Scroll to view the complete collection of our student blog posts. You’ll find posts on a range of topics, from school yearbook advice to the latest Carpe Diem opportunities. Enjoy! You’ll find all of our latest blog posts here.

Yearbook Process in 5 Easy Steps

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Here at Boomerang, we like to think we know a thing or two about the  yearbook process. So we’re going to share a few of our secrets with you while you’re in that proactive, ‘back to school’ frame of mind. There are all sorts of things to consider when it comes to making a successful yearbook and they’ve been condensed into this handy list for you:

1. Form a yearbook committee

avengers

This is probably the most important part of the process and not enough students do it. Once you’ve cleared everything with your teacher, find out which students are interested in helping to produce the yearbook and get together after school or in a lunchtime. Committees are great because you can divide up the tasks & roles meaning that everything gets done quicker and more efficiently.

You can have as many people as you like on the committee but we would suggest keeping the numbers to a max. of 10 just to stop things from getting confused. Others may want to chip in but it’s good idea to have a core group to keep everything organised.

2. Decide on content

gatsby

So now you know who’s going to be organising the yearbook, you have some decisions to make. This part can get slightly tricky as people will have different ideas on what needs to be included. In your first meeting, try and put as many ideas down on paper and then discuss. It can help to come up with say, 3 or 4 things that you definitely want to be in there e.g. student profiles, teacher awards, memorable events, etc. and then go from there. The main thing is that you include the school memories that you want to remember in years to come.

3. Choose a yearbook provider (carefully)

yearbook   Yearbook-Sample-Pages8

Finding the right company is vital and it’s important that you don’t just choose the first and cheapest site that you come across. You need to make sure that your provider has all the tools to make your student yearbook a success.

Things to look out for include: help and guidance throughout the process, sample yearbook packs, an easy design/editing process and of course affordability & quality.

4. Don’t forget deadlines & proofing

one does not simply

Pretty self-explanatory. Make sure you’re clear on all the deadlines – note them down somewhere so you don’t forget! Proofing is key too, Boomerang will proofread each page but doing your best to eliminate mistakes beforehand will make the process much speedier.

5. Spread the word!

high 5

There’s no point putting in the hard yards to create the perfect yearbook if no one knows about it. Make sure you publicise it so that everyone who wants to, has plenty of time to contribute to and purchase one.

Best of luck!

Boom Ed Team x

Back to School: How to Stay Organised this Year

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With the start of term fast approaching, it’s so important that you stay organised if you want to minimise/manage your stress levels. Feeling stressed just thinking about it? Fear not! Here’s our guide to keeping on top of everything this year:

Write it down

write it down

As much as we like to think we can remember the important stuff, this just isn’t practical. We have so much going on in our

lives that trying to remember it all puts unnecessary strain on our brains and there’s nothing worse than getting a low grade because you’ve forgotten a homework deadline.

Write down everything you need to do for the day. If you’re super-organised, you’ll make a start on this the night before. You can then add to this list throughout the day, remembering to record the due date for homework tasks.

When we say write down everything, we do mean everything, including extra-curricular activities. Even if you know you won’t forget that you have tennis club after school on a Tuesday, it’s still worth recording this so that you can plan your homework around it. You won’t have as much time to work on days when you have after-school activities so by writing it all down, you’ll be able to see which days are best for you to complete certain tasks.

Prioritise

prioritise

http://www.corporategeek.info

So you’ve written down all your tasks for the day. Chances are, they’ll be in no particular order because you’ve written them down as you’ve gone along. We can’t stress enough how important it is to prioritise your homework tasks. So at the end of the school day, look through your school planner and number each task in order of importance.

When you’re numbering, think about both the deadline and the size of the task. So even though a history essay may not be due for a week, bear in mind that you’ll need to spend time researching, writing and proofing it so it will probably need to be quite high up on the priority list.

Always try to be one step ahead when possible. This means trying not to leave homework until the day before it’s due…

Be methodical

cross out nothing

One of the best parts about being organised with your homework, is being able to cross off tasks once you complete them. Not only is it incredibly satisfying but it also trains your brain to think methodically, steadily working through and crossing off your tasks until everything is done.

Don’t worry if you don’t manage to complete absolutely everything (it’s not realistic to expect to finish a week’s worth of homework in a day), just write it out again underneath the next day in your school planner.

Chill

relax

Take breaks in between homework tasks. Give yourself a little treat after you cross off a couple of items in your homework diary – you deserve it 🙂

What next?backpack

At the end of the week, look through your planner and give yourself a mini-review: did you manage to complete everything you set out to complete?

If you didn’t quite get there, what could you do differently next week to ensure you meet all of your deadlines?

Once you feel like you’re on top of your homework, you can make a start on sorting out that school bag because you don’t really need to be carrying around a week’s worth of subject books and folders every day of the week.

keep calm

Take this guide one step at a time. If you’ve made it to the end of this post, you’re already one step closer to a new, organised you!

A-Level Results Day 101

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So.this-is-fine

It’s here.

The day you’ve been trying to forget about all summer.

We’ve got some tips to get you through tomorrow (yes it is tomorrow!)

 

The Night Before:

ucasHave Your UCAS Login Details at the Ready

Because there’s nothing worse than receiving your results and not quite knowing if you’ve made it onto your uni course.

Have Your University Contact Details at the Ready

You might not get the results you were hoping for but this doesn’t necessarily mean you won’t be accepted onto your course. Contacting your university directly is the easiest way of getting all the info you need before things get too manic.

