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Mistakes you wish you didn't make at uni ?

I'm gonna start freshmen year so I'd like some advice :biggrin:
Which things do you regret doing/not doing at uni ?
What would you do looking back ?
Discuss :biggrin:

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Focusing on doing well in my degree.

What I should've done is spent 3 years brown-nosing people, building connections and otherwise being cunning.

Think hard, anyone who isn't doing a vocational subject.
Reply 2
Miss freshers week, when I first came to university I had never been clubbing before in my life so I got my first taste of it, decided I didn't like it within 30 minutes of entering a club and pretty much never went clubbing again until a few weeks later I decided to give it another go and ended up absolutely loving in and still do to this day and so missing freshers is one of the biggest regrets in my life. Luckily I still have 2 years of freshers weeks to make up for it.
Reply 3
So many things I would change.
Should've moved out from first year. My flatmates are amazing, and they had horrible experiences in halls.
Original post by CAROLAL1
I'm gonna start freshmen year so I'd like some advice :biggrin:
Which things do you regret doing/not doing at uni ?
What would you do looking back ?
Discuss :biggrin:


Looking back, I don't really have any regrets.

Although, I do know a lot of people who wish they'd worked a bit more and partied a bit less so bear that in mind maybe. :wink:
I kind of wish I went into catered halls instead of self-catering flats.... only because it's a great way of meeting more people and it's very sociable.

Having said that... if I hadn't been in the accommodation I wouldn't have met my best friend... so I can't complain too much!

I think I spent a lot of time focusing on doing the "right" thing during my first and second year.... i.e. I studied, worked and trained hard as part of the uni water polo team. I was so committed I missed out on the big monday night out every week... no one wants to have a night out smelling of chlorine, with pink eyes! Although I got to party hard during sports night on a Wednesday I wished I'd been a bit more spontaneous and not built my life around a regimented "routine".

I had more and more fun as uni went on, my 3rd year was amazing. I think that was because I was far more relaxed and focused more on the balance between having fun and studying.
Hey lecturer, Y U NO UPLOAD LECTURE NOTES.

Possibly not making contacts and enjoying myself. However I don't regret studying.
Original post by fnatic NateDestiel
Hey lecturer, Y U NO UPLOAD LECTURE NOTES.

Possibly not making contacts and enjoying myself. However I don't regret studying.


You're already in uni??? :0
Despite what some people have said on this thread, I'd say party hard, work hard, get yourself out there (making friends all the time), and really get involved in Uni via extra curricular activities etc. Don't waste your time sticking to one group of people as well. I finished Uni 2 years ago, and one thing my friends always say to me is that they wish they got involved more and made friends outside of their comfort zone. Luckily for me, I did all of that and don't look back at uni with any regrets.
Original post by fnatic NateDestiel


Possibly not making contacts


Original post by Moosferatu
.
building connections


What do you guys mean by that?
Original post by yodawg321
What do you guys mean by that?


I think they mean getting to know people who will give you a leg up in your future career.
Reply 12
Going to uni
Original post by yodawg321
What do you guys mean by that?


Most decent jobs are got through nepotism/patronage. Meritocracy and managers/bosses picking the best person for the job is a pile of **** so forget everything your teachers told you. You need to make friends with people born into wealth or who've wormed their way up and get it so they value you/your skillset so much they're willing to bypass the whole application and interview process and just hand you a job. It's social as well as economic capital. Any chump can do most jobs out there, but is hiring you over someone else going to bring extra benefit to someone? If not, jog on.

Confidence in Britain is falling and we're heading for brutal social upheavel, most people just want to get as much as they can in before the spark hits the powder. If I could fiddle while Rome burned instead of cry in the dole queues, I would too.
(edited 9 years ago)
Original post by CAROLAL1
I'm gonna start freshmen year so I'd like some advice :biggrin:
Which things do you regret doing/not doing at uni ?
What would you do looking back ?
Discuss :biggrin:



I was a bit regretful of not joining a sports club but they're all drinking clubs that occasionally play sport.

Overall tbh i came out with a first and an awesome gf and having lifted weights for 3 years and made decent progress on that so can't complain really.

Don't want to have butterfly efects from changing not embaressing myself on x night out in freshers week.
Reply 15
Original post by Moosferatu
Most decent jobs are got through nepotism/patronage. Meritocracy and managers/bosses picking the best person for the job is a pile of **** so forget everything your teachers told you. You need to make friends with people born into wealth or who've wormed their way up and get it so they value you/your skillset so much they're willing to bypass the whole application and interview process and just hand you a job. It's social as well as economic capital. Any chump can do most jobs out there, but is hiring you over someone else going to bring extra benefit to someone? If not, jog on.

Confidence in Britain is falling and we're heading for brutal social upheavel, most people just want to get as much as they can in before the spark hits the powder. If I could fiddle while Rome burned instead of cry in the dole queues, I would too.


This actually scares me :eek:
Working too hard and not going out enough and partying when my friends invited me!
Original post by Moosferatu
Most decent jobs are got through nepotism/patronage. Meritocracy and managers/bosses picking the best person for the job is a pile of **** so forget everything your teachers told you. You need to make friends with people born into wealth or who've wormed their way up and get it so they value you/your skillset so much they're willing to bypass the whole application and interview process and just hand you a job. It's social as well as economic capital. Any chump can do most jobs out there, but is hiring you over someone else going to bring extra benefit to someone? If not, jog on.

Confidence in Britain is falling and we're heading for brutal social upheavel, most people just want to get as much as they can in before the spark hits the powder. If I could fiddle while Rome burned instead of cry in the dole queues, I would too.


Most manager's main criteria for selecting candidates is to never pick anyone that might turn out to be smarter than them. That and looking like the sort of person who will take endless **** without complaining, and possibly being an asset to the works sports team.

This is what "overqualified" means. It translates as "we're worried you would show us all up". Meritocracy is bull****, its not what you know, its who you know. The entire point of going to uni is to make contacts, unfortunately the contacts you really need are probably not at universities.
Original post by Motorbiker
I was a bit regretful of not joining a sports club but they're all drinking clubs that occasionally play sport.



I think that's a bit of a myth. Maybe its true of a handful of clubs, but every sports team I was ever involved with spent 10 hours on the pitch for every hour in the pub.
I should have tried harder in first year even though the marks didn't count; being better at basic material would have made later years easier for me.

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