Final year student support
We understand your final year of university can be a stressful time, and you may need to access support from different parts of the university.
Careers and Employability, Academic Skills, Student Wellbeing Services, Accommodation and Library and Learning Services have teamed up to create this webpage. It's been designed to direct you towards all the support available to help prepare for life after university, how to access ways to support your mental health, and how to get help with your learning to achieve your degree goals.
We want to see you succeed in your final year and help you to prepare for what comes next.
Support from Careers and employability
The Careers team are on-hand to help prepare you for the next steps after university. There are a number of specific support options available.
In your final year, we recommend securing graduate careers support for after you have left Bath Spa by signing up to the Grad Support Unit. Find out more about what’s on offer here.
The Careers and Employability service has developed on-demand digital guides and resources to support your career journey. This career resources document highlights resources that may be particularly relevant to you as soon-to-be graduates.
To access our full range of resources on topics such as preparing job applications, networking, freelancing, self-employment and our sector guides, please see the Careers Resources website.
You can also log in to our online careers platform MyCareer to view further e-learning resources (Pathways). After you graduate, you'll just need to register for a graduate account to continue accessing MyCareer.
The Bath Spa Graduate Scheme enables you to begin your career at Bath Spa University and helps you smoothly transition into the workplace. You’ll be matched with a mentor and be enrolled on a structured training and development programme.
There are a range of roles available across the university. Roles are for 18 months, start in September 2024 and have a starting salary of £25,138.
You can apply by viewing the scheme information on MyCareer, or applying directly on the BSU jobs website. Applications close on Sunday 28 April 2024.
Support from Student Wellbeing Services
Recommendations for information, advice and support services for final year students.
- Speak with your doctor
- Shout! A 24/7 text messaging service for anyone in crisis, anywhere, anytime
- Samaritans: Suicide Prevention, 24/7 phoneline available
- Mind: National Mental Health Charity where you can access resources and helplines
- PAPYRUS: Prevention of young suicide.
- BSU SVLO and GBV support: Our team of Sexual Violence Liaison Officers and Gender-Based Violence Caseworker have had specialist training to support and advise students who have experienced any form of sexual violence and/or abusive relationship.
Contact Student Wellbeing Services to request an appointment with a Gender-Based Violence Caseworker/Sexual Violence Liaison Officer. - The Survivor Pathway: An online resource for anyone seeking specialist sexual violence support services in the South West
- Refuge: A UK-based domestic violence charity for women and children
- SafeLink: Sexual violence support and advice across the Avon and Somerset area.
- SARI: Stand Against Racism and Inequality
- Nilaari: Black, Asian and Ethnic led Charity that provides mental health assistance in the form of various talking therapies
- The Monitoring Group: One of the most established anti-racist groups in the UK.
- Access to Work Scheme: Government support to assist you in a working environment
- Personal Independence Payment: Government financial support to assist with living costs
- National Careers Service: Careers support and advice.
- Turn2Us: Practical support for those facing financial challenges
- The Money Charity: Financial advice and resources.
- Citizens Advice Bureau: Offering online and in-person advice surrounding a range of topics such as work, debt, housing, immigration and law.
Support from the Library
From dedicated Subject Librarians to bookable study spaces, the Library team are help to support you in your final year and are a fantastic resource.
An invaluable source of support for your final year of study from the library is your Subject Librarian. Each School has a dedicated Librarian, and they're on hand to provide expert guidance for your subject through personalised 1-1 support.
They can offer advice on search strategies, locating literature, evaluating sources and more.
Find out who your librarian is to book an appointment here: Subject resources A-Z – Bath Spa University
Can’t find a book on the topic you are interested in from the library? Please contact your Subject Librarian to request a purchase and we'll try our best to plug those research gaps for you.
If you need access to a journal article, then you can request it to be sent to you electronically via the Inter Library Loan Service.
The library has a range of different study spaces to suit your needs; walk-in and bookable at Newton Park.
