Student Loop Blog

Student Life – Managing stress at University

Posted on January 14, 2014 Updated on January 11, 2014

If you’re reading this blog and you’re feeling stressed, I can definitely relate to you. Exams, deadlines, presentations…they all stress me out on top part time jobs, internships, running a business and generally making ends meet! Who said being a student wasn’t tough? Liars.

Here is a list of things that were helpful to me whilst stressing about deadlines.

1. Talk to your classmates
They are all in the same boat as you are and probably have the same burning questions that you need answered. Set up a group on Student Loop to communicate with everyone on your course to ask questions about the assignment and let them help you!

2. Eat healthily and cook from scratch
Eating badly makes your body feel like crap and it doesn’t help your mood either. If you haven’t eaten fresh fruit in a while, your body will thank you for it! Besides, it’s cheaper cooking from scratch and you’ll feel so much better for it. Sometimes it’s good to take a break from whatever you’re doing and move your mind to something else.

3. Beat procrastination by planning your work
I tried to do this as strategically as possible to ensure that I had set aside enough time to deliver my project before the deadline. For instance, I would estimate that on a bad day, I could write up to 500 words if I worked solidly for 2 hours. So for a 1500 word essay, I would set aside 3 full days in order to complete the work. I would make sure that I hit 500 words each day and if I finished early, it was a bonus and I had an extra day to go out and do whatever I pleased!

4. Listen to Music and focus
I find it easiest to work when I block out the outside world by plugging into my playlists. Pick something that won’t distract you whilst working – I find this rather difficult sometimes because music is just too stimulating for me. It does help you relax though and will put you in a better mood.

5. SLEEP IS IMPORTANT
Sleep affects the quality of your work, stress levels and mood. Try to get at least 8 hours of shut eye every night.

6. Get up an hour earlier than you normally do
You’ll find that you just have more time to do things. Even if you have nothing to do that day, try getting up at 10am instead of noon. The more time you have to do things, the less stressed out you’ll be!

7. Take a break when you have achieved an objective – not every 5 minutes
Personally, I find it really hard to break away from something when I’m on a roll. For me, I’m less stressed out when I work solidly for a whole day and achieve more than I planned to. Of course, you should break to eat and stuff but for me, if it’s a study day, it’s a study day. If it isn’t, then I’m far FAR away from my house. As far away from the work as possible.

A stress free Uni life is something that we all strive to achieve but it’s not going to be smooth sailing. When it comes to really buckling down for that Final Major Project or Dissertation submission in a few more months, just remember that everyone around you is in the same boat. You are not alone!

For help on Assignments, why not ask the Student Loop community? Join and see what all the fuss is about. Student Loop is open to students at the University of West London at the moment. Click here for Student Loop Official

This entry was posted in Blog and tagged coping with stress, exam stress, student life, Student Loop, student social network, student stress, students, university of west london, university stress, university students, UWL Freshers fair, UWL student union.

First post of the year – And we’re back!

Posted on January 11, 2014

With our final Christmas deadlines over, it’s back to work for the Student Loop team. Look forward to more updates coming soon by the end of the month and hopefully a proper launch and perhaps even a competition for you lovely lot!

We are hoping to team up with some student recruitment agencies to try and get the ball rolling on internships for you folks.

We thank you for your patience and support whilst we make the transition from BETA to the full launch of the finished product.

This entry was posted in Uncategorized.

Musicians! Learn how to promote yourself or get help!

Posted on October 17, 2013

As a Music Management student, every time I go to a gig or a live show, I have this horrible habit of analysing every detail of the event. From the lighting to the sound to the band itself. Not many people appreciate how much time and effort goes into making an Artist successful and even if you do try your very very best, you still might not make it. However, with a well thought out strategy from the beginning, as long as the music is good (though it doesn’t necessarily have to be I suppose…), you’ll have a fighting chance to get heard through the sea of other musicians trying to do exactly the same thing.

