Make the most of summer!

Summer jobs offer a useful experience. The good thing about the summer holidays is that you are free all day, as opposed to term time when you can only do restricted hours to fit in with your studies. You can look for better quality jobs and even a chance to work in areas you might aim for after you qualify. If you change jobs or work the next summer too, try to develop any skill you've gained a bit further and collect evidence of how you've achieved this - it's just what you'll need when you put together or update your CV.

Some businesses take on students for several months during the summer, particularly as this is the time that their permanent employees want to take holidays, so they need to ensure there is cover. It's a great chance to pick up real business skills and find out whether or not your career ideas would work out.

You could also look to combine work with international travel. Many companies/volunteer agencies offer packages for the summer holidays. You can see different countries but also learn some important skills at the same time.

Summer Jobs 4 Students is an online directory of UK summer employment opportunities for young people attending colleges & universities. It offers details of temporary jobs throughout the UK in all kinds of areas of employment for students including tourism, leisure, hospitality, childcare, retail, agricultural & office jobs.

Remember to plan ahead and make the most of your time as you will never have such a flexible chunk of time again until you retire!