Author: Alex Pullen

When a relative asks you what you’d like for a gift this year, have an answer ready: request a subscription box. There are all sorts of subscription boxes available. Some can provide you with the essentials you need, which will make planning ahead and budgeting that much simpler. Others will give you a treat to look forward to each month. In particular, though, there are a few types of subscription boxes you should consider adding to your list.

1. Snack Boxes

Having healthy snacks on hand will stop you from wasting money on expensive junk food. It’s even possible to find subscriptions that meet specific dietary needs, such as vegan and gluten-free boxes.

2. Meal Kits

Receive all the ingredients you need to prepare delicious meals, along with detailed instructions on how to cook everything. Subscriptions provide you with exact proportions of each ingredient — meaning no food waste. Best of all, you’ll learn new recipes and techniques, which will help you develop skills that can be useful throughout your life.

3. Clothing

A number of clothing subscription boxes exist, all of which allow you to create a personal profile to receive clothing that matches your personal style. This is a great way to refresh your outfits regularly.

4. Books

You can find subscriptions to physical books as well as ebooks — make sure you tell your relatives how you prefer to read. In either case, you’ll receive a selection of great titles that will help rekindle your love for reading.

5. Candy

If you have a sweet tooth, a candy subscription box can be a great treat — it’s a much better alternative to receiving a few pieces of candy as a one-time gift. Every month, you’ll receive a completely different selection, including candy from famous brands and from artisanal makers. A fun-size box is perfect for one person: you’ll be able to indulge just enough.

6. Personal Care

With a personal care subscription box, you can receive anything from hair products to makeup and nail polish. There are even at-home spa kits to encourage you to take a day to relax and pamper yourself.

7. Fandom Boxes

If you’re a fan of a particular TV series, comic book, sport, or anything else that lends itself to collectibles, there’s a good chance there’s a fandom subscription box out there that would be perfect for you. Research your interest or hobby to find if you can add a particular box to your gift list.

One type of subscription no student likes is a meal plan. Whereas this tends to be a fact of life if you live in a student residence, it’s possible to take control by moving into your own apartment. Foundry Mack offers Queens off-campus housing where you’ll be truly independent. All our suites have great floor plans, which include a modern kitchen with granite countertops. However, we also simplify your life by offering all our apartments fully furnished and providing a monthly in-suite cleaning service. Apply now to secure our lowest rates of the year.

The end of the semester often comes as a relief — but it’s important to remember it isn’t all over yet. From preparing for your trip home to saying goodbye to friends, it’s easy to overlook the important things you need to do. Use a checklist at the end of every semester to ensure you don’t neglect anything that could cause problems when you return.

1. Finish Your Last Assignments

Make working on any assignments you still have due your main priority. As you won’t be able to relax and enjoy yourself much when you still have a paper to complete, buckle down now and finish your homework as soon as possible.

2. Check Your Email

Whereas you likely check your personal email frequently, it’s easy to overlook your university email when you’re getting ready to leave for winter break. However, since you may receive critical communications now and again, it does help to check on a regular basis. Make a habit of checking at the end of the semester to ensure you don’t miss anything urgent before you leave campus.

3. Confirm Your Final Grades

Although it’s unlikely your university has recorded any grades for your assignments incorrectly, since it is a possibility, it helps to check just in case. Pointing out any mistakes to your professors early will prevent problems down the line.

4. Return Borrowed Materials

Returning electronics, textbooks, and other rented items even a day late can lead to large fees. Check the return dates for anything you’ve borrowed and make a note on your calendar to ensure you won’t forget.

5. Arrange an Appointment with Your Academic Advisor

Your academic advisor is a valuable resource. Schedule a meeting to discuss the coming semester, including what classes you should consider taking and other actions to take that will keep you working toward your goals.

6. Set Aims for Next Semester

Reflect on what went well this semester and what you could have done better. Use this to decide how to make changes when you return to university, including how you could improve your study habits, become healthier, or step out of your comfort zone. If there are specific things you need to do — such as apply for an internship, find a better source of income, or search for scholarships to make your education more affordable — request all the information you need before you leave.

