What actually happens at University?

Hello,

I am starting uni in september and i am taking astrophysics, someone asked this question about 6 years ago and i was wondering if anything had changed?

I'm really excited to go, but I'm not actually sure what I will do. I know it will be a lot different to how school currently is but I was wondering what the timetables look like, how the exams are compared to school examinations, how the lectures are. I know that there isn't exactly 'teachers' but will I get some support from teachers? Will I be able to email or ask questions etc.. And what exactly are seminars? I've heard that it is similar to a group meeting but that is all. I've got so many questions that I know I'll have answers to in September but I'm still super worried about it since it is a big change

Any help would be super appreciated!!!!

- A worried student :smile:

Edit: Thank you all for your responses, they have been super helpful and I feel much less worried about attending uni!!! :smile:

(edited 1 month ago)

Reply 1

hallamstudents

Official Rep

Original post by Moonifiy

Hello,
I am starting uni in september and i am taking astrophysics, someone asked this question about 6 years ago and i was wondering if anything had changed?
I'm really excited to go, but I'm not actually sure what I will do. I know it will be a lot different to how school currently is but I was wondering what the timetables look like, how the exams are compared to school examinations, how the lectures are. I know that there isn't exactly 'teachers' but will I get some support from teachers? Will I be able to email or ask questions etc.. And what exactly are seminars? I've heard that it is similar to a group meeting but that is all. I've got so many questions that I know I'll have answers to in September but I'm still super worried about it since it is a big change
Any help would be super appreciated!!!!
- A worried student :smile:

Hi @Moonifiy ,

Firstly congratulations! Uni is so exciting and I am sure you will have a great time 🙂

I don't do a similar course to you, but I thought I could still answer some of your more general questions about Uni. Most people will have a mixture of lectures and seminars. Typically a lecture will be where you sit and listen to your lecturer talk about a topic and you will take notes. A seminar is where you will be in smaller groups and you will have more of a lesson like at school where you will do group or individual work and can talk to the tutors more.

You will get support from your tutors and they should be happy to answer your emails if you have any questions that need answering. You will also get time in seminars to ask questions if you need it and they will help you!

Your tutors will be there to answer your questions in September too and if you ever have any questions you need answering, you can email your Uni enquiries team and they should be able to answer them and help you with anything you need help with! You can usually find this email online.

I hope some of this helps,

Lucy -SHU student ambassador.

Reply 2

mnot

Universities Forum Helper

University is very different to school.

You normally get a soft start with fresher or welcome week where they introduce you to all the key staff, university policies, and you learn your course structure & first semester modules. Universities are typically quite flexible and lenient at the start as they know that this is a transition period. Teaching is normally conducted via a series of new methods for students, largely lectures, seminars or tutorials, and some cases labs or practical element. Like school, where different teachers have different styles and different classes feel different every lecture or seminar will feel different depending on the lecturer or professor, you will quickly learn what is normal and what to expect.

Timetable and can very quite a bit depending on whole hosts of factors but typically you’ll find your course in person activities will be between 9 AM and 6 PM. Most students receive roughly 20 to 30 hours per week in first year and these typically occur Monday to Friday, as your degree progresses you typically move towards lectures, and less towards seminars but again this fluctuates course to course, typically you also get slightly less in person contact after first year.

Yes you do get support however, you get far less one-to-one interaction or opportunities to discuss granular detail than you would do with the teacher in school and the onus is far more put on the student to seek support and make sure that there is relevant time, for example, if you go, the week a big coursework is due and ask for an hour of a professors time (when everyone is bombarding them with questions) you’ll probably get told no (or may not even get a response) yet if you go the start of semester and ask for a moderate time to discuss something specific from a lecture you’re struggling with they are almost certainly going be much more flexible and this is what you have to learn at university, how to manage your resources & responsibilities. You will be expected to be the adults and take responsibility, but you also be expected to realize that unlike in school professors and university staff are juggling a lot of other commitments that could be multiple modules, research (active contributions as well as managing staff, writing papers, going to conferences) and then a lot of other research group activity & admin, and university administration, as well as responding to a cohort of potentially several hundred students and their time is going to be spread much more thinly than with a school teacher who’s dedicated to a class about 30 at a time and only teaching responsibilities. However there is support, you will be given a personal tutor, and you will have a student union so you have levers to support you (as well as building a network of other students).

Exams are pretty similar to secondary school exams. The differences, the scale just a lot more students in exam halls than in school. The other difference is how regularly you have exams particularly if you came from GCSEs/A-levels, where they now come after every semester and you have three or four weeks to prepare whereas in school you probably have more time, and they come less frequently.

Reply 3

mnot

Universities Forum Helper

You’ll also be fine, everyone is nervous & has anxieties about university however you adjust, it’s much easier and less daunting then it sounds… you pick it up as you go. Yes you will make mistakes but this is part of learning and self-development.

