If you’re in your final year of university then writing your dissertation will be very real right now. The pressure of writing at least 10,000 words on your chosen subject could cause night sweats or your cool exterior to crack, but rest assured that you’re not the first to suffer at the hands of distinction hell and you won’t be the last either.

 

 

We’ve all been there and we’ve all used every trick in the book to distract ourselves from the inevitable; that you can’t gain a degree or graduate without one!

As student saviours, the kind folks over at Guardian Students have put together a feature on the very subjects of dissertations, with past students regaling their stories of the distraction tactics they employed.

Click here to read the advice of other students, from what not to do and what to avoid entirely (the pub, mainly!) and see if any of these stories ring true http://www.theguardian.com/education/2016/mar/25/all-nighters-and-self-doubt-learn-from-our-dissertation-disasters

Then, once you’re finished reading you might want to get back to researching and writing that dissertation. There’ll be plenty of time to procrastinate and party once it’s been handed in!

With Easter coming up this weekend, we’ve looked at a few ways in which you can turn your Good Friday into a Great Friday with these (excuse us..) cracking recipes!

Cadbury’s Creme Egg cocktail

Even though that’s a mini Creme Egg, not a giant cocktail glass… It’s basically vodka with creme de cacao, Galiiano, ice cream and chocolate sauce. I hope you feel as nauseous as I do.

Easter Egg Cookie Dough Truffles

Check out the recipe right here!

Malteaster Tray Bake

Got a Malteaster Egg you can’t quite stuff down you? Bash it up with some Digestives and throw it in a tray with a melted syrup and margarine, and refrigerate. Et voila – tray bake! Recipe right here!

Or, go the easy route, and pour some wine into a chocolate bunny…

No shame. None at all.

So you’ve been at university for a while now but you may still be finding your feet when it comes to discovering who the ‘real you’ is.

Some people know who they are and exude a confidence that makes you feel even more inadequate because you still haven’t got a clue. Others silently get on with it, burying their heads into the studies and pretend that they’re in control.

But what if both of these types of people are feeling the exact same emotions as you. Questioning if they fit in, if they’ve chosen the right course or even if they want a career in their chosen subject.

Being at university can be tough on everyone at difference stages. Whether it’s your first year or your final year there are still unanswered questions and feeling that you’re not sure how to interpret.

Which is why you may find the following article interesting. It may even provide that ‘eureka!’ moment that you’ve been waiting for, to help sum up what you’ve been feeling for ages.

Published in The Guardian, the article looks at the six myths that are stopping you from being more confident at university (http://www.theguardian.com/education/2016/mar/02/wish-you-were-more-confident-at-uni-six-myths-are-stopping-you)

Have a read and see if you can relate to any of them and if you’re left thinking ‘oh my god, I totally thought that’ then you’ll now know what you need to do to get out of that mindset.

Each of us is different. It’s what makes us human, but we all go through the same thoughts, feeling and emotions, it’s just how we choose to deal with them.

The day is nearly upon us where Cupid comes out of hiding with his bow and arrow of love, but not everyone gets that warm, fuzzy feeling when the 14^th February approaches.

Shops are filled with love tokens to exchange with your partner, or prospective partner (if all goes well), whether it’s slushy cards, big fluffy teddy bears or heart-shaped boxes of chocolates.

Luckily this some brands have bucked the trend and invested in a range of anti-valentine’s cards to send to your not-so loved ones.

Stylist magazine recently put together a feature on anti-establishment cards that we found so funny we thought we’d share them with you: http://www.stylist.co.uk/life/the-funniest-anti-valentines-day-cards

So, however you’re thinking of celebrating this weekend from a house party, themed party at the student union bar or drowning your sorrows in front of a soppy film and a box of tissues, remember to have a sense of humour and take the day with a pinch of salt.

It’s just an excuse for us all to spend money on commercialised items we don’t really need after all!

No doubt someone around you will be interested in, and talking about, the Super Bowl, and tonight marks the taking place of Super Bowl 50 – but for those of us less educated in all things NFL, just what is it and more so how can we get involved this side of the pond?!

To an untrained eye, NFL (or American Football) can be a confusing sport. Filled with technical jargon, massive men in even bigger pads and over the top “Americana”, it can be a bit of a slog for first-time viewers.

Super Bowl 50, between the Denver Broncos and Carolina Panthers, is set to take place at Levi’s Stadium, California, the home of the San Francisco 49ers. It’s a somewhat antisocial 11.30pm start for anyone watching in the famous old timezone of GMT – best hope you’ve not got any early morning lectures on Monday!

But the Super Bowl is about so much more than just the game itself – Super Bowl adverts rose to massive mainstream popularity and became talking points in the 1970s. They are massively expensive to put on and are often clever, with no cost spared and some celebrity appearances. And alongside these come the half time shows – this year featuring the likes of Coldplay, Beyonce and Bruno Mars.

Now, it’s understood that the Levi’s Stadium will be selling a one-of-a-kind item during Super Bowl 50 – sausage topped with real flakes of gold, tapping in on the NFL’s gold theme for the SB50. Now that’s how you turn an ordinary concession stand item into a classy dish for the biggest sporting event in the US!

But how can you whip up some more student-loan-friendly super-bowl-appropriate snacks for tonight’s game? Personally I’m going to be giving some of the recipes here a go – http://www.buzzfeed.com/melissaharrison/super-bowl-snacks-to-try#.ygJ3grQKK

Now, better get my nap in before the game begins!