits to others.
4.) Waking up to random one-night stands of my housemate's in the morning.
5.) Having to worry about strangers touching, and possibly taking, my stuff.
6.) Being woken up at 3am by crying/angry/vomiting drunk housemates.
7.) Landlords unnecessarily being dicks aka having to live in houses that are just plain unsafe. 
8.) Never trusting anything you touch after predrinks because there's a 90% chance it WILL be sticky.
9.) Always having a tea towel shortage. Where do they even go?!
10.) Finding leftover pizza and housemates sprawled about everywhere all over the house after a night out.
11.) The general unwillingness of everyone (including myself) to replace light bulbs, because dollar.
12.) Because of that, having to spend most of your time in the dark.
13.) Clean glasses basically being a form of currency.
14.) Having really ugly (think: not-bloggable/instagrammable) furniture that was born at least 20 years ago.
15.) Never being able to bring family round because of the state of the place and your semi-nude housemates.
16.) Unwillingly 'sharing' food. I am by no means a sharer, so telling me you've eaten my last freddo but will replace it at some point is only going to spark rage and possibly tears.
17.) Constant bickering/bitchiness.
18.) Having apricot coloured walls with tinges of sick splashes/general dirt/furniture smudges/shoe prints/food/alcohol everywhere.
19.) Uncomfortable beds. With ominous stains from the previous tenant, of course.
20.) Recycle/bin mountain, aka when all housemates reach a stalemate over whose turn it is to take the bin out. This is usually followed by a collapse of the mountain, an end to this cold war, and a need for everyone to group together to clean up the mess.
However, despite all of these minor drawbacks, I'll miss not having to accept adult responsibility in my little student community. 
What would you add to the list?
Follow me on Bloglovin | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Youtube

Back to Basics | Day Five

Yes, there was no Day Four post. I fell off of my detox bandwagon a bit and wanted to secure today's health before writing a blog post. Today was really a day for hitting things hard and boy am I exhausted. Currently fighting the urge to write this in a foetal position under my favourite fleece blanket is a challenge.

I am loving how vibrant my fruit bowls are at the moment. I have a major sweet tooth, so fruit really helps me manage to stay off of the artificial sugars and forms a fairly large part of my diet. I have at least three portions of it in my morning smoothie and will most days have a fruit bowl like the one above.

Finally, I hit the gym for probably the longest time ever today. Let's pray that I don't have to walk anywhere tomorrow. The fact that the only bathrooms in my student house are upstairs is probably going to result in me crawling around pathetically. Anyway, the second picture is a couple of gym essentials for me: my water, shower gel & body spray and spare socks (hey, no one wants to be re-using after a hard workout am I right?!).

Love and Light

Steph

LUSH Haul | Final Year Skincare

BB Seaweed Facemask 

H'Suan Wen Hua Hair Treatment

Angels on Bare Skin Facewash

Eau Roma Water Toner

I've been meaning to put this piece up since, well, New Years (hence the Christmas tree in the background of me and my mum with the facemask). We all know that I'm a bit of a LUSH fan, and when i got given some vouchers for Christmas I couldn't help but have a bit of a skincare splurge. I'm going to review them in a bit more detail at some point, but on the whole I'm really impressed with everything I bought. For once I actually headed in and got the advice of all the LUSH specialists and they gave me some really great ideas, including advising me to buy the Angels on Bare Skin facewash!

As it's final year now, my stress levels are probably at their peak - juggling two part time jobs, two blogs, an exec position on a journal, reading manuscripts for a publishing company and actually doing my degree work/attempting to keep the 4 boys I live with in line means I have hardly any time to breathe, and have to keep my energy levels up. Your skin is something which really shows the world when you're down on nutrition and energy levels - it can get grey, you start getting more spots and you lose any sense of it being toned. This is why these LUSH products have saved me over the past few months - using the BB Seaweed facemask once a week and Angels on Bare Skin + toner at least every other day means that my skin hasn't lost all of its vivacity.

What are your skincare secrets during busy/stressful times?

Love and Light,

Steph 

**All photos are property of Sophie Hartley**

Winter Favourites

So, this post is a bit overdue, but hey, it's still winter, and these are still my favourites, despite any new bits and bobs I got for Christmas. 

A friend recommended cranberry green tea to me at the beginning of the Autumn uni term, and since then I've been hooked. This and my Carmex lip balm have seen me through about three bouts of colds/coughs and a myriad of uni stress over the last couple of months. 

Over the past month or two my hair has gotten super long, almost to an "I-don't-know-how-to-cope-with-the-amount-of-time-it-takes-to-wash" length. V05's Revive Me Daily shampoo has been a godsend. Keeps away the split ends and has ensured my hair hasn't gotten too dry during the windswept days of standing waiting for the unibus.

Finally, my Yankee candle. I always have this on whilst I'm doing a spot of reading for a seminar, or writing a blog post. It's really made my rather sparse uni room feel a bit more like home. Plus, any Yankee candle is a win, right? I'm going sales shopping in London tomorrow and am so excited to grab a new scent at the Yankee candle store. Any suggestions?

Love and Light

Steph

**All photos are property of Sophie Hartley**

Dealing with Final Year at University

So I thought I'd do a little bit of a different post today as I'm thinking of making the blog a little more personal! These pictures effectively sum up my first term as a final year English lit student at the University of Warwick. Having had a bit of a rocky first two years in terms of grades and overall happiness, I'm determined to make the most of this year. So, I joined the gym, have actually done nearly all of my prescribed reading (utter madness) and attended more social events than I ever have before in a term. 

As it's my last chance really to do a lot of things, I've been cramming in as much as possible. And if my sleep pattern is skewed, who cares! It's going to be an incredibly hectic time of my life and as long as every moment isn't crammed to the max, then I shouldn't get burned out. 

So, I achieved some pretty awesome goals, and had so many great experiences. The first of which, really, was celebrating being two years with my lovely boyfriend. But, aside from that, my achievements have largely been academia and work based. I secured two part time jobs at uni - the first of which was being a Fresher's Helper. If you get the chance to do this I would highly recommend it! It was so lovely telling all the little freshers and their parents information about the uni and making sure that the freshers fairs and society fairs were memorable and efficient. I'm now a Student Ambassador (again, something I would highly recommend),which means I'll get to do the same to prospective students and their parents on open days. I'm also the proud sub-editor of the Warwick Uncanny Journal, which you can check out here. Foolishly, I didn't really join any societies as a first year or second year, so haven't had much of a chance to be in an exec or really be socially involved in many clubs. Although it hasn't added to my social life, being part of this team actually makes me feel as though I'm making use of the opportunities we have at Warwick.

My final advice for final year would be to work hard and party hard. Don't hold back, because soon you'll be out in the "real" world, and everything will seem a lot harder to cram in!

Love and Light

Steph