The Student Room Group

Average age of ppl starting in Uni

Heres the problem i was studying my A levels but had to leave due to moving , then started work at 17 and now(18) doing my A levels for Maths, Accounts and ICT .
i wanna go Uni to study maths but ill be 20 after college and dont now if ill be to old or if there ant much 18 or 19 year olds there?
So my question is wot is the average age of ppl starting uni ?

Scroll to see replies

Reply 1
I don't see there being much of a problem with you being slightly older than average. If your 20 when you start you'll only be 1 year older than those who have taken a gap year and I don;t think you'll notice a huge difference in maturity between you and most of the other freshers (no offence!). Where were you thinking of studying?
Meh, I started Uni at 20. Doesn't make any difference really, especially not in classes, there are loads of MUCH older students (i.e. 25+ year olds). If you stay in halls the average age of people is a bit lower, but even then most are 18 or older... and, luckily, I'm very immature.
Reply 3
Probaly studying maths at Essex uni cos i live there :smile:, not sure if im smart enough to go to uni lol
gotta get a B in maths !!!!!!!
and u?
Reply 4
i started once at 18...and then again at 20...there is a slight difference - as in u can tell those who have just come fresh from school, which can be annoyin at times, but most of my friends/hall mates are 19/20 anyway so its cool.
My friend who's 30 lives in halls and gets on fine...you won't notice the difference.
3 of my flatmates were 20, and about 2 of them turned 20 whilst there.

You're going to get some older people, some young people, but everyones in the same boat thinking, 'am I too old?' or 'am I too young?'

You'll be fine!
I'm gonna be 19 in August when I start (retaking right now), and I'm worried about the age gap to.
Reply 8
I was 18 when I started uni, but I had friends on the course who were 20, 24, 28 when they started. There are loads of mature students, I really wouldn't worry about it!
Reply 9
I started at 20, nobody gives a toss. Nobody commented on my age during the three years. Yes some where younger, some were a lot more immature but some were also much more older and mature than me.
Reply 10
If I don't have a GAP year, which is likely, I'll start when I'm 17, though within a couple of weeks I'll be 18.
I'll be 19 and 1/2 when I start and it won't make any difference. I know most 18 yrold freshers are less mature than I was at 16 :wink: cos I used to work at a uni, but I can act immature when I want :p:
if the 1st years start to look on you as a father figure, you can always hang out with 2nd/3rd years :smile:
tvfanatic
I'm gonna be 19 in August when I start (retaking right now), and I'm worried about the age gap to.


You def won't be older - I'd say 19 is the most common age. I've met very few people at uni who have come straight out of school.
hallucination
You def won't be older - I'd say 19 is the most common age. I've met very few people at uni who have come straight out of school.

Really?
cool you've put my mind at rest :cool: :wink: :biggrin:
Reply 14
thanks alot guys , now i gotta wait 2 more years :smile:
thaks for the replays
Reply 15
Not at all. I'm tha youngest in my flat (18), the rest are 19-23. Granted, it's different where i'm at as most have to doa foundation or diploma before the degree.
More people than you'd think take gap years. In my halls I think probably half have come straight from school, and the other half have taken one or more years out. In practice, you can't usually tell who's taken a gap year and who hasn't. There will be a few idiots who have clearly just left school and don't know how to cope with the freedom, and you can spot them a mile off. Then pretty much everyone else will be the same, and half way through the year someone in hall will have a birthday and you'll assume it's their 19th, but it will turn out to be their 21st or something.
Reply 17
susiemakemeblue
There will be a few idiots who have clearly just left school and don't know how to cope with the freedom, and you can spot them a mile off.


Agreed. There are two guys on my corridor who just get together and smoke drugs all the time, because they can. How pathetic. Some of these people don't even grow up when they move into a house. My boyfriend is a second year living in a house with 8 other guys, and apparently one of them just sits in bed all day with a joint because his parents aren't there to stop him. Luckily, most other people I've come across are normal though!

I think my corridor must be an anomaly...all of us are 18/19, just out of school :eek:
i was 19 when i started uni acople of my flat mates turn 20 before xmas and i turn 20 in Feburary so go to uni most of the first year student will be 18-20 so go
Reply 19
One of my mates in halls is 22, you'll still find him sprawled on the floor blowing up a condom under someone's door, while my 17 year old friend acts as though she's a 25 year old housewife. Age doesn't matter in most uni environments, when you get to that stage, a year or two doesn't really affect how you act.