I'm balls deep in my 5 month summer holiday courtesy of UCA Farnham. And with the new year looming, I can't help but reminisce about what position I was in this time last year.
I was working full time for the summer at a cinema, nervously awaiting results day. As I was 90% certain I had failed my a levels, in my head, my dream of university was already dead.
Forever fierce and refusing to be a failure at life, I went out on a whim and applied for a job as cabin crew for Virgin Atlantic. I tweaked my CV a little (a lot) and bullshitted my way through their application questions.
2 weeks later after I had forgotten all about even applying, I received an e-mail congratulating me on securing an interview. There's more to this story but, it's boring and I'm digressing anyway. MY POINT IS; having that back up plan, albeit not a guarantee, was the best idea I had at that time. It made the thought of not receiving good enough grades for Uni bearable (but I did make the grades and all was beautiful and right in the world). Even if you think you're absolutely guaranteed a place at your first choice Uni, having a plan B could be the smartest move you make.
That aside, I'm sure all of you lovelies WILL make your grades, you've probably already raided ikea for all it's cutlery, and I bet you a fiver you've bought a lot of things you really really don't need. (Don't worry if you haven't yet bought things you don't need, your student loan will come in soon, that's when hauling shit begins).
Here are a few things I wish I'd known before coming to Uni, plus a couple of things I did to make things at the beginning a bit easier:
-During freshers, be friendly, to EVERYONE
Uni is a time for you to come out of your shell, you're effectively leaving your old life behind, it's time for you to be exactly who you want to be without things from home holding you back. With that in mind, during freshers everyone is out to make friends. So don't disregard someone because they don't look like the sort of person you'd be friends with at home. I have a friend that I made at Uni that I can safely say is one of the most hilarious and loyal guys I will ever meet. At home, we would've rolled in different circles and never given each other the time of day, but as we were thrust into the bosom of one another (not literally) as housemates and we gave each other a chance, we turned out to be great friends. Plus being friendly is an all round nicer way to go about life really.
- Put yourself out there, but be understanding to those who don't.
Introduce yourself to all of your housemates, they're going to be your first set of friends during freshers before your course starts. Say yes to things, even if you don't really fancy it that much. I nearly said no to exploring a town close to Uni, but that was the day I realised I was absolute soul mates with a girl I'd moved in with. Although if you do have a housemate that's saying no to things, don't give up on them, keep asking. (Until they tell you they're moving out cus you're all too noisy. Woops.)
- Don't leave your tea towels in the kitchen
Just, don't.
- Worried about your relationship? You should be.
I'm not going to lie to you, I lived with 7 other people, 5 of us began Uni in a relationships, and by January we were all a little lonelier (HAH, GAAAY). I'm aware this statistic isn't anything to go by, but living away from someone you're used to being with quite a bit is a challenge. If you're both prepared to work at it, your relationship will prevail and I'm expecting an invite to the wedding (with a plus 1, cheeky.). However, if worst comes to worst and it doesn't work out, Uni is an excellent place to be to get over it. You're living with your friends and active basically 24/7, and someone will always get drunk in a bath with you.
-Beware of the sausage theif
Milk, ketchup, mayo, leftovers. You bought them. But that's communal food now. Ahh, the unwritten rule of the asshole. Look you're probably gonna have food that goes missing okay? If you catch them, confront them, if it continues, report them. But only if you have SOLID EVIDENCE. For god sake when I accused my housemate of eating my yogurts he nearly cried. Just beware, and don't be a ham burglar yourself.
-FRIENDS, UNI FRIENDS!
Make friends with the porters, the care takers, the lunch ladies, security guards, the bar staff at the SU and the bouncers. My ass has been saved an unimaginable amount of times because of this during my stay in halls. If you don't listen to anything else I say, listen to this.
-Don't be a snob
You will get used to Sainsbury's own vodka, just like you'll think 60p value tinned peaches is the bestest dessert you've eaten in ages. You'll want to pitch it to Heston Blumenflumen.
-Have fun!
Coming to Uni is the best thing I have ever done, leaving home was sad but you're bettering your life for you, nobody else. Even if you don't go into your preferred field after Uni, you've gained some valuable life experience there, don't let those 3/4/5/6/7 years go to waste.
And to prove I did have a ball in my first year at Uni...