7. Celebrate

Finally, take time to appreciate the hard work you’ve put in this semester and acknowledge everything you’ve achieved. Spend time with friends — you’re sure to miss them over the break — and go to some campus events now you have a bit more time.

The end of the semester, when you’re less preoccupied with classes and other commitments, is also the perfect time to reconsider your student housing. You may have moved into dorms originally for the convenience, but you’ve now found that it may not be the best option after all. You can find rooms for rent in Kingston, Ontario, at Foundry Mack. All the suites are equipped with modern furnishings and appliances, including a washer and dryer. Apply now to secure the lowest rates of the year.

For many college students, summer break can be a time to relax or spend time with family. But for many others, it means looking for a job or working. That’s because college is expensive, and it makes sense to look for ways to earn money to cover your tuition and living expenses.

If you don’t have experience, you may wonder what you can do to earn money while in college. Fortunately, there are plenty of summer job opportunities that fit college students without advanced education or experience.

Even better, many of these summer jobs for college students are available near options for student accommodation. Kingston, Ontario has many jobs available that pay good money, for instance. This means spending less time commuting to work and saving more money.

Here are some of the best summer jobs for college students.

1. Dog Walker

There’s nothing more rewarding than walking a dog. It’s a great way to spend time outdoors, get some exercise, and bond with an animal. And the best part: you get to make money while having fun with a furry friend.

All it takes is some experience of handling dogs and the time to walk the animal. Typically, you’ll get paid a fixed amount per walk, depending on the area and the distance walked.

2. Landscaper

Few summer jobs appeal more to college students than landscaping. It’s physically demanding work and an outdoor job, both of which are enjoyable. Plus, a landscaping job is a steady, reliable way to earn money.

You don’t have to have a formal education to get a landscaping job. People hire landscapers for their experience. If you don’t have landscaping experience, you can start as a “labourer” and work your way to doing actual landscaping.

3. Farmhand

Farmhand is not something many people are willing to do because it involves getting your hands dirty. But if you don’t mind that, working as a farmhand is a great way to earn a decent income.

You don’t have to be a farm pro to get hired as a farmhand. Most farms hire people to help with general labour, such as cleaning and maintaining stables, repairing fences, walking cattle, and so forth.

4. Lifeguard

Lifeguarding is a great summer job for college students with swimming experience and CPR training. It usually pays well and involves very little actual work. You can sit on a beach or at a waterpark, wear a swimming suit, and look for swimmers who might need help.

5. Camp Counselor

Many organizations offer summer camps for kids and young adults in areas like sports, music, art, and technology. This is an excellent opportunity for college students, as the organizers need camp counsellors to oversee the campers. You’ll also lead the activities at the camp, have the children participate, and get paid.

6. Paid Intern

Many companies offer paid summer internship programs for college students. These usually involve working for a few weeks during the summer. Internships are great for college students who want to gain experience and earn money.

7. Receptionist

Receptionist jobs are among the best summer jobs for college students because they require little experience, pay well, and can be done part-time.

As a receptionist, you’ll answer phones, file papers, take messages, schedule appointments, and greet guests or customers. This means you’ll also gain admin and customer service experience that can open more employment opportunities for you down the line.

8. Retail Sales Associate

Working at a retail store during the summer can be a great way to earn money and gain customer service and sales experience. In addition, it’s a great way to get your foot in the door. Depending on your performance, the store management may offer you better opportunities and more perks.

University life can be stressful, especially for students who have to balance their academics with extracurricular activities, a social life, and part-time jobs. Keeping up with assignments and fitting everything in can be tough.

Luckily, there are apps to stay organized and save time. From planning your schedule to managing your finances and staying focused on your studies, here are ten of the best apps for university students.

1. Google Calendar

Staying organized is essential for university students to succeed in academics and extracurricular activities. Luckily, Google Calendar has your back. It allows you to create a schedule that works for you.

