20 Mistakes That Every University Fresher Makes The First Year
New faces, new places and no comfort zones. That’s what university as a fresher is all about. Your first year at uni is about trial and a lot of errors. So here are 20 mistakes that every university fresher makes.
Choosing the wrong halls
When you first visit a potential university during open days, you also get a tour of all the different halls of residence. Most often you pick where to stay in your first year based off the recommendation of other people and other factors such as distance from the university, grocers and facilities available within the halls. But when the times comes to actually start living there, you might find that you hate your flatmates, or the halls is not as close to the university as you thought it was or just plainly hate the place! So picking wisely and taking into consideration the things that may not be as your expected is a must when picking your halls. These are the common mistakes that university fresher makes!
Overpacking
When you’re packing up to move away, you may feel like everything you own is a must have at uni. But you don’t really every novel you own or those ten extra tops that all look the same, while you’re packing for university. Pack sparingly and you’ll have a much easier time when it comes moving everything again in the future.
Forgetting the essentials
Packing is a daunting task, so sometimes in the hustle to get everything to fit in that moving box you might forget essentials- like that picture of your family that you love. When you’re packing, make a list of all those essentials you really can’t live without and make enough space to pack those things. These are the common mistakes that university fresher makes!
Hiding in your room and not socialising
When you’ve just undertaken the tiring task of moving in, and your family has just left to go back home; you’re tired and the homesickness may be hitting hard. It’s not surprising if all you want to do is hide out in your room and wallow in your lonesome. But don’t do that, step out and get to know your flatmates, and attend a few freshers events to take your mind off everything else. You won’t regret it.
Attending every freshers event
On the flip side, sleep and downtime are important too. Especially since you’re starting a new life that you want to be energetic and focussed for. So there’s no need for you to attend every single event. Sleep. You will be thankful, when you actually make it in at 9 am for that lecture.
Ignoring the non-drinking events
While it can’t be denied that the events with alcohol are incredibly fun, it’s not the extent of events that universities organize for freshers week. Give the non-drinking events a try as well, you might come away with new friends whose names you’ll actually remember the next day. These are the common mistakes that university fresher makes!
Thinking you have to hang out and be friends with every person you meet
It’s often said that you’ll make friends for life at university. This often results in panic and disappointment if you don’t need to meet these special friends within the first few days. But that’s nothing to fret about, you’ll have the chance to meet many of these people throughout the years to come.
Signing up for every society
University is all about trying new things, so it’s always good to sign up to available societies. But don’t feel the need to sign up to every single society. This will lead to paying hefty joining fees and an inbox full of society newsletter. So pick and choose the societies you’re sure you want to try out.
Not signing up to any society
On the other hand, a mistake that’s often made is not signing up to any society. Societies are a great way to meet people with common interests as you and for you to unwind from the stress of uni work. So do try to join at least one or two societies that really interests you.
Losing some of ID/ keys to your flat
As a fresher at university, you’re responsible – often for the first time – for several ID cards from your driver’s license and student cards to the keys to your own flat. It’s not uncommon to lose at least one of these important things after a night out or out of plain carelessness. It’s not the end of the world if you lose it, but it’s better if you take good care of it to avoid the hassle of getting new ones.
Missing your morning lectures
When you’ve lived with readily available alarm that is your mother to drag you out of bed every morning, it’s hard to get used to doing it on your own while at university. But set that alarm, and try to make it to your 9 am lectures as much as possible. You won’t regret it come exam season. These are the common mistakes that university fresher makes!
Leaving your assignments till the night before
Planning is key when it comes working on your assignments. That due date may seem really far away, but smacks you in the face in the blink of an eye and you don’t want to be caught totally frazzled and unprepared. Forward planning is therefore key.
Leaving referencing till the end
Referencing is not the most fun activity. It is often the most time consuming and cumbersome part of an essay, so it’s best to get it out of the way as soon as possible, rather than procrastinate and leave it till 3 am on deadline day.
Letting your laundry pile up
Laundry is personally my least favourite chore to do. But letting laundry pile up and pushing back laundry day helps no one. Because you’re left with no clean underwear and a mountain of clothing that need an immediate wash.
Leaving your dishes in the sink till they’re mouldy
You might go through a lazy phase where you just don’t want to clean your dishes. But it leave it too long and mould makes its new home on your plates, which then makes the task of scrubbing them clean even harder. It’s better to clean them on the spot, you feel responsible and you cut down on the extra work of removing the mould. These are the common mistakes that university fresher makes!
Forgetting to throw away old food
That Tupperware at the back of the fridge is unchartered territory. You don’t want to know what’s in it, and you don’t remember when you put it in there. Forgetting to throw away old food or not using food before the use-by date is a common mistake that university students make as they get busy and forget about food.
Annoying your flatmates
Doing the above-mentioned things from mouldy dishes to rotten food will definitely rub the flatmates you share your kitchen with the wrong way. Being considerate of the fact that you share your space with other people is important when you are at university.
Budgeting goes out the window
When you’re having the time of your life at uni, it’s easy to forget about managing your finances. Failing to budget, in the beginning, could set you back financially for the whole term, so set yourself a budget every week and try your best to stick to it.
Worrying unnecessarily about your grades
As a fresher you’re still learning the ropes of living alone, making new friends and getting used to new classes. Trying your best is a good thing, but there is no need to stress unnecessarily about your grades. Use your first year at uni as a learning curve and use it to improve yourself in the years to come.
Not taking care of yourself
Between studying, chores and having fun, it’s easy to forget to take care of yourself. Your health should be your priority. Be healthy, don’t forget to eat and take care of yourself, everything else is sure to fall into place. Freshman year at university is all about living and learning, so the mistakes made don’t matter its lessons learned along the way that matter the most.
