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Dropped Out of University
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may be sry
Do what u love
I started a Criminology degree a month ago, completely changed course/Uni through adjustment at the last the minute when I did better than expected.
I immediately hated university life, I have terrible problems socialising and there was so much emphasis put on that. The whole student lifestyle (drinking, clubbing, etc) just wasn't for me either.
I was fine with that, I was hoping to be able to fill my time with things I enjoyed and the work for my course. Unfortunately, I soon realised my course is just so dull and boring, with an extreme workload. There is so much reading required, and so much essay-writing that I just can't handle it very well.
I don't particularly know what to do-
I could attempt to drop out- but I'm not sure if I could handle the embarrassment, so many people have expectations of me, and it would be terrible to let them down.
But similarly, I'm just constantly miserable, and I've been rather ill over the past week, which could have been at least partially due to the stress.
Even if I did drop out, what of the money from SFE, the loans/grants...
It is all a rather confusing mess.
I immediately hated university life, I have terrible problems socialising and there was so much emphasis put on that. The whole student lifestyle (drinking, clubbing, etc) just wasn't for me either.
I was fine with that, I was hoping to be able to fill my time with things I enjoyed and the work for my course. Unfortunately, I soon realised my course is just so dull and boring, with an extreme workload. There is so much reading required, and so much essay-writing that I just can't handle it very well.
I don't particularly know what to do-
I could attempt to drop out- but I'm not sure if I could handle the embarrassment, so many people have expectations of me, and it would be terrible to let them down.
But similarly, I'm just constantly miserable, and I've been rather ill over the past week, which could have been at least partially due to the stress.
Even if I did drop out, what of the money from SFE, the loans/grants...
It is all a rather confusing mess.
Hey guys, Im in the same boat. I left school in 2014 after 6th year, applied for game design at uni and graphic design at college but ultimately rejected both and took a gap year. That was a terrible idea because I basically lost all my confidence, had terrible anxiety and depression and applied for French and History at uni. Now that I am actually studying it I hate it. The workload is taking over my life and making me ill because I cant sleep or focus at all. I have only been here a month and I feel like such a loser for wasting a year of my life. My parents are annoyed that I wasted it too and I feel like I still have no clue what to do with myself. All my friends are in 2nd year already and I feel lke all I do is make mistakes. Not sure whether to try and suck it up and finish my deadlines instead of feeling sorry for myself but at the same time I have been absolutely horrible to my parents for being depressed and stressed. I was smart in school but after I left everything has just went downhill 
I wish I did graphic design because I would be in 2nd year of my HND by now
I wish I did graphic design because I would be in 2nd year of my HND by now 
Original post by j1997j
Thank you! I left Manchester. Dunno where I'd reapply, somewhere closer to home that accepts AAA 
Hi, I'm currently studying at the university of Manchester (first year) and seriously considering dropping out and reapplying to a uni in London next year. Feeling incredibly lonely, have no idea what I'm doing and feel so far away from friends and family back home. What were your reasons for leaving and what course where you studying, if you don't mind me asking?
This is exactly me at the moment, im dropping out this week and my mum and dad said do something that makes you happy, i would like to hear from you now and see what path you went from afterwards!
