15 songs to get you through your essay

Hi I’m Lizzie, an editorial intern at TARGETjobs and current university student. Writing essays can be tough day after day leading up to a set of deadlines. Music can help to make a big difference in maintaining your focus, whilst also relaxing and entertaining you. The key is to listen to a mixture of slow, calming songs with some more upbeat ones to continually catch your attention and get your energy and motivation up again. Here are my top recommendations!

1. Ed Sheeran – Shirtsleeves

This ballad by lovely Ed is beautifully relaxing. It’s basically a hug for your ears.

2. Beyoncé – Start Over

Queen Bey is perfection to be honest; this upbeat ballad will wake you up enough to crack on with your essay, but not make you fidgety or distracted.

3. The Goo Goo Dolls – Iris

Ask almost anyone and they will say this is their favourite song. Luckily it’s also excellent background music.

4. Sam Smith – Stay With Me

This came out just in time for one of my biggest essay deadlines, and I listened to it on repeat over 250 times (I’m not kidding) while writing one essay. It’s one of the best for background music that both relaxes you and gets your energy up.

5. Tracy Chapman – Fast Car

This classic is a common favourite for essay music; plus, it’ll melt your heart.

6. AWOLNATION – Kill Your Heroes

This song slightly breaks the rules set out about what to listen to, but somehow it still works really well as study music.

7. Taylor Swift – Wildest Dreams

Back to the upbeat ballads with T Swizzle. Like a lot of artists on this list, pretty much her entire album is essay-worthy.

8. Foster the People – Pumped Up Kicks

If you can ignore the less-than-cheerful lyrics, the tune and tone of the song is perfect to work to.

9. Ellie Goulding – Anything Could Happen

One of Ellie’s best; the vocals in this song are wonderful, and it makes great background music.

10. Emeli Sandé – Next to Me

Emeli’s voice basically defines powerful-but-pretty, and this song is fantastic in general.

11. Drake feat. Rihanna – Take Care

RiRi shows her softer side in this sweet song with Drake, and it’s strangely comforting being told you’re taken care of when you’re stressing out about deadlines.

12. Labrinth – Let The Sun Shine

A pretty cheerful song to lift the mood – studying might seem a bit less worrying after this one.

13. Marvin Gaye – Let’s Get It On

Despite the famously belting start, most of this song is pretty mellow, making it a pretty smooth background song to have on.

14. Ariana Grande – One Last Time

This is a particularly great song to listen to on the last day before your deadline; a fab little reminder that you’re almost finished!

15. P!nk – Raise Your Glass

Time for a break. This song is so good to get your energy back up and have a mini-dance party to (this is especially important if you’re working at night!). 

Article written by Lizzie Akass, TARGETjobs Editorial Intern. Connect with Lizzie on LinkedIn. 

20 emotional stages of leaving an essay to the last minute

This is perhaps the most panic-inducing experience of your uni life. Whether your essay was left until the last minute by choice, or if the decision was out of your hands (laptops breaking, essay question release dates being delayed, getting ill, the list goes on), the result is always pretty much the same for everyone:

1. The initial panic

You work out how many hours you have until your essay is due, and then have a minor break down.

2. The first hurdle

You haven’t even looked at the essay questions yet. Why haven’t you even looked at the essay questions yet? You skim through and find one you think fits with the books you actually had time to read most of.

3. Denial

You write the title. Time for a break. You’ve earned it.

4. Cry

You really hadn’t earned it.

5. Get productive

You skim through the books and start finding quotes that fit with the question. Things are looking up; you might just pull this off.

6. Overload

Your brain is still buzzing from the emotional rollercoaster you just had re-reading the end of that book. You need a break.

7. Cry again

Stop taking breaks. You haven’t earned any breaks!

8. Realising the time

When did it get dark? How many hours do I have left? Oh god.

9. Introduction complete

It’s actually pretty good too. Even threw in a few academic secondary sources. Celebrate with a Beyoncé dance to the kitchen.

10. Disappointment

Why is there no food in the fridge? How are you supposed to be an academic genius on an empty stomach? Sad dance back to your bedroom.

11. First paragraph done

Eyes starting to droop. Wake yourself back up by watching YouTube.

12. Panic again

Why have you been watching cat videos for an hour? Stop taking breaks!

13. Inner turmoil

At this point you’re not even hungry, you’re just so bored. It’s 5am. All of the shops are closed, Domino’s just stopped delivering, there’s no food in the fridge. The only option is the library vending machine. Can you really afford to lose 20 minutes walking to the library and back? Why isn’t there a 24 hour dessert delivery service?

14. Making contact

It’s now 6am, and you’ve miraculously had a productive hour and finished your second paragraph. You’ve earned your vending machine trip. You message your friends who are doing an all-nighter in the library and let them know you’re popping over.

15. Relax

There’s a group of people in the library all from your course collectively panicking and emotionally supporting each other through the night whilst consuming enough chocolate to feed an entire village. You’re not the only one, cool.

16. Realisation

You get back to your room and realise you look like you’ve slept outside for the past month, in the dirt. Sexy. Zero shame.

17. Relief

With a few hours to spare, you somehow scrape together the rest of your essay and write a conclusion.

18. Panic

You’re exhausted, stressed, and haven’t had a chance to edit with fresh eyes. Oh god, oh god, your grades are going to drop. You set an alarm for a 15 minute nap. After panicking too much to actually sleep, you lie to yourself that it’s fine and you can edit and print confidently now with a great quality essay.

19. Handing it in

You arrive to hand in and see your friends. You all look like zombies. But, if you all look like zombies, then the standards drop so you all look totally OK.

20. Sleep

Go home, you survived the night. Swear that you’ll never let yourself go through that again. Crash until it’s time for your celebratory night out.

As bad as having to write last minute essays are for uni, it’s nothing compared to a last minute job application. Our tips on writing last minute job applications are an absolute life-saver in case you ever find yourself in that terrifying position. Good luck! 

Article written by Lizzie Akass, TARGETjobs Editorial Intern. Connect with Lizzie on LinkedIn.