21 Student Life However, along with all this new- found freedom come responsibilities. You will suddenly be responsible for everything you do; you will have to manage your own: . . . . . and so on. ACCOMMODATIONHEALTH COOKING TIME WORK STUDIES LAUNDRY FINANCETRAVEL RELATIONSHIPS SHOPPING Student life continues to be a major attraction in the decision to enter higher education and this is especially true for those opting to live away from home. Freedom Freedom to make choices, pursue new interests, experiment with and determine your own lifestyle away from the constraints and restrictions of home and school can be enormously exciting. At university or college you will have the opportunity to join clubs and societies catering for every possible interest. By doing so you can meet new people, develop new skills, boost your confidence and have fun. If you choose to live away from home then for the first time in your life you will have complete freedom over what you do. No one will tell you what time you have to be in, nag you about studying or insist you turn your music down. However, don't forget there will be no dinner ready for you on the table or washing cleaned, ironed and put in your room every day. Responsibility Getting organised With so many life changing events occurring all at the same time, it's not really surprising that a number of students just can't cope and some even quit their course. But don't despair; take the opportunity now to prepare for higher education. Just doing something simple like spending a couple of hours learning how to cook, shop, wash and budget your finances could make the first few weeks in higher education so much more enjoyable. Time spent acquiring these life, social and independent study skills before going into higher education is never wasted. Further help Make good use of all the help and advice open to you now, whether through a careers and social education programme, Connexions adviser, tutor, family and friends, books such as ' Getting In, Getting On' ( UCAS), ' Surviving Your First Year at University' ( Trotman), ' University: A Survival Guide' ( Need- 2- Know), the UCAS magazine ' You Can' or one of the websites listed under the heading ' health and lifestyle' on page 33. Once you have applied to UCAS, make use of the student networking website www. yougofurther. co. uk. The yougo site allows you to chat and make friends with other applicants who are going to the same university or college and/ or who are going to be on the same course. As a student in higher education, you will have access to a wide range of student support services, but remember the onus will be on you to make full use of them at the appropriate time. " You don't need to conform to a stereotype to have friends and fun" - 3rd year student, University of Bath.

22 Working In The South West 200620072008 Work based training19.7% 19.2% 19.6% Employment ( with no training) 24.0% 24.1% 20.0% Full- time education41.6% 42.5% 43.8% Not in education, training or employment14.7% 14.2% 16.6% iParticipation in Education, Training and Employment by 16- 18 year olds 2009. DCSF. iiRegional Economic Profile 2009. South West Regional Development Agency. iiiSouth West at a Glance 2008. SLIM. ivState of the South West 2009. South West Observatory. vSouth West Healthy Labour Market Review 2008. SLIM. There are many reasons why some 18 year olds choose employment over higher education. Financial: . wanting to have money to spend. . a need to support themselves or others. . a fear of running up substantial debts during higher education. . concerns about finding sufficiently well paid work after graduation. Social: . no family history of higher education. . friends already in work. Emotional: . feeling jaded with years of studying and exams. . wanting to get out into the real world. Some of these might ring true with you. You may have other reasons. What 18 year olds did in 2006 - 2008i Trends in the south west job market The UK economy entered recession for the first time in two decades at the end of 2008. The downturn started in financial services, construction and anything to do with property. UK economic activity plummeted after October for both production ( led by manufacturing) and services ( led by retailing). At the same time, the labour market started to shrink with many more redundancies and a fall in vacancies. Generally it is agreed that 2009 will be the worst year for the global economy. An upturn in the UK economy, especially in terms of employment growth, is expected in late 2010/ early 2011. ii Nearly 20% of employment in the South West is in distribution ( wholesale, retail and motor industry). This is followed by business services ( 15%), health and social care ( 13%), manufacturing ( 11%) and tourism and leisure ( including hotels and restaurants) ( 8.7%). Agriculture, utilities ( electricity, gas, water, sewage) and mining are the smallest employing industries. iii The South West has high levels of self- employment. 14.3% of the region's working age population were self- employed between July 2007 and June 2008. iv Where the jobs are Occupational forecasts for the period 2007- 2017 predict that the largest increases in employment in England and the South West will be in: Culture, media and sport Customer service Caring Corporate management Teaching/ research professional occupations. The biggest declines are forecast to be in: Secretarial Skilled agricultural trades Process machine operation Other skilled trades. v However, while the overall numbers employed in these sectors are predicted to decline, employers will still need to recruit staff. This will be to replace those who leave or retire.