{"id":247,"date":"2017-10-17T12:02:22","date_gmt":"2017-10-17T11:02:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/employabilitypoints\/?p=247"},"modified":"2018-08-29T16:16:08","modified_gmt":"2018-08-29T15:16:08","slug":"is-there-really-anything-to-do-in-medway-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/employabilitypoints\/2017\/10\/17\/is-there-really-anything-to-do-in-medway-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Is there really anything to do in Medway?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Relative<\/strong>:\u00a0Oh James, you\u2019ve grown up so much \u2013 what are you doing with yourself?<\/em><\/p>\n

Me<\/strong>:\u00a0Haha thanks.\u00a0 I\u2019m a University of Kent student, studying Business.<\/em><\/p>\n

Relative<\/strong>:\u00a0Wonderful! Canterbury is a lovely part of the country.<\/em><\/p>\n

Me:\u00a0<\/strong>I\u2019m sure it is, but I actually study in Medway.<\/em><\/p>\n

Relative:<\/strong>\u00a0Oh. [accompanied by noticeably less enthusiastic facial expression]<\/em><\/p>\n

Sound familiar?<\/p>\n

I\u2019m James, a final year Business and Management student based at the Chatham Historic Dockyard in Medway.\u00a0 Some may say I\u2019ve drawn the short straw compared to my Canterbury-based counterparts, but I\u2019ve been here now for three years and have grown to appreciate the unique academic environment it facilitates.<\/p>\n

An enjoyable student experience is influenced by so much more than classroom learning and theory, and there are many opportunities to get involved in much more around the Pembroke and Dockyard campuses in Medway, as this article shall describe.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m also assisting the Employability Points Scheme this year \u2013 a University of Kent\u00a0initiative\u00a0that rewards students for engaging in co-curricular activity with work experience such as internships, shadowing or training.\u00a0 All of the forthcoming suggestions are perfect for accumulating points (EPs) and making the most of your time as a student.<\/p>\n

Join a Society or Sports Team (5-30 points)<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

Whatever your course, stage or personality, there is a diverse range of student groups for you to join.\u00a0 Whether your interest is in business, music, amateur dramatics, gaming, sports or you\u2019d like to meet new people from the same culture, don\u2019t be afraid to get involved.<\/p>\n

A full list of Medway societies is online:\u00a0https:\/\/www.gkunions.co.uk\/activities\/societies\/<\/a><\/p>\n

And, sports teams:\u00a0https:\/\/www.gkunions.co.uk\/activities\/clubs\/<\/a><\/p>\n

It\u2019s not too late to join at this point in term.\u00a0 Most groups have their own social media pages so just get in touch.\u00a0 There\u2019s also Refreshers Fair at the Student Hub in February for you to meet the committees and find out more information about each society and team.<\/p>\n

Become a Student Ambassador (30 points) or Peer Mentor (45 points)<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

If you\u2019re looking for a fulfilling role that is flexible around your studies, then why not apply to be an Ambassador?\u00a0 The University of Kent is always looking for enthusiastic students to help at Open Days or take prospective students on a tour of the campus.\u00a0 This is also a paid position that will look great on your CV.<\/p>\n

For more information, visit\u00a0https:\/\/www.kent.ac.uk\/ambassadors\/<\/a><\/p>\n

Many Medway schools also run their own Ambassador schemes, or recruit students as peer mentors to help younger students settle in to university life.\u00a0 If this something you\u2019d be interested in, contact your Academic Advisor or school\u2019s Student Support Officer.<\/p>\n

Additionally, if you\u2019re having trouble finding part-time work, why not get some advice from the Careers and Employability Service (medwaycareers@kent.ac.uk<\/a>) or sign up as a temp worker with Kent Union Jobshop (jobshop@kent.ac.uk<\/a>) to get weekly job opportunities.<\/p>\n

<\/u>Volunteering (20-40 points)<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong>If you\u2019re looking for an opportunity to meet new people and give something back to the community in which you study, volunteering is perfect for you.\u00a0 There are lots of opportunities throughout the year with various projects such as making gifts for sick children, bucket collections in Asda or helping Freshers move into their accommodation. Even if you have just half an hour free, get involved!<\/p>\n

You can log all of your volunteering via a toolkit on the GK Unions website, and work towards your Bronze, Silver, Gold, Gold Plus and Platinum awards.\u00a0 For more information, ask for David at the Student Hub reception desk.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s also a volunteering society called Raise and Give (RAG).\u00a0 If you have any fundraising ideas or would like to suggest a worthy cause, search for RAG Medway on social media.<\/p>\n

Another option is to become a student rep for your course, school or faculty.\u00a0 This is an important position of responsibility as a representative for your student peers.\u00a0 Some positions are still vacant, so contact your school if you\u2019d like to put your name forward.<\/p>\n

In the meantime, you can have your voice heard through Digital Rep. Follow the link below:\u00a0https:\/\/mrgsurvey.bournemouth.ac.uk\/surveys\/s.asp?k=150609016215<\/a><\/p>\n

Learn a New language or Skill (5-60 points)<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

As a University of Kent student, you\u2019ve got access to a huge range of additional courses running in Medway so don\u2019t think of your education as being confined solely to your degree subject.\u00a0 Most take place in the evening and consist of one class per week, so it\u2019s not much of an extra commitment and shouldn\u2019t interfere with your studies.<\/p>\n

For a full list of courses, visit\u00a0https:\/\/www.kent.ac.uk\/studyplus\/courses\/index.html<\/a>\u00a0and sign up via your SDS page.<\/p>\n

You should also keep an eye open for skills workshops or networking events being run by either your school or the University.\u00a0 Pilkington Building and the Dockyard Church occasionally host presentations or debates on topical news issues, and all such events can be a great talking point at future job interviews.<\/p>\n

All of the activities discussed in this article can be logged via MyFolio through the Employability Points website.\u00a0 You can also read about previous students\u2019 internship experiences and the growing list of opportunities available for this 2017\/18 academic year.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.kent.ac.uk\/employabilitypoints\/<\/a><\/p>\n

Medway will never be the same as Canterbury, and nor should it try to be.\u00a0 It offers more than enough opportunities to get involved with co-curricular activity if you know where to look, so there\u2019s no excuse not to make the most of your time here.<\/p>\n

Best of luck!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Relative:\u00a0Oh James, you\u2019ve grown up so much \u2013 what are you doing with yourself? Me:\u00a0Haha thanks.\u00a0 I\u2019m a University of Kent student, studying Business. Relative:\u00a0Wonderful! … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":44118,"featured_media":233,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[205104,167693],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/employabilitypoints\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/247"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/employabilitypoints\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/employabilitypoints\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/employabilitypoints\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/44118"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/employabilitypoints\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=247"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/employabilitypoints\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/247\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":248,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/employabilitypoints\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/247\/revisions\/248"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/employabilitypoints\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/233"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/employabilitypoints\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=247"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/employabilitypoints\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=247"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/employabilitypoints\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=247"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}