Is it normal to be disappointed with uni at first?

A while back I was going to apply for a STEM based subject but I was struggling quite a bit with those at A level and wasn't particularly passionate about any of them so I applied for History, that was my favourite subject and usually the one I always aced in class. I also got into Bristol which I was really happy about.

I've been having a good time with the social life so far and I haven't been struggling with the work at all but it feels a little bit under-whelming. Work so far has mostly just consisted of attending lectures and reading assigned texts and then coming to the seminars and discussing it but in my seminars I tend to think most people don't do the readings anyway since they stay silent. This is with only 12 contact hours a week.

I do love history, but I just don't feel like I'm getting much out of studying it here so far especially considering how much money it costs to study and with how credible this uni is supposed to be I expected it to be a bit more than this. I also picked this subject mostly just because I enjoyed studying it and was good at it. I didn't think a huge amount about the career prospects but now I'm starting to wonder if I should have.

I guess it takes some time to adjust to uni's independent style of study since everything is so hands on in school, but is this feeling just because I'm a first year student or is this just the reality of not picking a STEM subject at uni?

Reply 1

PhoenixFortune

Original post by Mish2000

It sounds like you just aren't used to university level study yet. It can take a while to adjust to the independent requirements of learning, and can feel either intimidating or boring if you aren't sure how to structure your time/how to study. Maybe visit your university's study skills department to see what you could be doing differently or adding to. You get out of university what you put in, unlike school - if you don't do independent study after each lecture, no one is going to nag you to do it. If you don't understand a topic and don't tell the lecturer or go to their office hours, they won't know you're struggling. It all centres on you (and everyone else) being proactive.