Very Homesick, should I stay at uni?

How far from home are you? maybe you'd be better off in a uni closer to home so you could commute, or only be a stone's throw from home if you did move out? Homesickness does get better as you find your feet, so I would say it's too early to make any decisions now, but bear those options in mind if you still can't hack it come Christmas.

I'm 4 hours away from home, so going home for weekends is not that easy. I think that maybe going to the local uni would be easier for me, or a uni close enough so I can commute and go home at weekends. The thing is, if I'm really ready for something, I usually find it easy to do and enjoy it. Should this be the same with uni?

Not necessarily - uni is HUGE, a massive step to take in your life, a massive step towards growing up and being independent from your parents. I did a year abroad last year and spent the vast majority of it wanting to go home, but I stuck it out and certainly don't regret it. I reckon a 4 hour trip could be doable for a weekend home - if you left after your last lecture friday and came back to uni on a sunday evening, and brought stuff to do on the train (work and such like) it could be quite productive, rather than sitting in halls thinking about leaving.

Try to stick it out, I think you'll be okay

Thanks for the advice, I'll try going home and see if it makes things better or worse The only problem is the cost, which means I can't do it often. But I'll see and make the final decision at Christmas

Do you get a reading week? Maybe you could go home for that?

I'll tell you how I felt.. I felt like this in my first week and wanted to drop out. Even though I had made good friends and was having fun all I ever wanted was to be home. I spoke to my parents about it who said stick it out until Christmas, after Christmas I was apprehensive about going back but I went because we would be getting all our coursework results. I still wasn't 100% happy but did stick it out. I'm in my second year now and I'm only here for my course, when I should be here for friends etc. And I really wish that I had left in the first few weeks when my gut feeling told me to do so because now I've got no choice but to carry on here when I'm not really happy.

Although for some people it will get better and you have only been there just over a week. If you keep busy and join societies then hopefully it will get better for you don't just go by my experience.

Hey I'm a young 18 as well (birthday was only in August) and I feel pretty much the same as you, homesick and unsure if I'm really ready for what I'm doing right now. I never really was particularly excited about Uni, I didn't even want to think about it tbh and in hindsight I think I should have deferred a year but felt under too much pressure with my friends all going away and with the fees rising. I know what you mean about not eating, I barely eat anything here, I've pretty much just had 2 "meals" (often meaning just a pasty or something) and that's it and I have to force myself to make those because I'm never really in the mood for it. I just feel like I shouldn't be here right now and it's hindering me with my work because I really can't motivate myself and for meeting new people.

My plan is to give it another 2-3 weeks then I'm going to go visit my parents (although it's a 4 hour drive for me too ) and talk to them about it, see what they say, and I might seek some advice from the Uni. People always say to stick it out until Christmas but if I did drop out I'd want to reapply next year when I'm more ready and to a Uni closer to home and leaving it until Christmas might make this difficult so I dunno :/