I seriously don't know what to do.I thought it would get easier but every day waking up in halls is just depressing and I feel so homesick still. Stuff is going on with my family at home and I hate being far away from them, and I hate not having people who love and know me well around me to support me. I am going home this weekend and I'll speak to my parents, but I think they'll tell me to wait until christmas which I'll hopefully be able to do, but I don't know what to do if I leave. I would ideally want to transfer to a london uni and commute but everyone will already have their friends etc and I don't know if that would make it worse I am so confused and lonely. I don't feel ready for full time employment which is obviously the other option because I have no idea what I want to do, and I DO wanna get a degree, but I just don't feel strong enough to be at uni, which may sound a bit pathetic but I have always had issues with mental health etc and I feel that if something major or even minor ever happened I wouldn't be able to cope without being around my family
I am so confused and lonely. I don't feel ready for full time employment which is obviously the other option because I have no idea what I want to do, and I DO wanna get a degree, but I just don't feel strong enough to be at uni, which may sound a bit pathetic but I have always had issues with mental health etc and I feel that if something major or even minor ever happened I wouldn't be able to cope without being around my family So what makes you happy! Like if you like doing gym or anything, get a part time job in a leisure centre been a lifeguard , do a part Time for time been. Untill you find out what you want to do, there is also RAF! You can be PTI , or photographor, engineer ! Anything you want, get to travel world , make new friends, don't get it stuck in your head that uni is the only way forward cause even tho uni tell you that you will get a job, the real stat is its onl 3/10 that will get a job after uni and what make you special from over 20,000 other students that want the same job as you in England in your degree? It's risky to wait and waste 3 years! Think about it
Yeah I am I honestly have no idea what to do. I feel like dropping out would be such a waste, Manchester is such a highly regarded university and I'm so lucky to have got in. But at the same time i'm hating the whole atmosphere. Tbh i'm not sure i'm even ready for uni. I was actually considering a year out but decided against it (mainly due to pressure from my sixth form, who wanted us to go straight into uni)
I honestly have no idea what to do. I feel like dropping out would be such a waste, Manchester is such a highly regarded university and I'm so lucky to have got in. But at the same time i'm hating the whole atmosphere. Tbh i'm not sure i'm even ready for uni. I was actually considering a year out but decided against it (mainly due to pressure from my sixth form, who wanted us to go straight into uni)im currently in university doing crime scene science, and I hate it.. the uni is terrible the area I live in is rough as hell in the just over a month ive lived there weve had someone smash our windows, 3 men try and break in, 2 fires set outside our house and im constantly being hounded for money by the homeless dregs that hang around the uni and the cash points, ive been followed home and all sorts, I never get any sleep because my house mates stay up nearly every night till 4 am screaming and shouting, don't get me wrong I love to go out and party but its getting into the year now and ive barely done anything because I cant sleep, im 4 hours away from home and I find myself wanting to go home at every opportunity purely because I do not want to be there. I pay nearly £100 a week to live in a tiny room with a camp bed in, its nothing short of terrible. I used to have soooo much ambition and I wanted to succeed in every aspect but the uni has sucked every ounce of it out of me, im stressed out all the time and theres not much I can do about it. ive been doing a lot of soul searching and im gonna leave at the end of term its a shame but ive completely lost myself and I need to come home and have a think of what im going to do with myself
I dropped out after seven weeks.
I didn't get great A-Levels and went through clearing on a Systems Engineering course in London. The course content I liked, but the main reason I quit were my classmates. I was the only person of my ethnic persuasion and it ended up mattering a lot more than I would have liked. To put it bluntly, they really didn't like me around. That is until it was a lab session which I was actually very good at. Then of course they were my best pal. After that, no bueno. One of the first weeks I was there, I asked one of them where the class was and he just barked back, "Work it out!" and walked away. That was the beginning of the end.
I dropped out, repeated a year of A-Level and got my grades up, leaving with Computer Science (A, but it was already), Maths B, Physics A and Music B. I then decided to follow my passion and did a Music Technology degree leaving with a first class.
So the good. I really enjoyed my course, my classmates and had a blast for the three years I was there. It touched on all my main areas of knowledge from music production, physics and wave theory and various other bits besides.
And the bad. Well, selling myself on a Music Tech degree was difficult initially and I would say I think I lost out on a couple of graduate opportunities for software development positions as a result.
I'm 32 now and I would say this. I am undergoing my second Undergraduate degree with the Open University. Being able to work full time while studying is brilliant, although demanding. I currently work as a technical manager for a largeish company. I worked pretty hard to get here, making some careful moves here and there. And of course, the sacred art of BS'ing.
To reflect on it, maybe I should have done things differently. Maybe I shouldn't have been as reclusive when I was 20 and sought out friends from outside of my immediate classmates, maybe attended some SU events, that sort of thing. Maybe I should have just stuck it out, maybe repeating my A-Levels was a good idea and I should have gone for a different degree subject? Maybe maybe maybe.
What I would definitely encourage you to do is to consider an alternative subject or university. The cold hard fact i have been taught time and time again in the working world that there is a world of difference in your prospects between having a degree and not. I would go as far to say that unless you have a fantastic business idea or a unique opportunity where it doesn't matter on the horizon, if you are just like the rest of us average schmoes, then having a degree under your belt is significantly better than not. There are exceptions to that rule, but I can assure you in the world of tech there are very few exceptions. Added to that, if you have already started, you are already in the hole somewhat with your student loans. So personally I would make it count.