Getting a manager for your act or band is the most traditional way of working. The earlier you get the right Manager the better. Many bands make the mistake of writing all their songs, recording all their material before they find someone that can help push them to the next level but of course it depends on the type of Manager you are after. Personally, I like working with a blank canvas. As a Manager, I like to be involved in the creative process too and my song writing background allows me to do that. However, many great Managers can’t play an instrument to save their life but maybe they will have a legal or business background which will help in planning the future of your act.

The most important thing to remember as a band is that YOU CAN’T DO IT ALL BY YOURSELF. Building a great team around you is essential to producing a band worthy of succeeding. This includes getting a good booking agent, lawyer and accountant (when you eventually start making money).

At the end of the day, the Music Business is a notoriously hard industry to break into. If you’re not in, then you are definitely out and nobody wants to let you in. If a Manager believes in your band enough to take you on, then that’s at least one person on your side that has the knowledge and experience that Musicians just don’t have time to sit and learn. You make the music – we take care of business.

SO, while you’re at University, why not team up with some of our Music Management students? I can personally vouch for every single one of them – wonderful people and you’ll be glad you met them now instead of later.

I’m also looking for bands to manage and work with. Contact me on Student Loop: @JayShin

This entry was posted in Blog and tagged bands, business students, entrepreneur, music, Music Industry, Music management, musicians, social network for students, social networking, Student Loop, student social network, student-loop.com, students, The student loop, university of west london, university students, UWL student union.

Being an owner of a business will look so much better on your CV!

Posted on October 7, 2013

The title speaks for itself really. Starting a business while you have the time and are being trained in your chosen field is the perfect time to get started.

Besides, how much better does “Jay Shin, CEO and Co-founder of Student Loop” sound than “Jay Shin, worked in catering part time, worked in retail part time…etc.etc”? It shows you have initiative and a drive to do something for yourself; a quality that many employers will be looking for.

Businesses don’t really cost a lot to start (obviously, this depends on what sort of business) and they it doesn’t necessarily need to take up all your time. Why not build up your own CV whilst doing something that you’re actually passionate about?

Solo projects, group projects; they all count. Why not try and put together a gig promotions company? What about a film production company and try and make something incredible that will look amazing in your portfolio?

It’s always good to reach out to your community and find people that can help you or at least give you some advice about starting up. Student Loop can help there! Join here: http://www.student-loop.com/. Remember to sign up with your Uni e-mail address! It should look like this [studentnumber]@student.uwl.ac.uk

This entry was posted in Blog and tagged business students, entrepreneur, social network for students, start a business, starting a business, Student Loop, student social network, student-loop.com, The student loop, university of west london, UWL student union.

TECHNICAL UPDATE – Chat feature now implemented! You can chat with your friends!

Posted on September 23, 2013

We are currently in BETA stage still and are trying to build up our member base to get some feedback on our features. It’s completely free and is open to UWL students only at the moment! We are looking at opening new networks for other Universities as soon as we have the support and funding to do so but please do contact us if this is something that you would be interested in for your education establishment.

We have JUST implemented the chat feature which allows you to import your Facebook and Google+ contacts so you don’t need to keep switching tabs while speaking to your Student Loop friends! We’ll post some more technical updates very soon.

Meanwhile you can visit us here: http://www.student-loop.com/
Remember to sign up with your Uni e-mail address! It should look like this [studentnumber]@student.uwl.ac.uk

This entry was posted in Technical Updates and tagged social network for students, social networking, Student Loop, student social network, student-loop.com, students west london, technical update, university of west london, university students, UWL student union.

Why you should start a business when you’re at University – The birth of Student Loop

Posted on September 20, 2013

Honestly, for me being an entrepreneur was something I fell into. I had spent all my teenage years too busy believing that I would be a rockstar one day.

