Student Jobs in Nottingham: Your Guide to University Work

Nottingham is one of the UK's largest student cities, home to two major universities and a population of well over 60,000 students. If you are studying or have recently graduated and are looking for student jobs in Nottingham, the universities themselves are often the most reliable and rewarding place to start. Roles are varied, often flexible, and many are specifically designed to fit around study commitments.

This guide covers the types of jobs available, how pay and contracts typically work, and practical advice on where and how to apply.

Why Work at a University in Nottingham?

The University of Nottingham and Nottingham Trent University (NTU) are both large employers in the city. Between them they employ thousands of professional services, academic and casual staff. For students, the main advantages of working on campus are:

  • Proximity: no long commute eating into your study time
  • Flexibility: many roles are explicitly advertised as term-time only or casual
  • Relevance: some roles directly connect to your subject or career plans
  • Support: university HR teams tend to understand the pressures of student life

For more on what it is like to work for one of these institutions specifically, see our guide to University of Nottingham jobs.

Types of Student Jobs Available in Nottingham Universities

Student Ambassador and Open Day Roles

Both universities run large student ambassador programmes. Ambassadors represent the institution at open days, applicant visit days, schools outreach events and campus tours. The work is paid (usually at or above the National Living Wage), booked on a shift-by-shift basis, and suits students who are confident communicating with people.

You will typically register with a central ambassador pool and book available shifts through an online portal. Work peaks around open day season (September to November and spring months) but outreach work runs throughout the year.

Library and Learning Services

University libraries employ student assistants to help with shelving, counter enquiries, digitisation projects and IT support desks. Hours are usually part-time and can often be arranged around lectures. These roles suit students who want a quieter, less customer-facing environment.

Academic and Research Support

Some departments recruit undergraduate or postgraduate students to assist with:

  • Data collection or entry for research projects
  • Transcription and literature searches
  • Lab assistance (science and health disciplines especially)
  • Marking support as postgraduate teaching assistants (PTAs)

Postgraduate students in particular can find paid teaching or demonstrating work within their own departments. This is worth raising directly with your supervisor or department administrator if it is not advertised publicly. For a broader look at this area, our research assistant jobs guide is a useful read.

Sports and Leisure Facilities

Both universities run large sports centres open to staff, students and the public. Roles include:

  • Gym reception and membership desks
  • Fitness instructors and class instructors (if qualified)
  • Lifeguards (National Pool Lifeguard Qualification required)
  • Sports development assistants

These are popular roles and tend to go quickly. Check university sports centre websites and job portals directly.

Catering and Hospitality

Campus cafes, refectories and function catering employ large numbers of casual staff. Hours can be irregular, but catering managers tend to favour students for reliability and availability during events and conferences. Pay is typically hourly at National Living Wage rates, though some roles attract a small premium for evening or weekend work.

Exam Invigilator Roles

Invigilation is a classic student-friendly role: the work is concentrated at exam periods (January and May to June primarily), shifts are usually a few hours, and the job requires little prior experience. Universities advertise these roles through their central HR portals in advance of exam season. For a full breakdown of what the job involves, see our exam invigilator jobs guide.

Professional Services and Administrative Roles

Departments across both universities regularly recruit students into short-term or part-time administrative posts, covering:

  • Reception and front-of-house duties
  • Student union offices and welfare services
  • Marketing and communications support
  • IT helpdesk and systems support

If you have specific skills (graphic design, social media, video editing, languages), look out for project-based roles in communications and marketing teams. These can sometimes be arranged as freelance or fixed-term contracts.

How Pay and Contracts Work

University pay is usually structured around nationally negotiated pay scales (the UCEA framework for most pre-92 universities, though NTU operates its own grading structure). Student and casual roles typically sit at the lower end of the pay scale, often Grade 1 to Grade 3, which currently translates to something in the range of approximately the National Living Wage up to around £13 to £14 per hour depending on the institution and role. Pay rates vary and you should check the current figures on the job advert itself.

Contracts for student roles come in several forms:

  • Zero-hours contracts: common for ambassador and invigilator work. You are paid only for hours worked with no guaranteed minimum.
  • Fixed-term part-time contracts: for roles like library assistants or departmental support, often 8 to 15 hours per week.
  • Casual worker agreements: similar to zero-hours but sometimes structured around specific events or projects.

It is worth checking whether a role qualifies you for pension auto-enrolment (usually triggered by earnings above a threshold in a pay period) and whether holiday pay is included or paid separately as an accrued uplift on hourly pay.

Where to Find and Apply for Student Jobs in Nottingham

University Job Portals

Both universities advertise roles on their own HR job portals:

  • University of Nottingham: search "student" or "casual" on jobs.nottingham.ac.uk
  • Nottingham Trent University: use the NTU jobs portal and filter by contract type

Roles go quickly. Setting up email alerts is the most reliable way to catch new postings.

Students' Unions

The University of Nottingham Students' Union and NTU Students' Union both employ students directly and sometimes list roles from local employers. The SU job boards are worth bookmarking alongside the main university portals.

Your Department

For teaching, demonstrating or research assistant work, the route is often informal. Speaking to your personal tutor, your supervisor or the department administrator is often more effective than waiting for a formal advert. This is particularly true for postgraduate students seeking demonstrating or marking work.

UniJobs

You can search all academic and university jobs on UniJobs, including professional services and support roles at Nottingham institutions. Filtering by location gives you a quick view of what is currently live.

Practical Tips for Applying

  • Tailor your application even for casual roles. A short covering note explaining your availability, any relevant skills and why you want to work for that specific team will stand out.
  • Be honest about your timetable. Hiring managers for student roles expect timetable constraints. Providing your availability clearly saves problems later.
  • Get your paperwork ready. You will need a National Insurance number, proof of your right to work in the UK, and bank details before starting. International students should also check their visa conditions, as most student visas permit a set number of working hours per week during term time.
  • Do not overlook the smaller departments. Central services roles attract lots of applicants. A smaller faculty office or research group may be easier to get into and just as useful for your CV.

For a broader look at the range of roles students can take on at UK universities, the jobs for uni students guide covers the landscape in more detail.