As for your reasons for quitting, it's understandable. It's a complete crap-shoot as to whether you will see a positive or negative environment elsewhere. You never know until you're there. The only thing I can suggest is make use of the open days and see the makeup of the people that are coming along.
I didn't get great A-Levels and went through clearing on a Systems Engineering course in London. The course content I liked, but the main reason I quit were my classmates. I was the only person of my ethnic persuasion and it ended up mattering a lot more than I would have liked. To put it bluntly, they really didn't like me around. That is until it was a lab session which I was actually very good at. Then of course they were my best pal. After that, no bueno. One of the first weeks I was there, I asked one of them where the class was and he just barked back, "Work it out!" and walked away. That was the beginning of the end.
I dropped out, repeated a year of A-Level and got my grades up, leaving with Computer Science (A, but it was already), Maths B, Physics A and Music B. I then decided to follow my passion and did a Music Technology degree leaving with a first class.
So the good. I really enjoyed my course, my classmates and had a blast for the three years I was there. It touched on all my main areas of knowledge from music production, physics and wave theory and various other bits besides.
And the bad. Well, selling myself on a Music Tech degree was difficult initially and I would say I think I lost out on a couple of graduate opportunities for software development positions as a result.
I'm 32 now and I would say this. I am undergoing my second Undergraduate degree with the Open University. Being able to work full time while studying is brilliant, although demanding. I currently work as a technical manager for a largeish company. I worked pretty hard to get here, making some careful moves here and there. And of course, the sacred art of BS'ing.
To reflect on it, maybe I should have done things differently. Maybe I shouldn't have been as reclusive when I was 20 and sought out friends from outside of my immediate classmates, maybe attended some SU events, that sort of thing. Maybe I should have just stuck it out, maybe repeating my A-Levels was a good idea and I should have gone for a different degree subject? Maybe maybe maybe.
What I would definitely encourage you to do is to consider an alternative subject or university. The cold hard fact i have been taught time and time again in the working world that there is a world of difference in your prospects between having a degree and not. I would go as far to say that unless you have a fantastic business idea or a unique opportunity where it doesn't matter on the horizon, if you are just like the rest of us average schmoes, then having a degree under your belt is significantly better than not. There are exceptions to that rule, but I can assure you in the world of tech there are very few exceptions. Added to that, if you have already started, you are already in the hole somewhat with your student loans. So personally I would make it count.
As for your reasons for quitting, it's understandable. It's a complete crap-shoot as to whether you will see a positive or negative environment elsewhere. You never know until you're there. The only thing I can suggest is make use of the open days and see the makeup of the people that are coming along.
Last year, I dropped out of my course after 5 weeks.
From being in primary school, I always knew I was going to pursue a degree in English Lit. When it came to actually moving out, I was so stoked to be moving out of my home town - a new start and all the independence that comes with it. I realised fairly early on that the course wasn't what I had expected. I felt intense loneliness in a place where I felt I didn't fit in, and the passion I had for the subject dissipated completely, but I was overcome by pride to admit that the university life I had signed up for wasn't all that it had cracked up to be.
Having bipolar disorder means that I can't hide from things for very long before they take their toll. I ended up suffering a serious relapse, and ended up coming home. Three months later I landed a job at a restaurant before I eventually went back to uni, living at home, this year to study a completely different subject I had never before experienced. I have never been happier.
It's fair to say that dropping out of university was the best thing I've ever done, albeit at the time it felt like the absolute worst. It gave me time to re-evaluate my life, and to figure out exactly what I wanted to do without the excitement of Freshers impairing my judgement.
For anyone who is doubting their course right now, I say this: if it doesn't make you happy, don't do it. You'll never know what you're missing out on if you're spending your days wishing the mundanity to pass.
From being in primary school, I always knew I was going to pursue a degree in English Lit. When it came to actually moving out, I was so stoked to be moving out of my home town - a new start and all the independence that comes with it. I realised fairly early on that the course wasn't what I had expected. I felt intense loneliness in a place where I felt I didn't fit in, and the passion I had for the subject dissipated completely, but I was overcome by pride to admit that the university life I had signed up for wasn't all that it had cracked up to be.
Having bipolar disorder means that I can't hide from things for very long before they take their toll. I ended up suffering a serious relapse, and ended up coming home. Three months later I landed a job at a restaurant before I eventually went back to uni, living at home, this year to study a completely different subject I had never before experienced. I have never been happier.
