Advice for first year Uni students

Having just finished Year 13, I know there are a lot of things I now regret not having done/not knowing whilst studying at college. What is the best advice you have for everyone going into their first year of University?

Push yourself out of your comfort zone. Don't shy away from new opportunities to try new things and meet new people. Throw yourself into the university experience. Work hard (ish) - a lot of people say first year doesn't count and it doesn't really, as long as you pass it you're fine. However, getting into good work habits in your first year is so beneficial for when it actually counts. Also if you're planning on applying for any internships/vacation schemes etc then you will often be asked to list every module you've completed and your mark. If you just scraped past the 40% mark, your application will most likely end up in the bin.

Also people at uni are really open to making friends in the first few weeks-month of uni but after that it becomes a lot more difficult as people have found their groups etc. I'm not saying it becomes impossible but really make an effort in the first month or so to make as many friends as you can and maintain these friendships as long as possible. A lot can change in one week at university.

I have a stammer which comes with a lot of anxiety when put in unfamiliar situations or meeting new people and I struggle to say my name and introduce myself so first week of halls should be interesting...

Having just finished Year 13, I know there are a lot of things I now regret not having done/not knowing whilst studying at college. What is the best advice you have for everyone going into their first year of University?

Push yourself out of your comfort zone. Don't shy away from new opportunities to try new things and meet new people. Throw yourself into the university experience. Work hard (ish) - a lot of people say first year doesn't count and it doesn't really, as long as you pass it you're fine. However, getting into good work habits in your first year is so beneficial for when it actually counts. Also if you're planning on applying for any internships/vacation schemes etc then you will often be asked to list every module you've completed and your mark. If you just scraped past the 40% mark, your application will most likely end up in the bin.

Also people at uni are really open to making friends in the first few weeks-month of uni but after that it becomes a lot more difficult as people have found their groups etc. I'm not saying it becomes impossible but really make an effort in the first month or so to make as many friends as you can and maintain these friendships as long as possible. A lot can change in one week at university.

I have a stammer which comes with a lot of anxiety when put in unfamiliar situations or meeting new people and I struggle to say my name and introduce myself so first week of halls should be interesting...

I don't know how it happened but I developed the same thing in Year 13 and I've gotten rid of it. If you want to fix that issue, you need to assess yourself and find out why it's happening. I started speaking way too quickly out of nowhere and my pace was too fast so very often I'd literally stumble on my own words and sentences and stutter sometimes. There is a sort of nervousness that can manifest when speaking, so practice to take your time when you talk and especially if you have anxiety when speaking to new people, you have to relax.

It's not an easy process and will take time but just try your best to be comfortable in such social situations (fake it 'til you make it confidence always works) and you will undo it.

I've had it since I was around 5 and have had many courses of speech therapy to help compensate. It worked the first time as I went from not being able to say a sentence to my speech being more fluent.
After that though, therapy has had no effect and the practices they teach don't work for me.
My stammer is not about stumbling over words or repeating a few syllables. There are many different types of stammers but the one I have is physically being unable to say a word as if someone's put up a block and you can't get the word out. It's both physical and mental and i don't see it ever going away because well, it's highly unlikely that it will. It might and probably will improve gradually as it has done over time but I'll always have it.

I've heard this all before. Just relax, don't be nervous, take a deep breath and start over, put a pencil in your mouth and talk (this one makes me laugh), fake confidence ect, ect. While I really appreciate the tips that I'm sure helped you, I've tried all of them for years and they just straight up don't help me.
The things that I can work on however is my confidence and anxiety which I think uni will help a lot with. Throwing myself in and getting used to talking and meeting with new people should definitely help.
I'm glad that you managed to overcome your struggle and that it was just a phase as it just plain out sucks as I'm sure you know.
Thanks for sharing 😊

This is really helpful, thank you. As I'll be applying for vacation schemes in my second year I know the first year does count, at least for me. Is there anything I should be doing like practising essay writing in order to get high marks whilst adapting to Uni style work and the workload?