After realising that I wasn’t going to be even nearly as successful as Blondie, Madonna or [insert famous singer’s name here], after I finished my college course in Music Performance, I decided to do something more sensible and take a Music Management degree at the University of West London to try and put my super organisational skills to some use. I met all my current colleagues on the same course and I’m never looking back.

The good thing about University is that you meet so many new people all at once. It’s a really good time to reinvent yourself, have fun but also to think seriously about what you’re going to be doing once you graduate as well.

Many people say that they had a wicked time at University but you only have to read the paper to know that the job market just isn’t ok at the moment. It’s not that the students can’t be bothered to find jobs, it’s just that there are more and more qualified people graduating from Universities each year and physically, not enough space for everyone.

So I thought, why not start something right now while I’m still receiving Student Loans and have a bit of spare time on my hands! I can use students that are in the same position as me because they’re receiving funding too! I can start a project, in my own time without the added pressure of having to be responsible for my own and someone else’s rent because they’re still being supported by the government while they’re studying! And I don’t need to answer to a boss!

Not only that, but I figured if I utilised other students at my University, once we graduate, we’ll all be qualified anyway and our business / company / band / social enterprise might already be established to a point where we won’t need to look for jobs elsewhere.

Student Loop still has a very long way to go but myself and my colleagues are very determined individuals and I feel very optimistic about the business because everyone has been so so positive about our concept. Even though it feels like slow progress, I am amazed we put this much together over the summer and am so proud of our little business!

I very much believe that opportunities can be created which is how the idea for Student Loop came about. If I can do it, all of you can do it too if you find the right people!

You can visit us here at http://www.student-loop.com

This entry was posted in Blog and tagged business students, entrepreneur, social network for students, social networking, start a business, starting a business, Student Loop, student social network, students, students west london, The student loop, Universities, university of west london, university students, UWL student union.

www.student-loop.com is now Officially online! We finally made it!

Posted on September 18, 2013 Updated on September 18, 2013

After months of hard work and jumping through all these hoops we finally made it to launch day!

You can visit us here: http://www.student-loop.com

On the 17th September 2013 Student Loop launched at the University of West London Fresher’s Fair! They have loads of amazing events on this week. You should definitely check it out, especially if you’re new to the city! We’re hope you’re all having loads of fun!

Owlin' at UWL Fresher's — Owlin’ at UWL Fresher’s

We’re really excited for what this new year will bring. It’s our first business and we’re holding our breath! We’ve never done anything like this before.

It’s still in BETA so it’s definitely not as finished as we’d like it to be. We’d welcome any feedback, of course. It’s really important to us that we bring you a product that you actually want!

For those of you who couldn’t make it to the Fresher’s Fair:
Student Loop is a social network created for students, by students.

As a Music Management students going into our 3rd year, many of our more recent assignments have required people from multiple disciplines to collaboratively work on a project. Finding the right people however proved very difficult though we probably studied in the same classrooms and passed each other in the corridor. We wanted to create a space just for University students to discover each other in a safe environment which is not open to the public. Everyone who is a member of Student Loop belong to your community; your University.

You chose to study here right? Or maybe you didn’t. But we’re sure you’ll meet some really good buddies through Student Loop. Discover new friends and connect over common interests by typing in a “skill”. This can be anything from “Management theory” to “Rock climbing”.

You can use the SHOUT-OUTS to put up a classifieds ad. And search for interesting projects too! Ask questions and get answers from the community.

Message users and add them to your favourite to chat with them. Add your friends from Facebook and Google+ to your Student Loop chat window – no more switching tabs!

Join or create your own group! It’s a personalised workspace with it’s own members wall, calendar and file sharing system. Perfect for fledgling businesses, assignment collaborations or societies!

This entry was posted in News, Technical Updates and tagged Freshers Fair 2013, social network for students, social networking, Student Loop, student social network, students, students west london, The student loop, university of west london, university students, UWL Freshers fair, UWL student union.