What I wish I knew before coming to university

Starting university is an exciting milestone, but it can also feel overwhelming. Student ambassador Racheal shares the lessons she wishes she'd known before starting, from managing money to balancing university life.

Money management: I would often spend frivolously because I had no money management skills, it wasn’t something that I was taught in school. I also wish I knew more about the bursaries and scholarships that Keele offers because when I got to second year, I realised there were grants that I could have applied for in first year that would have helped me a lot. 

Feeling overwhelmed: I underestimated university life and how many things you need to manage at the same time. A degree, a job, friends, societies, social life, and your wellbeing is a lot to balance at once and no one truly prepares you for it. If I could go back, I would have used the summer to do research on self-care and practised the skills needed to live independently such as laundry, cooking and doing my own shopping.  

The workload: My first year was very deceiving. At first, I thought “that was very easy, uni is going to be a breeze!” But boy was I wrong. Second year hit me like a truck with more exams, harder content and a much higher workload. In my opinion, it’s bigger than the jump from year 12 to year 13. Don’t get me wrong, I adapted and learned to cope with the change, but it definitely wasn’t easy. I would advise anyone going into first year to not get lulled into a false sense of security and make sure to work very hard. Even if it doesn’t count towards your final degree, building good study habits now will ensure that when it does get harder, you’ll be able to cope with it better.  

Life changing experiences: I’ve had so many unique experiences here that I don’t think I would have had anywhere else. I’ve met so many people from different cultures and backgrounds and learnt a lot about the world. Coming from a small town, going to university was a great opportunity to meet different kinds of people. I’ve met people from countries I didn’t know existed and university is one of the few places where you get thousands of people from different backgrounds all on one campus.