You can choose from quiet locations with easy access to browse the bookshelves, spaces with PCs, or spaces with tables and power where you can use your own device.
To guarantee a study space please book a seat using our booking system.
Don’t forget that we also have a 24/7 chat service so, if you need support and guidance, it's available at your fingertips wherever you are.
Support from Academic Skills
The final year can mean a different type of workload. The Academic Skills team are here to help with things such as dissertation writing skills and other research skills.
Book an appointment with an advisor to look at your research project or dissertation. Each student can have up to four appointments for a dissertation or research project; appointments are available Mon-Fri, online and in-person.
Our Learning Development Advisors will help you improve your writing, referencing, structure and critical thinking across your work.
Completing primary research and needing help with statistical tools? Our Maths and Stats advisor can support you with using SPSS, JASP, R and Excel. Appointments are available Tues – Thurs 10.00-3.00, online and in-person.
This step-by-step guide outlines the dissertation process, gives advice on how to complete each stage and shows how to get help at each of these stages.
This document outlines the structure of a typical dissertation and gives advice on how to approach and write each section.
Writing a literature review is a key part of any dissertation or research project; this document lays out how to structure each element of a review of the literature and the content to include.
This project management video takes you through some key steps in managing a project and gives strategies to help you complete a project on time.
Graduate support
We're here to support you. Whether it's advice on accommodation or careers services, there's a lot of support on offer to help you transition from university into employment and beyond.
We want to see you succeed and help you to prepare for what comes next.
Graduate support from Careers and Employability
The Careers team can offer support after graduation through resources, advice and placements.
We recommend securing graduate careers support for after you have left Bath Spa University by signing up to the Grad Support Unit. Find out more about what’s on offer here.
The Bath Spa Graduate Scheme enables you to begin your career at Bath Spa University and helps you smoothly transition into the workplace. You’ll be matched with a mentor and be enrolled on a structured training and development programme.
There are a range of roles available across the university. Roles are for 18 months, start in September 2024 and have a starting salary of £25,138.
You can apply by viewing the scheme information on MyCareer, or applying directly on the BSU jobs website. Applications close on Sunday 28 April 2024.
The Graduate Placement Scheme matches your talents with opportunities that are fully paid, exclusive and tailored to recent Bath Spa University graduates.
These types of opportunity typically take place with local businesses and are either six weeks long, working 30 hours per week, or 12 weeks long working 15 hours per week.
All UK university leavers will be contacted fifteen months after graduation to complete the national Graduate Outcomes Survey.
Your voice will have a meaningful impact on students for years to come, so please share your journey after graduation with us by taking part.
To find out more, visit the Graduate Outcomes website.
The Careers and Employability service has developed on-demand digital guides and resources to support your career journey.
This career resources document highlights resources that may be particularly relevant to you as new graduates.
To access our full range of resources on topics such as preparing job applications, Networking, freelancing, self-employment and our sector guides, please see the Careers Resources website.
You can also log in to MyCareer, our online careers platform, to view further e-learning resources (Pathways).
After you graduate, you'll just need to register for a graduate account to continue accessing MyCareer.
Graduate support from the Library
As a Bath Spa University alumnus, you have access to a number of resources after graduation.
As a Bath Spa University alumnus, you can access the following online library resources for six months following your graduation using the links provided below:
- Drama Online, offering full text editions of over 2,300 plays from the Greeks to the present
- JSTOR, which provides the full text of over 1,000 journals
After graduation, you will have free access to the library’s print collection for a period of one year. You'll be entitled to borrow up to five books at time, browse the print collection, use the library study space and use the enquiry services.
To apply please complete the External Borrower Application Form, and choose 'Alumni' as the type of Library membership.
Graduate support from Student Wellbeing Services
In addition to the extensive list of useful links in the section above, there are also a number of places to find support with areas like taxation and Student Loan repayments.
