Student’s Guide to the London Lifestyle: Balancing Academics and Exploration

I haven’t spoken about this much, just shared a cheeky peek on Instagram Stories here and there, but I’m a year into reading* a degree in Digital Marketing. As a (literal) card-carrying student, I wanted to share my version of a student’s guide to the London lifestyle.

My cat boss literally cracking the books…

Digital Marketing is a field I’ve been working as a freelancer in for the last 7 years as a social media specialist and I am absolutely loving the challenge of being back in Higher Education, filling in those theory gaps that my on-the-job practical experience has missed. (Sometimes this is as simple as finding the correct vocab and I’m really enjoying exploring the deep psychology of sales & marketing.)

As well as learning so much, it’s fascinating seeing where theory and practical experience do not mesh, but that’s a chat for another time…

This is despite juggling a full-time job and other life responsibilities at the same time. No rest for the wicked, they say! That’s student London life in a nutshell, though—it’s a fast-paced city with many opportunities.

Places to Study

Now, you know how much I love taking my laptop on the road, and I’ve got working/studying places tucked all over London. There has to be that magic combination of a) good coffee, b) vibe-y but not noisy atmosphere c) a place that I’m not stopping them from turning tables c) the correct height of said table and d) where possible charging facilities.

I’ve put together a list of my favourite places around London—it’s got so many of my favourite places, and heaps of them offer student discounts, like Black Sheep, which offers 20% via their app (at the time of publishing this post).

Time Management Strategies

One of my biggest challenges is time management. I mean who doesn’t struggle with that? I’ve found

breaking down learning plans & assignments into manageable chunks
setting regular calendar reminders to keep me on track
studying a degree that has real-life applications (and client examples) which means that I’m technically studying and working at the same time sometimes

…have all helped majorly.

I’m surprised to learn that you can pay for essay writing by WritePaperForMe it’s incredible what services exist these days.

Keeping on track

This has been so important, especially with so many things going on in life. The biggest help for this is having a Whatsapp group with fellow students—to celebrate and commiserate and also keep me honest and on track.

We have official university channels, but it’s lovely to have a place where we can talk absolute rubbish – and help each other when we get stuck. This has been especially important as we’re distance learning – having a support network is so helpful.

Unique London Experiences

All work and no play makes Jill** a dull, sad, mopey Kiwi. As a reward for meeting these tiny goals, I often treat myself to fun things in London. There’s a reason that London is one of the key global student travel destinations—I have so many expat friends who were drawn to study there and never actually left.

Living in London you have amazing history around so many corners, gorgeous pubs tucked into atmospheric alleyways, majestic cathedrals, realising that Buckingham Palace and Tower Bridge pop up on your commuter routes, gorgeously leafy parks filled with blossoms and deer (I’m looking at you Richmond Park.) There are so many things to do in London – and many of them have student discounts!

Where to celebrate submitting assignments

I have a list of places in my Notes app on my phone; both favourite dishes and locations I still want to try (especially as an avid OffMenu podcast listener). Over the years I’ve been lucky enough to review many of these – the only problem is that both of the lists keep growing, a delicious problem!