Hello can you please introduce yourself?

Hi! My name is Marta, I’m from Italy, I’m a fourth semester student here at UCR and I’m majoring in Linguistics, Cognitive Science and Film, Theatre and Media Studies.

Where do you currently work at? 

I currently work at Da Silvano, which is a sandwich and Italian store actually very close to UCR, it’s on the corner between Bachtensteene and Franklin.

When did you start working there?

I started working there in Fall, so around 7 months ago. I was looking for a job because I had a job previously that wasn’t really working out especially with covid, so I had to find something else.

How did you find this job?

Actually one of my housemates who goes there regularly told me that they were looking for some people to help out. So I walked into the store and approached the owner. Of course he knew that I was a student at UCR and that I had limited time and availability so we just discussed it and I had a try-out where he explained to me how things work.  What’s nice is that since I’m Italian it’s easier for me to pronounce the names of the products so it was quite easy to get acquainted with everything quickly.

 

da silvano

What do you do there?

So at my job I make sandwiches during lunch time, which is usually peak time. So this is about 2 to 3 hours in which the majority of people come into the store and order food. The rest of the time which is more likely in the weekends or for example Wednesdays where there’s less UCR students coming in, it’s less busy on sandwiches. People would come in and order ham or cheese or they’re usually just shopping for groceries.

How do you manage to work alongside your studies?

Since I have the same work schedule every week, it’s easy for me to include it in my agenda with everything else going on, because I consider it as a class. So I know for example that on Friday from 11:00 to 16:00 I am not available because I’m working so I organize my study around it. It’s easy and you quickly get used to it.

How can other UCR students find jobs in Middelburg?

It’s actually fairly easy to find jobs here in Middelburg, especially as a student. I have friends who just walked into a café or a restaurant and asked. Not speaking Dutch is never a problem and they’re always very open and very lenient when it comes to the available time that we have as students. I also found it quite efficient to just message the emails that you find on the websites of hotels, cafes, restaurants etc. it always works. Just email them your CV and ask if they have any available vacancies.

Any final thoughts?

Even if Middelburg can seem small, all UCR students who are looking for a job can easily find one if they want to because there are so many options available. So just get out there and you’ll easily find something!