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My story - from drop out to first class

"This is a reply from another post, but I thought it would be good to share here"

I have just finished studying mathematics at a red brick university. I was about to drop out of university before my second year summer exams. I think I had attended about 5 lectures in the whole semester and thinking of going to university filled my with so much stress and dread I never wanted to go. Instead I was persuaded to officially suspend my studies, although my plan was still to leave altogether. For the next year I worked in a call centre, a terrible supplement store and a cafe just to try and clear the enormous overdraft that I'd already amassed. I can safely say, that this was one of the worst years of my life and was close to depression.

Spending a year working in dead end jobs that you hate really shows you the value of achieving of a good degree, and so almost a year after I decided I was going to leave university, I started studying for my exams. This experience showed me to the true value of lectures and academic teaching; in two months I self-taught myself everything for 6 modules with only last years notes as reference. I had no help, and it was hell. My grades ranged from 46 to 82, and my marks made my second year average drop to around 58.

Straight after those exams I applied for 3 internships and somehow managed to get onto one at a big 4 professional services company that started 2 weeks later. Almost immediately the value of university was starting to show. After it had finished I made a promise to work as hard as possible to ensure that I got a 2:1 and to create a future for myself.

University started and now instead of dread I was filled with hope and a reignited drive to succeed. If we were set 4 weeks to complete a piece of work, it was done within a week. We had 6 months to complete our final year project, I finished 2/3rds of it within a month. I joined American football for a semester and switched to powerlifting, with a goal to be stronger than I'd ever been. I applied for all of the top graduate jobs and worked my arse off securing myself a career after university: I'd only known life on the bottom and this was the time things were going to change.

January exams went strong, I'd managed to secure over 90 in two modules (over 85 for other courses) and my overall average had moved up to mid 60s and was now guaranteed a 2:1 as long as I didn't fail any exams. I'd now somehow achieved two job offers from the two schemes I really wanted and set my sights on a first class degree. I decided I would give it my all, and 9 weeks before my exams, I made a pact to not do any "fun" social activity and revise 5 hours a day, 6 days a week. It was pretty extreme, and lasted an eternity, but I knew it was worth it. As with the original poster, I finally looked to extra material. I read everything that was on the extra reading lists and more.

Then my final exams came, and all of the work I'd put in had been worth it. I felt confident in every one, and the one module that I'd thought would be hardest in my whole degree, I honestly felt I'd done the best in - ever. For a last exam, that was a brilliant feeling and the best way to end my long and emotional journey.

Yesterday, I found out I achieved a first class honours degree in mathematics. Tomorrow, I found out my marks.

If any of you have actually read this, and are feeling that university isn't for you, or its too hard, it's not. And if you're going to drop out, take a year out instead. As I said, it was one of the hardest and distressing years of my life, but categorically I can say that suspending my studies was the best thing I've ever done.

Hope this helps or inspires other students in my situation