Use Google Calendar to keep track of your classes, assignment deadlines, club meetings, and more. You can create multiple calendars and set up repeating events so you never miss a deadline again.

2. Evernote

Evernote is a perfect app for students who need to take notes and create a digital notebook. You can use Evernote to organize notes, scan and search handwritten notes, create to-do lists, write down your ideas, record lectures, create templates, and do much more.

3. Dropbox

Dropbox is a useful tool for students who need access to files from home or school. You can store documents, class syllabus, homework, audio files, and video clips in Dropbox and access them from any device, whether at home or university. You can even share the files with fellow students or friends and create folders to organize your data.

4. Camscanner

Camscanner allows you to scan documents and create a digital journal. You can scan any handwritten or typed note and create a PDF document. This is especially useful for taking notes in lectures, as you can take a snap of any lecture notes and save them in your journal.

5. Splitwise

Between tuition, textbooks, and living expenses, it can be hard to make ends meet in university. Fortunately, there are ways to save money without sacrificing your lifestyle. Splitwise is one of the best apps to manage your shared finances and stay on track.

This app comes in handy when you’re living with a roommate, say in Kingston student housing rentals, or when you’re funding a joint project with your friends. It allows you to split the shared expenses and stay within your budget. You can then pay your roommates or friends through PayPal or Venmo. This helps keep everyone on track with their finances.

6. Quizlet

Quizlet lets you organize your knowledge and create flashcards to prepare for exams. You can create different decks of flashcards based on things like vocabulary, subjects, topics, or anything else you need to study. You can create study sets and get through them at your own pace, so you never feel overwhelmed. Plus, you can search for existing flashcards made by other users that you may find helpful.

7. Spotify

Being a university student doesn’t mean you’ve to sacrifice your love for music and entertainment. The good news is that Spotify allows you to listen to your favourite music without distracting others. It lets you create playlists and customize the lists to fit your preferences. Consider making a playlist so you can listen to relaxing music on Spotify between classes. Doing so will help unwind your mind and prepare for the next class.

8. Word Hippo

Have you ever been stuck on a writing assignment? Do you have trouble with vocabulary? Do you find it difficult to write essays? Well, you’re not alone. Everyone goes through writer’s block from time to time. Word Hippo can help you break out of this slump.

Word Hippo is an excellent app-based thesaurus that can supercharge your essay writing skills. Simply write in any word, and it will come up with a useful list of synonyms, antonyms, word meanings, and even example sentences.

9. Pomodoro

If you struggle with getting work done while being a university student, Pomodoro can make your life much easier. This time management app lets you set a timer for studies, assignments, projects, and so forth. Each session lasts 25 minutes, after which you get a break. This can boost your productivity and keep you focused on your tasks.

10. Tinder

If you want to meet new people while studying but you don’t want the pressure of going to a formal party or event, try using Tinder. This app matches you based on location and interest, so you can connect with the right people. You can also set up a date with and even make a love connection. Tinder lets you meet and know new people safely without leaving your comfort zone.

Some students are required to complete a summer internship before they can graduate, but internships are also beneficial to anyone who wants to gain work experience and explore their career options before they finish university. The problem is there’s a lot of competition for internships. The last thing you want is to settle for something that doesn’t match your goals, lead to useful connections, or help you discover more about what you find interesting. At the same time, though, you need to avoid being too selective — there are many internships that could be ideal for you. Here are a few things you can do to make sure you line up something great.

1. Research Your Options

You can find internships advertised in all sorts of places. A good place to start is the career centre at your university. Since the companies who advertise here will have specifically chosen to work with students at your university, you may have better odds of landing a position. Plus, the staff at the career centre will know exactly what you need to do to increase your chances.

Your career centre can also put you in touch with alumni. Many employers like to offer opportunities to students from their alma mater. In addition, you may be able to talk to recent graduates about the internships they completed to hear about their experiences and find out what they recommend.

Outside your university, you can look for internships on job sites (particularly those that specialize in jobs within the industry you want to enter). Alternatively, if there’s a company you’d love to work for, contact the hiring manager to ask about internships.

