Making the most of your student experience and getting rewarded for it
Your first few months at university can be very overwhelming – there’s so much information given to you about life at Kent. You received the welcoming letters through the post, you walked into your campus room and there were leaflets promoting events, you received e-mails from your college, and no doubt, you joined Facebook Kent fresher’s pages and got loads of notifications about what’s on!
Now it’s term two, it all becomes a bit more manageable: your course details and timetables are becoming second nature and you have a bit of breathing space to take a look at what’s going on around you – and it’s a lot! Studying at university is so much more than just receiving a degree; it’s a time to learn new and fun things beyond your course, get engaged with your interests and hobbies, or even find new ones! And you will find that you naturally try loads of new things because there’s so much on offer here at Kent!
At Fresher’s Fair you probably signed-up to a lot of societies – maybe too many! It’s a great opportunity to dip your toe in the water and tryout something you’ve never done before – like swing dancing or stand-up comedy! And with Refresher’s Fair, you had the chance to do it all over again!
The University of Kent makes it really easy for anyone that wants to try new things during their time here. You might find your school is hosting a guest speaker or holding a networking event. You might be tempted to apply for a job at Jobshop whilst walking across the Plaza. Study Plus offers courses on anything from stone carving to business workshops. For those who like to volunteer, there’s an abundance of charitable societies (that have no joining fee!), and any volunteering hours you do can go towards your Kent Student Certificate of Volunteering (KSCV). Let’s not forget all the sports teams you can join just for fun or try out to be officially part of team Kent!
Not only does Kent offer a vast array of brilliant co-curricular activities to get your teeth into – it also rewards you for it! You can be recognised for doing all these things via the Employability Points Scheme, and earn rewards in the form of paid internships, work experience, training and more.
The EP Scheme works by giving you points for the activities you do outside of your degree and helps you get work experience in your chosen profession. In 2017-18, over 8,300 students participated and there were over 800 rewards with local, national and international employers up for grabs.
You can start gaining your points now by logging your activities on your MyFolio university profile, on the EP dashboard. If you have been at university for a couple of years it is not too late to start now – you can add any activities you have done since your first day at Kent.
Rewards are being added all the time! This year, EP has already lined up internships in sales and management with Enterprise Rent-A-Car,working in the Sustainable Business and Communities team at Kent County Council and digital marketing placements with Reflect Digital – and that’s just a snapshot! See the full list (continuously being updated) by visiting: www.kent.ac.uk/employabilitypoints/
Your time at the University of Kent will be full of opportunities for you to get involved with lots of things that will be valuable to you for the rest of your life! So do not underestimate any activities you take part in while you are here –make sure you get rewarded for your engagement and have an awesome time!