Reply 4

UCLan Ambassador

Official Rep

Original post by Moonifiy

Hello,
I am starting uni in september and i am taking astrophysics, someone asked this question about 6 years ago and i was wondering if anything had changed?
I'm really excited to go, but I'm not actually sure what I will do. I know it will be a lot different to how school currently is but I was wondering what the timetables look like, how the exams are compared to school examinations, how the lectures are. I know that there isn't exactly 'teachers' but will I get some support from teachers? Will I be able to email or ask questions etc.. And what exactly are seminars? I've heard that it is similar to a group meeting but that is all. I've got so many questions that I know I'll have answers to in September but I'm still super worried about it since it is a big change
Any help would be super appreciated!!!!
- A worried student :smile:

Hi @Moonifiy,

Congratulations on getting into uni 🎉 This is a really exciting time!

It's completely normal to feel unsure about what to expect when starting university. Before I started my degree, I also wanted to know what a typical week would look like, but found it hard to get clear answers. A lot of it depends on your specific uni and course, but here's some general information that might help:

Timetables will vary between students based on the universities' policies and how the course is structured. I'd recommend checking the Astrophysics course page at your uni - there may be details on the number of contact hours you can expect each week. Generally, most courses have a good balance between the number of contact hours and independent study.

You'll typically have a mix of lectures and seminars - lectures are usually larger groups where the lecturer presents the module topic. You can ask questions but it's mostly listening and taking notes. These can range from 1-3 hours depending on the module. Seminars are much smaller and more interactive. They often involve group discussions based on reading or work set beforehand, and they usually last around an hour.

In terms of support, unis offer a lot of resources. Lecturers will be happy to respond to any questions, both in person and by email, so don't worry about them feeling less approachable than teachers. You will be assigned a personal tutor who will support you throughout your degree, especially in your first year. You will build up a really good relationship with them so it's often who you will turn to first. There are also student support services for things like finnaces, academic support, and wellbeing. For anything else, the universities general enquiries team can point you in the right direction.

Just know it's completely normal to have all these questions before starting - you're definitely not alone in this!

I hope this helps and best of luck with your future studies!

Best wishes,
^Hannah 😊

Reply 5

Chester Student

Official Rep

Original post by Moonifiy

Hello,
I am starting uni in september and i am taking astrophysics, someone asked this question about 6 years ago and i was wondering if anything had changed?
I'm really excited to go, but I'm not actually sure what I will do. I know it will be a lot different to how school currently is but I was wondering what the timetables look like, how the exams are compared to school examinations, how the lectures are. I know that there isn't exactly 'teachers' but will I get some support from teachers? Will I be able to email or ask questions etc.. And what exactly are seminars? I've heard that it is similar to a group meeting but that is all. I've got so many questions that I know I'll have answers to in September but I'm still super worried about it since it is a big change
Any help would be super appreciated!!!!
- A worried student :smile:

Hi there,

You've had some great responses already, but I just wanted to share some other advice!

I'd highly recommend seeing if the university you are planning on attending has a 'chat to a student' webpage. It can be super helpful to chat to students who are currently attending that university, and potentially your course, and will give you great insight into what it can be like to be a student there! It can be particularly helpful with things like timetabling, specific classes and teachers, and structure, as it typically varies depending on the institution.

Aside from this, just remember that what you are feeling is totally normal! I remember the summer before I left, and I was super excited and so nervous, but I ended up having such a great time. I hope you enjoy it!

Best of luck,

Isabella
Fourth-Year Geography (With a Year Abroad)

Reply 6

Kingston Eve

Official Rep

Original post by Moonifiy

Hello,
I am starting uni in september and i am taking astrophysics, someone asked this question about 6 years ago and i was wondering if anything had changed?
I'm really excited to go, but I'm not actually sure what I will do. I know it will be a lot different to how school currently is but I was wondering what the timetables look like, how the exams are compared to school examinations, how the lectures are. I know that there isn't exactly 'teachers' but will I get some support from teachers? Will I be able to email or ask questions etc.. And what exactly are seminars? I've heard that it is similar to a group meeting but that is all. I've got so many questions that I know I'll have answers to in September but I'm still super worried about it since it is a big change
Any help would be super appreciated!!!!
- A worried student :smile:

Hey @Moonifiy!

It's completely normal to feel nervous about attending university; as you pointed out, it is a big change in lifestyle for many individuals.

When you arrive at university, most universities will assign you a personal tutor. This is a lecturer/faculty staff member who'll meet with you and support you throughout your studies; if you have any issues, whether that be personal or academic, your personal tutor is usually your first port of call. No matter what, you'll still have lots of sources of support, both from lecturers and wider university services as a whole. You can email and ask questions when you need to.

Seminars are typically just organised, academic group discussions around a particular topic. Compared to lectures (which can have anywhere from 20-200 people in a lecture hall), seminars are smaller, more focused groups (maybe 10-20 students). The staff member leading your seminar will typically go over the structure/engagement they expect throughout.

Timetables are usually more flexible than college/sixth form, as more emphasis is placed on independent study. However, timetables also depend heavily on your course; some students might only be in one day a week, whilst others are expected in four to five days.

Hope this was helpful and best of luck with your astrophysics course this September! 🙂
Eve (Kingston Rep).