2. Prepare Everything You’ll Need

To improve your chances of success, start preparing early. Begin by updating your resume, including keywords that employers will be searching for. You’ll need to tweak your resume slightly for each internship, but it should be basically the same for every application.

You’ll also need a unique cover letter for each application. You can receive support from your career centre for writing cover letters that highlight the qualities that make you perfect for the internship and express your interest in the company.

Finally, check your LinkedIn profile to ensure it mentions all your relevant experience. Employers will likely Google you even before they offer you an interview.

3. Apply by the Deadline

Keep track of deadlines, as each internship will be different. Make a note of when you need to send applications and when interviews take place. In addition, add reminders to your calendar to reach out to the companies if you haven’t heard back by a certain date.

You’ll need to have somewhere you can live over the summer while you’re at your internship, which means you also need to start looking for student rentals. Kingston, Ontario, has the student community at Foundry Mack. You’ll have a modern apartment with fast internet and top-of-the-line appliances, including a washer and dryer. Apply for a lease now before it’s too late.

If you’re unsure about going to university, it’s worth considering all the advantages it will bring. Besides the obvious one that you’ll gain a degree, there are numerous perks to consider.

1. Learn to Be Independent

Attending university is a great way to learn how to be independent while still retaining a support system. You’ll be responsible for keeping your home clean, managing your time, buying and cooking your own food, and creating your own study schedule. At the same time, you’ll have access to support services from your university. By the time you graduate, you’ll be prepared to live independently in the real world.

2. Form Lasting Friendships

You’ll likely stay in touch with many of the friends you make at university for the rest of your life. This is because university is a great place to meet interesting people and have unique shared experiences.

3. Open Your Mind

The people you meet and the ideas you encounter will help you see the world in a new way. If you’ve always lived in the same town, you may have been surrounded all your life by people with a similar background to your own. Attending university may even introduce opportunities you never realized existed.

4. Enhance Your Capacity to Learn

A university education sets you up to become a lifelong learner. Beyond the knowledge you acquire, you’ll be better equipped to evaluate information and research topics of interest. You may also find that you love learning, which can help you to continue discovering ideas, expand your mind, and become a more interesting person.

5. Gain Crucial Skills

The reason employees like to hire candidates who have degrees is because of the additional skills they will have developed during their time in education. For instance, you’ll improve your tech skills, learn how to collaborate on projects, and improve your communication. This is why it’s often possible to find a job unrelated to your major just on the merit of having a degree.

6. Discover Who You Are

Many students begin university thinking that they know who they are and what they want from life. By the time you graduate, you may have completely different ideas: you may have changed your career goals, switched majors, or even decided to stay in education longer.

In particular, you’ll learn more about your strengths and weaknesses — something that’s not always clear in high school. Subjects you always found difficult before may come alive at university. You’ll also have the chance to engage in numerous extracurriculars, volunteer, and take interesting electives. Something you thought you’d love may end up not resonating with you, whereas you may discover a passion for an activity you’d never considered before.

To make the most of your time in university, you need to find great housing, such as a room for rent. Kingston students can receive a suite in the off-campus student apartments at Foundry Mack. You’ll be part of an engaging community with other students, where you’ll have the chance to meet even more new people from different backgrounds. Apply today to secure your place.

The idea of living alone for the first time in your life may be intimidating. You’ll be responsible for everything about your living situation, and you may be concerned that you’ll be lonely. However, learning to be independent while you’re still a student is a great life lesson. In fact, there are several ways it can set you up for success.

1. Have a Social Life on Your Own Terms

Socializing is a big part of the college experience, but it can often feel like your social life is forced on you rather than your choice. When you have your own apartment, guests are always your friends and they visit when you invite them. You’ll never need to suffer having someone else’s friends invading your space or feel like you must socialize because a roommate wanted to throw a party.

Of course, you will need to set boundaries. If you have friends who have never lived alone, they may misunderstand your situation and believe you always want company. This could mean they drop by unannounced. If you’re happy with such an arrangement, that’s fine. However, you may find that you enjoy spending time alone, which will be something you need to address with your friends.