 

On the Day:

calmCheck UCAS Track Early 

Not everyone knows this but you can actually view your university confirmation here from 8am. You’ll still need to pick up your results from school but seeing an early university place confirmation beforehand can really take the pressure off!


Don’t Make Hasty Decisions

It’s easy to make a snap decision on something that will significantly impact your future because you feel pressure from friends, family, universities and even yourself.

 

If you don’t get the results you need for your firm or insurance choices, there are still options. Talk to your universities first and then find out your eligibility for Clearing – you might be able to find a place on an alternative course.

yay

If you’re lucky enough to surpass the results you need for your firm choice, there are also options. Consider Adjustment. Here, you can swap your firm choice for a place on a course with higher entry requirements.

Take some time to think through your options. University is YOUR experience so don’t feel the need to grab a place at whichever university is available just because you’re stressed.

Remember, you can also consider deferring entry if you don’t feel ready, trying again next year or even going straight into employment if you’ve changed your mind.

 

Results Day is not the be-all and end-all. Think everything through calmly and you’ll be okay.

Good luck!

 

3 Work Experience Hacks: How to Get Work Experience this Summer

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Do you want the good news or the bad news?

The bad news:

No matter what anyone says, getting work experience is not easy. You’ve got to be ready to put in the hard yards and even then, there’s still no foolproof way to secure the placement of your dreams. If only!

The good news:

We’ve put our heads together and come up with our top 3 work experience hacks just for you! If you follow these tips, you’re bound to find work experience this summer 🙂

1. Simplify the CVwork-experience

So you want to prove to whoever’s reading your CV that you’re the person for the job. Great.

You’ve crammed in every last detail and possible skill to showcase your brilliance. Not so great.

Contrary to popular belief, you don’t need to fill your CV with endless lists of all your skills and previous experience. In fact, a more simplified approach demonstrates an ability to select relevant info. and tailor it to your employer – an important workplace skill. Which brings us to our next point.

TAILOR YOUR CV. So if you’re applying for work experience in a law firm, think about whether or not you’ll need to include a paragraph on your part-time babysitting job, for example.

Rather than talking at length about every job/hobby you’ve ever had, in lengthy sentences, just pick the relevant points and condense them. Your CV is going to be skim-read, so the important information needs to be easy to find.

It can still be handy to give an idea of what you’re like as a person though (CVs can be boring) so it doesn’t hurt to include a few personal interests.

steward-for-oxfam

Become a festival steward for Oxfam.

2. Volunteer

Volunteering at a local charity is an excellent way to gain great experience and do some good all at the same time. Charities are almost always looking for volunteers to help out in all sorts of areas, from working behind the till, to campaigning. It’s well worth exploring this online. Here are a few sites to get you started:

Do-It

Oxfam

British Red Cross

3. Apply speculatively & make the most of your contacts

As unfair as it may seem, a lot of work experience placements do come down to who you know.

But what if I don’t have any contacts?Network

You’d be surprised how many contacts you do have actually. Other than the obvious – parents, teachers, neighbours etc, you should also think about other people who you could have in your network without even realising it.

For example, if you’ve got involved in a youth scheme like Young Enterprise, you might be able to contact a couple of industry professionals. It doesn’t hurt to try – employers will value your tenacity and initiative.

Does your school invite outside speakers to give talks to your year group? Make sure you show enthusiasm for their subject and ask for their contact details at the end of the talk. You never know who could be handy to know, so make as many connections as possible, whenever you can.

I STILL don’t have contacts

There’s still hope!

Official work experience programmes can be few and far between, especially if you’ve left it a bit late and missed deadlines already. So apply speculatively i.e. contact local companies that you know of and just ask them. Don’t forget to use social media too – you’d be surprised how many opportunities are available through platforms like Twitter.

It doesn’t matter if they don’t have a ‘work experience’ section on their website. Lots of businesses, especially  some of the smaller ones, might not have a fully-fledged scheme in place but this doesn’t mean they wouldn’t be happy to have you on board for a week or so.

Time to start making those connections! Don’t worry if you get a ‘no’. Everyone’s had them. We know you’re fabulous so just be enthusiastic, friendly and sincere and you’ll bag yourself some amazing experience before you know it.

work-experience-gif

Want more tips? Tweet @BoomEdStudent with any questions/comments. We ALWAYS respond.

 

Carpe Diem Update! Broadening Students’ Horizons.

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If you follow our student Twitter account then you’ll know all about the exciting new student opportunities that we showcase as part of our Carpe Diem initiative.

This summer we’ll be focusing on a couple of things:

  1. Career Opportunities:

It’s that time of year again where lots of students start to panic when they haven’t managed to find summer work experience. It can be difficult to know where to start, so we’ll be highlighting some great companies that offer programmes to young people.

Whether pupils are looking for work experience or internships, there’s something out there for everyone. We’re here to make things that little bit easier!

So if you know someone who’s stuck for work experience ideas, just point them to our Carpe Diem page – we have a handy ‘Industry & Careers’ category that we are constantly adding to.

2. Getting Involved:

As tempting as sitting in front of a games console for 6 weeks can seem at the beginning of summer, we know that young people want to make the most of the summer hols. That’s why we’re featuring a range of activities, competitions and youth programmes for children of all ages: from 4-18 yrs.

There are loads of categories to choose from so there’s really no excuse not to get involved!

If you think we’re missing anything at all, or you’d like us to cover another category, send an email to natalie.allee@boomerang-ed.com  or just drop us a tweet if that’s easier – we always love to hear from you!