Employment means you'll be paying certain taxes and contributions. Links to useful web pages for more information below:
- Emergency Services: If someone is seriously ill, injured or their life is at risk call 999
- Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust: If you are experiencing a mental health crisis or supporting someone in crisis you can contact AWP on 0800 953 1919
- Alternatively, you can visit the local Accident and Emergency Department.
Advice on accommodation for Graduates
The resources below aim to highlight a few key points on how to find accommodation after you have finished university. Please note that if you do have any queries or concerns, you can contact Citizens Advice.
There are multiple routes to finding housing after university. It all depends on what you are looking for!
If you and two other friends are looking for a house/flat that you can share, then your best bet will be Rightmove or Zoopla.
If you're planning on moving somewhere brand-new and you don’t yet know anyone, then Spareroom or local Facebook Groups are a great resource.
If you're moving to an area where you already have established links, then try asking friends or family if they know anyone. If you can get a personal recommendation, it'll give both you and the prospective landlord some security.
With all these routes, please exercise careful judgement moving in with people you don’t know.
If you have hesitations, carefully consider them; and if it looks too good to be true, chat with others about why.
It can sometimes be quite difficult to get your first foot into the rental market, but a bit of broad advice is:
- You'll need references from previous landlords – unfortunately, the Bath Spa Accommodation team is unable to act as a referee, however, the fees team can provide a financial reference and confirm the period of stay in Bath Spa Accommodation. They can be contacted at fees@bathspa.ac.uk
- You'll need a job that matches or exceeds the cost of rent and bills – see the Shelter website for more advice.
- You'll need a good credit score
What if I don’t meet these requirements?
If you don't meet these requirements, then you'll usually have two options:
- (1) pay either 6 months or 1 year upfront – whichever the landlord requests; or
- (2) you'll need a guarantor. (A guarantor is somebody who'll vouch for you and say that they'll take responsibility in the unlikely circumstance that you, as tenant, accrue debt or miss payments. This is usually a friend or family member who's in a financially stable position.)
If you don’t have anyone that can do this, then you are not completely lost! You can still use a service such as Housing Hand. This is a service where you can pay somebody a monthly or yearly fee to act as your guarantor.
Although they can sometimes be expensive, think of it as a long-term investment. Once you're in the rental market and can get a reference, you can then move into a new property afterwards without the need for this service.
Once you've found a property that you like, you'll need to put down a holding deposit and a security deposit, so it’s worth trying to save some money ahead of time to do this.
- A holding deposit is a payment to secure a property with the landlord or letting agent. This is a sum that can legally be no more than one week’s rent for the cost of the entire property, irrespective of how many people are living at the property. This sum is then taken off the first months rent or, if you don't take the property, kept by the landlord.
- A security deposit is a sum of no more than five weeks rent for the entire property, which will be held by the landlord in a Government-approved Tenancy Deposit Protection Scheme. This assures the landlord that there's a set amount of money to hold in case any damage is caused while living in the property.
For deposit protection rules, please see the Shelter website.
- As soon as you move in, locate and take pictures of your energy meter(s). You don’t want to pay more for electricity than necessary.
- Complete your inventory to make sure you won’t be blamed for any pre-existing damage to the flat.
- Find out your bin day and how the local bins work – this is helpful to prevent neighbours getting annoyed at you.
- Transfer utility bills or set up brand new ones! If you have friends who are already with a particular company, it’s worth asking for a reference code, as you'll usually both be rewarded.
Depending on where you've lived before, you may be used to paying bills. However, moving out after university will mean paying some new ones, such as Council Tax.
For a list of bills for which you'll be responsible, there's information on the Zoopla website.
There are a limited number of circumstances where Council Tax is reduced, which is further explained on the UK Government webpages on council tax.
For a wide variety of reasons, students can’t always move into the private sector straight after university. Consider your options and work out what is most sensible for you.
If it's possible to move back home for a few months to save some money while you work, then consider doing that.
If you have nowhere to go, then you may wish to consider whether or not you might be classified as homeless. If yes, then please consult the government information and contact your local council authority, who are best placed to guide you.