Ultimately, with the right communication, you may find that you have an even better social life than if you lived with others. This is because you’ll be spending your social time with people you care about, rather than taking whatever opportunities to socialize arise.

2. Learn to Be Self-Reliant

Maintaining your home and solving all the issues related to your apartment on your own can be stressful at times, but you’ll have a great sense of accomplishment once you’ve finished a task or fixed a problem. If you’re able to balance this with knowing when to ask for support, you’ll have learned an important lesson that will serve you well throughout your life.

3. Find Out Who You Are

College is already a period of self-discovery. Living independently will add to that experience by showing you how you want to live and pushing you to become comfortable with yourself. It’s easier to be in tune with your emotions and to learn how to deal with the negative ones when you’re not constantly surrounded by other people.

4. Become Financially Independent

You’ll be learning plenty about how to budget while at university. However, it can be frustrating when the decisions of others impact your budget, which can be the case when you live with roommates. Not only do you need to split the cost of rent and utilities, you also need to contribute a share to household expenses. Living independently will help you improve your financial skills, which will be beneficial in the future — no matter if you decide to continue living alone or if you want to share your home.

5. Fill Your Time with What Matters to You

Living alone forces you to find fulfillment in ways that don’t involve other people. Even though you’ll spend much of your day outside your home — such as in class and at extracurriculars — you’ll still need to decide how you want to spend all your free hours.

Knowing what fulfills you will be useful for the rest of your life.
Whether you want to be completely independent or you’d prefer to have roommates, you can find the Queens off-campus housing for you at Foundry Mack. Our floor plans include suites with one to four bedrooms, available furnished and unfurnished, and you’ll only be responsible for your share of the rent. Contact our team today to secure a lease.

Despite there being a deadline, you shouldn’t rush into the decision to drop a class. For one thing, some classes start out tough but become enjoyable later once you’ve found your footing. For another, the class may be necessary for your major or a prerequisite for a more advanced class you want to take — therefore, dropping the class only means delaying it and possibly also delaying your graduation. Before you drop any class, make sure you’ve tried the following.

1. Attend Lectures

To come to an informed decision, you need to know what the class involves. Attend several lectures before the cutoff date to drop your class or until you’re sure about your decision.

2. Read Through the Syllabus

It’s also useful to know how the class will progress, which you can find out by reading the syllabus. This will show you how intense the class is likely to be and what kinds of topics you’ll cover. The class could become more interesting as it goes along — although it could equally become even more challenging or uninteresting to you.

3. Ask Other Students for Their Opinions

A final way to judge the class is to talk to students who have already taken it. Of course, everyone has different opinions — you may hate a class that is widely loved, or vice versa. Nonetheless, asking other students what they thought of the class and why will give you a better indication if the material is likely to resonate with you.

4. Research Your Alternatives

If the main problem is that you have a heavy workload, it may make sense to drop the class now and pick it up later — provided it’s not a requirement for a class you want to take next semester. However, if the issue is that you’d rather never take the class, you need to find out if there are alternatives. You may have assumed that you need this class for your major when actually there’s another option. Talk to an academic advisor just to be sure.

If the class is a requirement for a minor, you could drop the minor entirely. However, this is an even bigger decision than dropping a single class. Spend some time thinking about whether giving up on your minor is worth it to avoid taking a class you hate.

5. Take the Class Over the Summer

A great time to take a difficult class that’s a requirement for your major or minor is often the summer. You’ll be able to focus just on that class without needing to worry about any other schoolwork. You may even find you enjoy having something to fill the long summer months — it’s a good way to keep your brain active for when you return full-time in the fall.

When dropping a challenging class is not an option, the best thing to do is improve your study habits. This may include finding a better place to study — which is easier said than done when you’re living in cramped student housing. For better accommodation in Kingston, Ontario, there’s Foundry Mack. You’ll receive a spacious apartment with great features like a modern kitchen and a washer and dryer in the unit. Sign a lease today before all the spots are filled.