Have you ever thought about what your life would be like going through university? What steps you will need to take as soon as you finish your A-levels? What your first day at university will be like? There are so many things to consider and so many milestones you will experience from the time you receive your A-level results.
In this guest post, we are joined by Kaz Bosali at HYBR who has shared her 6 life milestones you as a student will experience throughout your university life…
Your student years are the epitome of βadultingβ, defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as:
βthe practise of behaving in the manner of a responsible adult, especially in completing everyday tasks.β
Welcome to the real world! It sucks. You’re going to love it.
Or as Monica Geller from Friends put it, βWelcome to the real world. It sucks. Youβre gonna love it!β.Β Youβll feel the entire spectrum of emotions: joy, homesickness, worry, doubt, loneliness, enthusiasm, passion and everything in between.
In the midst of paying your bills, completing essays and partying, thereβs one thing guaranteed to come from this experience β growth. Your student life milestones prepare you for post-uni life.
Here are 6 life milestones every student will experience for you to look forward to:
Moving out of the family home
Your first life milestone as a student comes from flying the nest for the first time. Here lies the promise of your new life: itβs fresh and exciting. With this newfound independence, youβll quickly learn that life is 100% your responsibility. You can watch all the Netflix you want, wake up when you want, go to class if you want. So, welcome to the good life.
The budgeting, cleaning, laundry, time management and cooking. Everything is now down to you. Whether you like it or not, your first student life milestone requires taking responsibility for all decisions.
Your first day at university
When Freshers Week kicks off, youβll get to know your new peers, who come from all walks of life. Your housemates will be different from the family you lived with and your lecturers are not teachers; they wonβt chase you up if you miss class.
You may have a few drinks to take the edge off and might just end up waking up in the library by security (true story).
The people you are surrounded by are no longer people who live locally and are similar to you. This life milestone involves escaping your bubble and entering another. Itβs a new world, with new people and a new norm.
Getting your results
The first time β and every time after β you submit a new paper; youβll wait with anticipation on how you did. Word of advice: try not to panic when Turnitin accuses you of plagiarism. A.I isnβt always intelligent! Youβll realise that sometimes youβll work hard and not get the result you want, and sometimes youβll surprise yourself.
But this life milestone involves learning how to respond to results and feedback. This is what will determine your progress. Youβll be living on Red Bull, coffee and procrastination. These are the times when you can survive on just 3 hours of sleep a day!
Getting a part-time job
Whether bartending, retail or general work around campus, a job you secure during this time will most likely be one of your first jobs, making it a major life milestone.
This is priceless work experience, not just something on your CV, itβll teach you to appreciate the value of your free time. FYI: you probably still canβt afford the overpriced raspberries and fancy dinners just yet.
House hunting for the first time
Looking for accommodation, thatβs within your budget, in a convenient area, with housemates youβll get on with is a massive milestone in your growth.
Which is exactly why we launched HYBR. HYBR guides students through this process β helping you find your dream home, find house mates if you still donβt know who to live with, sort out contracts and perform reference checks.
We connect students directly to landlords, cutting out the letting agent. Our mission is to support first-time renters throughout their rental, acknowledging the fact that it is a daunting and new experience for many. Find out more here and if you are still struggling to find accommodation write to us here.
When you graduate
The day you wear the iconic gown and cap, walk across the stage to collect your degree, is when you realise all of your hard work was worth it. You will feel pride, enthusiasm and nerves at what awaits. Everything is big: the dating pool, the possibilities of the job market, your student debt. But the world is your oyster.
University is a time of growth and many firsts; you will not be the same person as you were when you walked in. Embrace these life milestones because after looms the real adulting.
A bit about Kaz Bosali
Kaz went to the University of Westminster where she studied a degree in Law and gained a passion for writing. Kaz’s experience however is in marketing and business development and if she could have any job in the world it would be in editorial. Why did she decide to work for HYBR? She loves how HYBR cuts out the middle man and focuses their resources on supporting students.
This is so true! House hunting for the first time was so daunting at first, HYBR sounds like a life saver!
Thanks for writing π
Trust me house hunting is crazy. Even after uni, it never gets easier.