When you’re a student you have the great gift that is time. While you need to take responsibility for your studies and make sure you don’t fall behind academically, you still have the flexibility to shift deadlines around and replace a week of carefully measured work with a desperate all nightery when a heatwave hits and long afternoons in the library become impossible.

Today we’re presenting you with a short guide to making the most of your student summers, because you deserve it.

Parks and Gardens

Put some time into finding some green and open space near you. Even the heart of the UK’s cities are remarkably green, so you should be able to find somewhere nearby. It’s worth taking you time over this: if you go for the most obvious place, when the good weather comes you’ll be crowded out! Finding some of your cities best kept secrets will stand you in good stead when you need your own private haven from the summer crowds.

Make sure you take notice of what you’re allowed to do in each park. The gardens that come with some of the student accommodation Huddersfield offers might be convenient and private but they don’t all allow barbecues, so if outdoor cooking is on your agenda for the summer, you’ll need to look elsewhere.

Staying Safe

Slapping on some suntan lotion isn’t enough to keep you completely safe if you’re spending all day basking in the summer sun. In fact, if you trust too much in your factor fifty, it can give you false confidence, and lead to you staying out far longer than you should and not reapplying it regularly.

You need to make sure you have a full plan for mitigating the effects of the sun, including covering up when you’re not expressly tanning, seeking out shade, both natural from trees and manmade, like wearing a sunhat, and keeping hydrated. If you’re out in the sun for really extended periods you’ll need to do a little more than drinking water: look into replacing your depleted electrolytes with a sports drink to avoid headaches and dizziness. These measure should keep you safe not just from burning but also sunstroke!

Harness Spontaneity

There’s no point being a student if you can’t be spontaneous, and summer is a great time for last minute trips, BBQs and extended parties. You can optimise your schedule to make it easier to be spontaneous and take advantage of the good weather: shift the lion’s share of your studying to weekends, when parks and attractions will be busy and this leaves you weekdays free to enjoy the summer!