GOLDEN THREAD: Uni students – What do you wish you knew before starting Uni?

Personally for me I need quite a bit of help during my time at uni and it would've been great before going knowing where to find specific support. Luckily for all of you soon starting (or currently there) https://studentspace.org.uk/ has support in the form of articles, videos etc. as well as an entire hub dedicated to helping you find support at your university (https://studentspace.org.uk/find-support)

For me personally, I wish I knew good areas to live in the city as a student- I didn't get into halls and had to find accommodation very last minute

I wish I knew how thin the walls were at halls.

I play the guitar, sometimes I did it in my room. I always tried to be very considerate and always asked my flatmates if they could hear me and to knock on my door if they could and I was annoying them. They said I wasn't annoying them, that they couldn't ever hear me! I mostly believed them until I heard my flatmate sneeze in their room. A tiny little sneeze, and I could hear it clear as day.

Even the tiniest sound carries through uni hall walls! Be considerate to your neighbours and, erm, particularly, if bringing guests over

Some other points I thought of:
-Course: don't buy books!
You actually don't need to buy the huge textbook bundle that people are always encouraging you to buy.
This is because you often don't use the books that much. When you need them, just get them from the library and return them. If there is ever an issue with accessing books, you can normally get in touch with the library and they just order more copies.
Most of the course materials are provided by the Professor/lecturer/teaching staff and textbooks can be redundant / very expensive.
If you're tempted to buy, get them 2nd hand - much cheaper!
-The First Year
For some Unis the first year doesn't count so you can be tempted to sort of pass through it with limited effort
However, this content is the backbone of the rest of the course - make an effort to understand it otherwise you can find subsequent years really tricky
-General Uni:
Nobody knows/cares how you got in or what A-levels you had! Just jump into your course, get on with it because everyone is at the same point when they are nervous starting the course and not knowing anyone so don't worry
-Assignments at Uni
Depends on your course but there are many different types/deadlines/ways of submission/marking etc.
Something to definitely clarify/check when you start doing your course!
-Choosing modules
Modules can be worth different credits as part of the overall degree so one to check.
For me though, I found looking at how it was assessed, the staff members teaching it and what pre-requisites were required.
Often you can only study certain modules if you've done other ones beforehand so it is worth checking these more long-term if you have particular ones in mind
-Specialising,
In some degrees, as you progress through the course, you can have more choices over what you study.
This can be more options and can even mean options to do modules in other disciplines e.g. ethics/maths/physics/languages.
You can also really tone down to what you are really interested in.
e.g. for me I hated organic chemistry so I specialised from 2nd year onwards to choosing options only in applied chemistry or physical chemistry which was really awesome!
-Uni exams
I thought these were really strange when I had my first ones at Uni.
instead of a big hall with lots of desks, exams can be anywhere at uni! I had some in the student's union, the conference rooms, lecture halls and even just random study spaces! Something to check out for. I actually found it less stressful to be taking exams in a place I'd been in lectures in just a few weeks ago. Quite reassuring tbh
-Societies
There are so many different ones, some you can find on the student union website or on Facebook
Definitely cool to try new sports and just go for it
Go to events even if you don't know anyone attending
Great way to meet new people and I wish I did it more because it is so much fun and often cheaper then doing it/trying out when you've moved out and are #proper Adult somewhere
Also you can join the committee for a society which is a really good way to get some experience for the CV and also help out and make the society awesome I would highly recommend this! Don't be shy, often another awesome way to make friends and do with friends
-Academic rep
I honestly had no idea about this being a thing but you can represent yourself to then aid the Academic staff on decisions made about your course.
It can be anything but for me I found it super useful during COVID. I also had a problematic lecturer/module and was able to get these concerns directly addressed. I actually witnessed first-hand the change that occurred and was in high-profile meetings with the Director Of Programmes so I knew how seriously they took student opinion!!

This is very helpful thanks 👍.

so glad it is helpful! If you're wondering about anything at all, TSR is a fab place to get any worries/questions answered
Are you receiving any results this year?

Yes I'm getting my A-level results tomorrow 😬

sending you good vibes!!
Remember that whatever happens, you will be absolutely fine because a few letters don't define you
You're awesome and you will always be able to #FindYourFuture no matter what the piece of paper says
#YouGotThis

Can’t think of anything, maybe the fact that some people are correct when they say that university is easier than A-levels in their personal experience (some people believe this and I think that it applies to me as well).

I hope that's true 🙏

Can’t think of anything, maybe the fact that some people are correct when they say that university is easier than A-levels in their personal experience (some people believe this and I think that it applies to me as well).

I'm curious as what to do as a first year uni student to ensure that it goes smoothly as possible and get a 2:1/above. Experiences of shared accomodation and how life is like there? Also how to take notes during lectures etc. Is cornell method effective enough? Thank you for any advice/replies in advance xx

I would definitely agree with this!
For me it's a bit of focussing in on the subject you are good at and also when you specialise further into the course, you really are doing things you're good at and interested in so it's a bit easier to do well at it
Definitely no.1 thing is to attend all lectures/sessions, even the Q&A's towards the end of term. Don't be afraid to ask questions to the teaching staff and ask for help if you get stuck. That's definitely going to set you apart if you do that
Shared accommodation is honestly such a fab way to meet people and develop some independence from living back at home etc. Life is fun as you can sort of do what you like which is pretty sweet
You also often end up going to events/doing stuff together with flatmate friends you meet in accommodation which is so awesome.
Taking notes in lectures is definitely up to the individual! I saw some coursemates with IPads/laptops taking notes/annotating digital copies of the lecture notes. You normally get access to lecture notes before the lecture. Some people like to print them and scribble notes onto them but it's basically up to you!

I see thank you!