Social networking sites are a key tool in enabling you to find and contact famous and well known professionals, as well as getting your name out there.

Rather than using immeasurable updates make sure every single update is interesting, and lets people know a little about you or your work.

Here are my top tips for making the most of your free time:

1. Start a blog and post at least twice a week

2. Upload an amazing set of photos and post them on Flickr, then add it to some popular groups and heed the advice

3. Follow as many journalists and media moguls on Twitter, who will hopefully in turn follow you too.

4. Utilise these contacts by creating a profile on LinkedIn and adding them. This is the ultimate professional networking site and you would be mad not to be a part of it.

5. Get a freelance position writing editoral for a small cost, although this may seem like a lot of work for not much return, your portfolio of work will be boosted and it won’t look as though you have wasted time.

6. Get out and about, even if it is just around the country of the local area, you will boost your knowledge, maybe spot a news story and take lots of pictures along the way!

7. Create an online or digital portfolio, showcasing your writing skills and your ability to adapt print to the web.

8. Learn how to use a popular piece of photo editing software, such as Adobe Photoshop or Lightroom, not only will your pictures look great it’s also another skill to add to your CV.

9. Improve your interview skills trying telephone and video interviews with as many people as possible, if you can write them up or publish online to get your name out. 

10. Do something completely different in another outlet of the media, by taking part in a work experience placement or an internship.

I hope this helps, and for even more great tips, take a look at http://www.10000words.net/2009/06/journalism-grads-30-things-you-should.html

The government surely cannot expect students to take on such high levels of debt, at such an early age. As a student myself I regularly feel the pressure that the current £3000+ fees entail. Surely dissuading potential graduates in this way will not help the economy- especially in its current credit crunch crisis.

But Professor Malcolm Grant, provost of University College London says the issue is about ensuring high-quality education, see http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/7947758.stm

The government has promised a review of the current £3,145 fees cap this year, at the moment almost all universities charge the maximum and the only “market” is in bursaries.

Is the current scheme really a good deal?

The current loans scheme is –apparently- an extremely good deal; so good in fact that the government can’t afford to expand university numbers in line with the population.

Alarmist talk of student debt tends to lump together bank loans and credit card debt with student loans which are repaid only when a graduate’s salary reaches £15,000. On the average graduate salary of £18,000, repayments are £5.19 a week so the current loans scheme with all interest subsidised is an excellent arrangement in comparison with the new deal.

In fact, the deal is ‘so good,’ that the government cannot afford to expand university numbers in line with the population or its former dream of increasing participation.

The universities secretary, John Denham has cut back on student numbers when the logic of recession points to encouraging more people into higher education. Shouldn’t young people (and not so young) be doing something useful instead of claiming job seekers allowance?

It is clear we are going to need graduates more than ever in the post-recession economy, something the government should be considering rather than putting more people off by increasing fees.