It's fair to say that dropping out of university was the best thing I've ever done, albeit at the time it felt like the absolute worst. It gave me time to re-evaluate my life, and to figure out exactly what I wanted to do without the excitement of Freshers impairing my judgement.
For anyone who is doubting their course right now, I say this: if it doesn't make you happy, don't do it. You'll never know what you're missing out on if you're spending your days wishing the mundanity to pass.
Yeah its just annoyed me because in my mind ive built it up to be this massive thing and now its just not for me and i havent made a back up plan because i always thought i wont be one of those to drop out of uni but i think ive just made myself want to do it rather than thinking about what i actually want because ive thought theres no other choice but to go to uni i always thought you can only make something of yourself unless youve got a degree but its not always necessarily true as so many people ive spoke to have got degrees but are stuck in a dead end job because they cant find any job with the degree that have.
Original post by starkbe
Last year, I dropped out of my course after 5 weeks.
From being in primary school, I always knew I was going to pursue a degree in English Lit. When it came to actually moving out, I was so stoked to be moving out of my home town - a new start and all the independence that comes with it. I realised fairly early on that the course wasn't what I had expected. I felt intense loneliness in a place where I felt I didn't fit in, and the passion I had for the subject dissipated completely, but I was overcome by pride to admit that the university life I had signed up for wasn't all that it had cracked up to be.
Having bipolar disorder means that I can't hide from things for very long before they take their toll. I ended up suffering a serious relapse, and ended up coming home. Three months later I landed a job at a restaurant before I eventually went back to uni, living at home, this year to study a completely different subject I had never before experienced. I have never been happier.
It's fair to say that dropping out of university was the best thing I've ever done, albeit at the time it felt like the absolute worst. It gave me time to re-evaluate my life, and to figure out exactly what I wanted to do without the excitement of Freshers impairing my judgement.
For anyone who is doubting their course right now, I say this: if it doesn't make you happy, don't do it. You'll never know what you're missing out on if you're spending your days wishing the mundanity to pass.
From being in primary school, I always knew I was going to pursue a degree in English Lit. When it came to actually moving out, I was so stoked to be moving out of my home town - a new start and all the independence that comes with it. I realised fairly early on that the course wasn't what I had expected. I felt intense loneliness in a place where I felt I didn't fit in, and the passion I had for the subject dissipated completely, but I was overcome by pride to admit that the university life I had signed up for wasn't all that it had cracked up to be.
Having bipolar disorder means that I can't hide from things for very long before they take their toll. I ended up suffering a serious relapse, and ended up coming home. Three months later I landed a job at a restaurant before I eventually went back to uni, living at home, this year to study a completely different subject I had never before experienced. I have never been happier.
It's fair to say that dropping out of university was the best thing I've ever done, albeit at the time it felt like the absolute worst. It gave me time to re-evaluate my life, and to figure out exactly what I wanted to do without the excitement of Freshers impairing my judgement.
For anyone who is doubting their course right now, I say this: if it doesn't make you happy, don't do it. You'll never know what you're missing out on if you're spending your days wishing the mundanity to pass.
So glad that it all worked out in the end. It is always a brave decision to swim against the tide and do what is the right ( and not the expected) thing. I wish you all the best for the rest of your course.
Hi everyone, just wondering if anyone has some advice to lend from their own experience. I'm just going to tell it how it is, so you can hopefully understand why making the decision to stay or go is so hard for me. Sorry for the length of my post, I hope it explains well.
I took a BTEC in one subject which I thoroughly enjoyed and did well in; assignment load did get challenging towards the end but many people in the course graduated happily. Was very hands-on and outdoorsy; not intense, no exams. Best two years of my life.
Then I tried staying on to do a Foundation Degree in a related subject but it didn't work out - this is when the depression initially hit I reckon, causing me to quit because of almost complete loss of interest and motivation. It wasn't a well organised course due to it being the first time ever being run at this college. So I wasted a miserable year and £6k debt on that.
Couldn't get a job for about a month. Depression really took hold; safe to say I really wanted to take my own life just to stop the endless mental torture and tremendous guilt I felt towards my parents.
Eventually was persuaded to see a doc about it by mum, but by this time I had finally been hired and the depression eased off - I thought that'd be the last of it, because I thought at the time that the cause for my depression was being a NEET. So I avoided the doc's next appointment - the thought of group CBT terrified me and admitting I was so weak hurt my pride.
