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How to start preparing for university

What website or books would you recommend to guide you on how to prepare to go to university?

University of Sunderland Student Ambassador

One thing that really helped me was looking at youtubers old videos of when they were preparing to go to uni, that might help.
Best of luck!

Joseph - University of Sunderland Student Ambassador

Reply 2

University of Huddersfield Student Rep

Official Rep

Original post by Anonymous

What website or books would you recommend to guide you on how to prepare to go to university?

Hi anon!

There are a couple of resources such as hard copy/online books and also online resources which may help before going to university.
Like previously mentioned, I also watched YouTube videos of people sharing their experiences before starting their course.
However, this was four years ago, I think now others share their university experiences and what they do to prepare, on other more popular social media sites.
I also looked at the reading list that my university provided to get a head start, which I think did help.
As well as resources mentioned above, I spoke to my friends who were already at university, some who went to a different university I currently study at and some who went to the same one I currently study at.
I thought it would be best to speak friends from other university's as well as those who were studying at the same university, purely to get different advice and opinions on approaching the university experience.

I hope this has been of some help!
Please don't hesitate to ask any questions :smile:

Aaliya ~ 4th year pharmacy student ~ University of Huddersfield

Reply 3

howifeltoday

Just make sure you prepare better than me and don't have a breakdown.

Reply 4

JasmineBowley

Original post by Anonymous

What website or books would you recommend to guide you on how to prepare to go to university?

Hi! I would recommend reaching out to people at your uni, both students and the university staff, as this will help make sure advise is most suited to your course, uni or location.

Before I started at uni, my course-mates had made a group chat for us all to talk about things such as accommodation, organise meet-ups, and ask each other questions/advice. This was really useful as we were all going onto a new course, at a new university, in London, so it was great to be able to talk with other people in the same boat before hand and get to know them at uni or social events, as we weren't able to do this with previous graduates - although the current first years have a shared group chat where they can ask us questions and advice as well! There are also quite a few people on my course who had either gone to another university previously, or had been working for a few years, and they were able to share general advise in relation to university life or living situations, which was really helpful for someone who had come straight from doing A-levels and had no clue about how university worked, or how to navigate studying in London.

I also asked the staff a few questions by email or during events, and they were always helpful in their responses, replying quickly and in an interested manner. This helped my enthusiasm for joining the course too as I could see the staff were welcoming and keen on helping us - this was particularly nice given we were the first cohort to join.

Hope this helps :smile:

Reply 5

Coventry University Student Ambassadors

Official Rep

Original post by Anonymous

What website or books would you recommend to guide you on how to prepare to go to university?

Hey,

In terms of preparing for uni work, check if your course has any recommended readings etc. But I would just say enjoy the time off you have! If they set you work, of course you should do it. But for the most part, they won't expect you to come to university and already be an expert in the field. Some preparation is useful, but don't put too much pressure on yourself.

In terms of uni life, as others have mentioned, there are loads of YouTube videos you can watch. Maybe see if there are any study-Tubers at your university who give a better insight. There is also this book by Jack Edwards, which I found really helpful. He has tips and tricks for preparing for uni and your time actually at uni. It is linked here if you are interested: https://amzn.eu/d/i78lZ9C

I hope this helps!
Sara :smile:

Reply 6

hallamstudents

Official Rep

Original post by Anonymous

What website or books would you recommend to guide you on how to prepare to go to university?

Hey there!
When I was just starting to think about university, here's some things I did to prepare.

•

Looked at YouTube video tours of my accommodation: The accommodation companies do usually post these and sometimes give 360 tours so you can start to have a think about what things to bring and what decoration will fit in your room.

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TheStudentRoom: Have a read over other people's experiences and what they brought and ask any questions you have to the student ambassadors of the university you've chosen.

•

Check out Facebook groups: Usually there will be set-up groups on Facebook that you can join for your university. Whether that be for your course, your accommodation or just a general freshers chat. This way you can find your flatmates early and start chatting to your coursemates.

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Talk to your parents about budgeting: Ask them for any advice and start to think about what your allowance will be for necessities.

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Look for jobs: Maybe start to think about looking at job sites if you were thinking about getting a job at university. It takes a while to get a job in a city so it might be worth starting early as they will be looking for people to replace those who have just finished university that year.

•

Look at what Welcome Week events are available: Have a look at what sports and societies fairs are going on and read up early about what societies you might be interested in. This will help to already have a list when you get there as the process will be a lot more organised.

•

Chat to past students: Whether that be word-of-mouth talking to people you already know about their experience at university or chatting to past students who already have studied at your university of choice. Usually you can find these on your universities website.

Hope this helped!
Lucy - Digital Student Ambassador SHU

Reply 7

Chester Student

Official Rep

Original post by Anonymous

What website or books would you recommend to guide you on how to prepare to go to university?

Hi there,

when I was preparing for uni I had a look at some websites on Google that list essential things for uni and things that you might avoid taking. For example I saw some advice about what clothes to take, making sure they’re seasonal. Pointless moving the whole wardrobe if you’re planning on coming home to visit again during holidays. I also had a look through TikTok hashtags like #uni or #uniessentials #movingtouni - these helped a lot to break down decorative/aesthetic decisions and ideas about saving space.

All the best,
Ellie