Sponsored by Indeed Flex

When you’re at university, a job can be the difference between surviving and thriving. But it can be hard to fit a part-time job around your university timetable and social schedule. If you’re finding that to be the case, then check out these easy ways to find a part-time job! We’ve got all the information on balancing work with university life, plus advice on how to use apps like Indeed Flex to get the best part-time jobs out there.

1. Where to find a part-time job

Indeed Flex
Source: Indeed Flex

Staffing Platforms

One of the easiest ways to find a part-time job is through staffing platforms like Indeed Flex. You may think that staffing platforms are only for ‘proper’ full-time jobs, but Indeed’s new service gives you the option to fill in all of your details and then let them do the hard part for you! Indeed Flex is ideal for students as it allows you to pick and choose shifts around your own schedule. So, if you’ve got assignments, you can opt to work less, or if you’ve got a reading week, you can up your hours.

All you have to do is provide your right to work details and attend an interview (virtually), and then the app or website can be used to find shifts in varying industries as and when you can work! It’s the most flexible way to work and is super easy. You can fill in your work preferences, skills, and a bio, and then from that, the agency helps you find suitable work. Once your account is all set up, you get to enjoy benefits like weekly pay, competitive pay rates, a community of flexible workers, complete freedom and flexibility, and the chance to earn great transferable skills!

Social media jobs

Keep your eye out on social media for jobs, as a lot of companies (notably smaller, more independent businesses) will advertise their roles on social media, especially on Linkedin. You may see them before everyone else and can shoot your shot quickly. Facebook has even set up a jobs section, so make sure you check that out.

There are also Instagram pages and Facebook groups dedicated to advertising jobs, so do a little search and see what you can find. Often, you’ll be able to find something remote, which is ideal for student schedules!

Indeed Flex Jobs

Your network

You may not think you have a network, but we promise that you have more of one than you think. Your friends at university might have jobs in places that are hiring and can give you a recommendation. Even posting a status on social media might encourage friends to reach out to you if they know of a job opening. You’ll never know if you don’t ask.

Direct on companies websites

It sounds obvious, but companies tend to post their jobs on their websites before advertising them elsewhere. So if you want to beat the queue, check out the companies websites! You’ve probably got somewhere in your mind that you’d like to work, whether it’s because you’ve heard good things, or because you know Greggs do a 50% staff discount. Either way, it’s worth checking directly on their website and maybe even signing up for job alerts.

2. Advantages of getting a part-time job

Indeed Flex
Source: Indeed Flex

Meet new people

University is one of the best places to meet new people, but so is the workplace! Getting a new part-time job in your student city is one guaranteed way to make more student friends. You’ll likely be working with other people your age, and work is an easy place to bond with people!

Financial help

There is, of course, the stereotype that students have no money. This doesn’t come from nowhere! Most students need a job at some point during their studies, whether it’s to top up their spending money or to cover their rent. Getting a part-time, flexible job through services like Indeed Flex gives you the chance to earn the money you need to have the best university experience.

Indeed Flex Jobs

Experience for your CV

While university itself is a great thing to put on your CV, working part-time alongside it shows dedication, timekeeping, organisation and motivation. These are all key things that graduate employers will look for. It also helps if you can find part-time work that’s at least a little bit related to the field you think you’d like to work in after university. So If you’re a biochem student, maybe see if there are any pharmacy jobs, for example!

3. The best part-time jobs for students

Indeed Flex
Source: Indeed Flex

If you’re not sure what kind of jobs you want to apply for whilst at university, some of the best part-time jobs for students include:

Bar work

Working in pubs and nightclubs can be challenging, but it can also be really good fun. It fits around your university schedule (unless you’ve got night time lectures!) and teaches you a whole range of transferrable skills, like excellent customer service, working under pressure and maintaining high standards.

You can find jobs in this sector on Indeed Flex. They have a range of opportunities for people looking for part-time, temporary work that fits their schedule. You can set your shifts to fit you and earn £11.21 an hour, which you’ll get paid weekly!

Indeed Flex Jobs

Retail work

Retail is where most students get work whilst they’re at university. It gives you the chance to work somewhere with people your age, and usually score a cheeky discount whilst doing it! Plus, you learn great skills like stock taking, patience, management and team building, and of course, customer service.

Staffing platforms like Indeed Flex have a range of retail jobs available, which you can schedule around your commitments, paying anywhere from £10 to £17 per hour each week!

You could also look for work in care homes, cafes and restaurants, all of which offer the same kind of transferrable skills that will help benefit you in the future. Check out Indeed Flex’s job search by downloading the app today and see what’s available near you. Next thing you know, you’ll be earning great wages every week!

4. Our tips for getting a part-time job 

tips for getting a part-time job 

Look for a part-time job in advance

As we’ve said before, if you know you want a job at university, it’s worth checking out what’s available before moving. Most people won’t think about this, so there will likely be less competition for jobs during this period. This means hopefully you’re more likely to score a job than a month or so into university when everyone panics about their dwindling finances!

However, this tip is also helpful for later in the year. If you know that you’re going to be broke in a couple of weeks, the last thing you want to do is wait until then to find a part-time job. As soon as you realise that you can’t afford the weekly Rugby socials, or that your acrylics are going to have to last you 2 months rather than 1, start looking for a part-time job in advance! A lot of jobs pay in arrears, which could really mess with your finances if you’re living paycheck to paycheck. So avoid it by starting to search ASAP!

Make your CV stand out

University cities are, unsurprisingly, full of students. That means there’s a lot of competition when it comes to job hunting, so you need to do everything you can to beat the rest of them! So, when it comes to writing your CV, you need to make yours stand out.

This can be done in a range of ways, whether it’s adding some colour to your CV to make it more visually appealing, or highlighting only the relevant points. For example, if you’re applying to ALDI, maybe consider that your fashion blog isn’t entirely related. However, the skills that have come from it like time management, organisation and self-motivation are completely relevant. These can go in your ‘about me’ section without you needing to list the blog as a piece of experience.

This can also mean thinking more about what skills your experience has given you and how you word that. For example, did you clean the bar and serve customers, or did you maintain a high level of hygiene whilst multitasking and providing a high level of customer service?

Indeed Flex Jobs

Go above and beyond

Put 110% into all of your applications. Don’t just send a CV and hope for the best. Instead, send in a cover letter or take your CV to the shop in person (where the place of work allows that!), and do everything you can to make it easy for them. If they offer you an interview or a trial shift and you’ve got plans, for example, try to jig around your social schedule to make sure you can say yes. Obviously, if that means skipping a lecture or a dentist appointment, then maybe that’s a little different, but you can definitely cancel brunch.

Put your social media accounts on private

This might sound a bit weird; after all, why would Tesco care about what you’re posting on Instagram? But many companies check potential employees’ social media to see what sort of things they post. If you regularly post about your nights out or about how you’re running late again, then that’s not going to sway them in your favour. So, for the short period that you’re applying for a new job, just pop yourself on private. Better safe than sorry, right? And as much as your #OOTD’s rock your followers’ worlds, we’re not sure how much a new boss would love your ACAB shirt!