I worked full-time for about a year on minimum wage and inconsistent free time. Life still felt pretty boring; all I lived for was work and serving others, though I didn't know why I bothered living at all like this. Still had suicidal thoughts while working there but I met a really friendly, funny colleague who frankly kept me going. During this time, I realised I couldn't bear the thought of doing this kind of hard, low-paid work for the rest of my life.
So I started looking into proper university courses, and thought Zoology sounded great. Emphasis on fieldwork, well-renowned university, not too far to live away from home and it offered money off rent for a year + cash up-front as a reward for my high BTEC grades. My bro would be going to uni at the same time (a different one), so it all seemed to fit into place nicely. I was nervous but excited; felt like I was finally going to build some confidence and go places...
Wind on 10 weeks of being enrolled and I'm devastated to admit, yet again, that I'm considering quitting further education. The depression has kicked in again, and I'm nervous but a little proud to admit that I finally gathered courage to seek professional help to beat this demon. What is believed to keep causing the depression is actually anxiety. Haven't been diagnosed yet so unsure if it's just social or general, but teamed up with depression, it makes day-to-day life Hell.
I've arranged for counselling and to see a life advisor about my issues too, but this is a long process and the mental health issue has no quick solution. So uni will definitely be a struggle due to the mental health issues - I'm always exhausted, not enjoying any sports/societies I was originally in, no interests, missing lectures, can't concentrate on things for long. This course is also the first of its kind here (ironic, right? Didn't realise this until recently) so I don't hold much trust in the organisation and certainty of the course - our year is the trial and error group, I feel.
There's also the added stress of living from home, having the fire alarm constantly go off, noisy people disrupting any chance of trying for a decent sleeping pattern.
My parents are being really supportive about it all but I still feel overwhelmed with guilt for all the money they've put in.
I'm not enjoying it, can't see myself pulling together to complete all work in the three years seeing as I'm finding this year hard enough, and if I stay then the fear of failing anyway but having even more debt to repay terrifies me. If I stay, will the course content improve, and will I enjoy it?
But if I leave, I will of course seek mental health treatment locally, but what can I do? I've been searching for jobs and apprenticeships locally but no suitable are coming up. I can't take retail/point of contact or query jobs currently due to my anxiety (the fact that I'm not "normal" in social situations is obvious and has made previous retail/contact roles awkward). I'll speak to life advisor to see if there are any other courses I could switch to now. I can't do nothing again; that turns my mental state from almost extremely low to off the scales. I can't go through that again, it's torture.
So yet again, my life feels like one big confusing mess and I'm unsure whether to stay or leave. I know I must be the one to decide, but given my history I'm sure it's apparent that my decisions are terrible. Can anybody suggest any ideas or alternatives? Thanks for reading my whale of a background!
I took a BTEC in one subject which I thoroughly enjoyed and did well in; assignment load did get challenging towards the end but many people in the course graduated happily. Was very hands-on and outdoorsy; not intense, no exams. Best two years of my life.
Then I tried staying on to do a Foundation Degree in a related subject but it didn't work out - this is when the depression initially hit I reckon, causing me to quit because of almost complete loss of interest and motivation. It wasn't a well organised course due to it being the first time ever being run at this college. So I wasted a miserable year and £6k debt on that.
Couldn't get a job for about a month. Depression really took hold; safe to say I really wanted to take my own life just to stop the endless mental torture and tremendous guilt I felt towards my parents.
Eventually was persuaded to see a doc about it by mum, but by this time I had finally been hired and the depression eased off - I thought that'd be the last of it, because I thought at the time that the cause for my depression was being a NEET. So I avoided the doc's next appointment - the thought of group CBT terrified me and admitting I was so weak hurt my pride.
I worked full-time for about a year on minimum wage and inconsistent free time. Life still felt pretty boring; all I lived for was work and serving others, though I didn't know why I bothered living at all like this. Still had suicidal thoughts while working there but I met a really friendly, funny colleague who frankly kept me going. During this time, I realised I couldn't bear the thought of doing this kind of hard, low-paid work for the rest of my life.
