I got into a relationship with my ex shortly before going to university, we lasted until about March time in my second year.
It initially started off as us seeing each other every weekend or so, which probably wasn't so good in that first semester when I was still trying to make friends and stuff. In that regards, I feel I missed out and would definitely have tried to limit things in hindsight. However, it was the start of our relationship and it made sense to see each other as much as possible at the time.
Not to say I didn't develop a social life, I did, but I believe I probably could have done a better job building bridges if I hadn't been engaged with my girlfriend over all those weekends. Whilst it doesn't seem like much to give up a few days at the end of the week, the weekends can be important from a social aspect because students can generally be more free then. It also wasn't great for my studies at first either, being busy over weekends meant I didn't put in quite as much time as I should have in that regard...
When we broke up in second year, it did take me a while to adjust, but I really bounced back in third year and this was probably my favourite time at university. Made good on my promises to myself to join new societies, take up a new sport, meet new people, etc. This really left me wandering what could have been if I hadn't been tied down during that first year however.
Looking back, I probably wouldn't have got into that relationship in the first place knowing the things I do today. However, that relationship was incredibly valuable to my personal development, I learnt so many things and I don't regret having been it, but I do regret the timing somewhat. Of course, that being the case, relationships heavily rely on timing, so swings and roundabouts really.
It is a case of 'grass could have been greener' syndrome, but realistically, I probably didn't miss out on all that much and the experience wouldn't have been too different. However, if you want to live a life of no regrets, do what makes sense to you at the time. If it's to stay with your partner that you've built something important with, go for it. If it's to unshackle yourself and live your life to it's full extent, go for it. There wouldn't really be a right answer in this regard, and you certainly don't need to feel pressured to conform to what you think everyone's doing.
That said, most couples I knew that were together from before university didn't make it past the first year. If you aren't ready for the distance, you should consider how much it's worth being anchored down like that.