So I started looking into proper university courses, and thought Zoology sounded great. Emphasis on fieldwork, well-renowned university, not too far to live away from home and it offered money off rent for a year + cash up-front as a reward for my high BTEC grades. My bro would be going to uni at the same time (a different one), so it all seemed to fit into place nicely. I was nervous but excited; felt like I was finally going to build some confidence and go places...
Wind on 10 weeks of being enrolled and I'm devastated to admit, yet again, that I'm considering quitting further education. The depression has kicked in again, and I'm nervous but a little proud to admit that I finally gathered courage to seek professional help to beat this demon. What is believed to keep causing the depression is actually anxiety. Haven't been diagnosed yet so unsure if it's just social or general, but teamed up with depression, it makes day-to-day life Hell.
I've arranged for counselling and to see a life advisor about my issues too, but this is a long process and the mental health issue has no quick solution. So uni will definitely be a struggle due to the mental health issues - I'm always exhausted, not enjoying any sports/societies I was originally in, no interests, missing lectures, can't concentrate on things for long. This course is also the first of its kind here (ironic, right? Didn't realise this until recently) so I don't hold much trust in the organisation and certainty of the course - our year is the trial and error group, I feel.
There's also the added stress of living from home, having the fire alarm constantly go off, noisy people disrupting any chance of trying for a decent sleeping pattern.
My parents are being really supportive about it all but I still feel overwhelmed with guilt for all the money they've put in.
I'm not enjoying it, can't see myself pulling together to complete all work in the three years seeing as I'm finding this year hard enough, and if I stay then the fear of failing anyway but having even more debt to repay terrifies me. If I stay, will the course content improve, and will I enjoy it?
But if I leave, I will of course seek mental health treatment locally, but what can I do? I've been searching for jobs and apprenticeships locally but no suitable are coming up. I can't take retail/point of contact or query jobs currently due to my anxiety (the fact that I'm not "normal" in social situations is obvious and has made previous retail/contact roles awkward). I'll speak to life advisor to see if there are any other courses I could switch to now. I can't do nothing again; that turns my mental state from almost extremely low to off the scales. I can't go through that again, it's torture.
So yet again, my life feels like one big confusing mess and I'm unsure whether to stay or leave. I know I must be the one to decide, but given my history I'm sure it's apparent that my decisions are terrible. Can anybody suggest any ideas or alternatives? Thanks for reading my whale of a background!
Hi everyone! Seems I'm a little late to the party...I dropped out of my previous course/uni after a week because the course and uni life weren't right for me. Now I'm considering different courses at a local uni so I can commute, but the entry requirements are higher than my grades, and I could do one course with a foundation year which I have the grades for, but I'm not sure what I'd do with that degree. So I'm kind of in a muddle! :P I feel I'm running out of time, but I do have a part time job to keep me going.
Original post by starkbe
Last year, I dropped out of my course after 5 weeks.
From being in primary school, I always knew I was going to pursue a degree in English Lit. When it came to actually moving out, I was so stoked to be moving out of my home town - a new start and all the independence that comes with it. I realised fairly early on that the course wasn't what I had expected. I felt intense loneliness in a place where I felt I didn't fit in, and the passion I had for the subject dissipated completely, but I was overcome by pride to admit that the university life I had signed up for wasn't all that it had cracked up to be.
Having bipolar disorder means that I can't hide from things for very long before they take their toll. I ended up suffering a serious relapse, and ended up coming home. Three months later I landed a job at a restaurant before I eventually went back to uni, living at home, this year to study a completely different subject I had never before experienced. I have never been happier.
It's fair to say that dropping out of university was the best thing I've ever done, albeit at the time it felt like the absolute worst. It gave me time to re-evaluate my life, and to figure out exactly what I wanted to do without the excitement of Freshers impairing my judgement.
For anyone who is doubting their course right now, I say this: if it doesn't make you happy, don't do it. You'll never know what you're missing out on if you're spending your days wishing the mundanity to pass.
From being in primary school, I always knew I was going to pursue a degree in English Lit. When it came to actually moving out, I was so stoked to be moving out of my home town - a new start and all the independence that comes with it. I realised fairly early on that the course wasn't what I had expected. I felt intense loneliness in a place where I felt I didn't fit in, and the passion I had for the subject dissipated completely, but I was overcome by pride to admit that the university life I had signed up for wasn't all that it had cracked up to be.
Having bipolar disorder means that I can't hide from things for very long before they take their toll. I ended up suffering a serious relapse, and ended up coming home. Three months later I landed a job at a restaurant before I eventually went back to uni, living at home, this year to study a completely different subject I had never before experienced. I have never been happier.
It's fair to say that dropping out of university was the best thing I've ever done, albeit at the time it felt like the absolute worst. It gave me time to re-evaluate my life, and to figure out exactly what I wanted to do without the excitement of Freshers impairing my judgement.
For anyone who is doubting their course right now, I say this: if it doesn't make you happy, don't do it. You'll never know what you're missing out on if you're spending your days wishing the mundanity to pass.
Hi, thanks for sharing your story. I could relate to the excited feeling of certainty that taking the degree I'm doing now would be the right choice but then having it not turn out like so. I understand that this is a hard question to answer, but what do you think influenced your absolute certainty to do a different degree and have it work out and bring you happiness? May I ask which degree you're now studying?
I too think that I need the stability of living at home, although I like shopping and cooking for myself.
How did you keep yourself occupied during those three months before employment?
One thing that makes me reluctant to quit my unenjoyable course is that from my previous world of work experience I imagine it to be hard to find a good job or progress in it unless I have a degree. That's why I tried for this degree; people told me it's good to have ANY degree to get a better job. I don't know if I'll cope though.
I don't think I have any solid or useful interests so I've been feeling very stuck in the mud since I left college, really.
Original post by shadowshy
Hi, thanks for sharing your story. I could relate to the excited feeling of certainty that taking the degree I'm doing now would be the right choice but then having it not turn out like so. I understand that this is a hard question to answer, but what do you think influenced your absolute certainty to do a different degree and have it work out and bring you happiness? May I ask which degree you're now studying?
I too think that I need the stability of living at home, although I like shopping and cooking for myself.
How did you keep yourself occupied during those three months before employment?
One thing that makes me reluctant to quit my unenjoyable course is that from my previous world of work experience I imagine it to be hard to find a good job or progress in it unless I have a degree. That's why I tried for this degree; people told me it's good to have ANY degree to get a better job. I don't know if I'll cope though.
I don't think I have any solid or useful interests so I've been feeling very stuck in the mud since I left college, really.
I too think that I need the stability of living at home, although I like shopping and cooking for myself.
How did you keep yourself occupied during those three months before employment?
One thing that makes me reluctant to quit my unenjoyable course is that from my previous world of work experience I imagine it to be hard to find a good job or progress in it unless I have a degree. That's why I tried for this degree; people told me it's good to have ANY degree to get a better job. I don't know if I'll cope though.
I don't think I have any solid or useful interests so I've been feeling very stuck in the mud since I left college, really.
I'm doing Politics now
For me, I didn't get to week 4 and think that I suddenly needed to do a new degree in Politics, or Economics, or Philosophy, or whatever. I dropped out not knowing what I wanted to do, or where life would take me, or if I would even be coming back to university. In that aspect, I never had that absolute certainty, even until the first week of my new course.
The thing that motivated me the most was the absolute certainty that I couldn't do that particular degree for three years. I couldn't guarantee that it would bring me happiness, only that I would be somewhat happier than I WAS. If that meant working at Burger King (which I also did, immediately after) at least I could count on getting out of the misery I had, unintentionally, landed myself in (which it did) while allowing me to fund my way and reach a better job with the absence of student loans and realising that I wAS NOW AN ADULT AND OMG WHAT DO ADULTS DO!?!
What you're feeling is totally relatable. At the moment you're in between a rock and a hard place, particularly hard given your Depression. Quitting uni is the scares thing I've ever done. No one can make your mind up for you, and it's ultimately down to you to trust your gut feeling.
Your end goal is that diploma, right? So you need to decide if you're willing to stick out three years in a course that doesn't interest you just to get to that little nuisance and all your suffering will have been worth it.
If you're not, then don't sweat it. Maybe the course isn't right. Maybe university isn't right. It doesn't suit everybody, hence why I am living at home now as it feels more like commuting to college and back. I would advise you to think beyond your current predicament at the long term picture, and then come to your conclusion.
I would also really advise you to visit your GP to get referred to a local mental health team and / or the mental health support your university has to offer. I know how debilitating Depression is, and chances are you're also feeling negative, not just because of your course, but because of your condition. If you get this addressed, you may actually find uni a lot more liveable. Ask for one to one CBT.
Good luck! Keep us updated on your decision
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