THE REALITY OF FIRST YEAR

The Reality

Starting First Year is a huge step for anyone beginning their university journey. In this article, our contributors reflect on the reality of their First Year at Cardiff University. There’s no other way of describing the first year of university as a rollercoaster of emotions, whilst it can be the best few months away from home there are also lots of challenges you are faced with. The main one being living with complete strangers! You’ll have to adapt very quickly to living with your flatmates (whether you get on with them or not) and tasks that may seem simple like cleaning a communal kitchen can cause problems. The same with doing your own laundry, such an easy task at home, can seem like a huge chore- especially in halls with flights of stairs. One of the hardest adjustments for me was living independently and budgeting my own money as unfortunately those student overdrafts can build up quickly if you aren’t careful. My biggest piece of advice to freshers as a current final year student who survived first year and now doesn’t want to leave university is to go into it with no expectations as you may then be pleasantly surprised. words by: Grace Dawson We are told so much about what to expect when coming to university- sometimes it doesn’t live up to it and comes with a lot of challenges. When going into my first year I wasn’t completely clueless. I knew how to cook, clean, and wash my clothes so I thought I was equipped for an independent life. The excitement of clubbing, meeting new people and starting a degree sounded great, yet I made no time for myself, this was the hardest adjustment. Going to lectures, being with new friends and recovering from the night before often meant that cooking healthy meals was something I neglected, and the poor sleeping routine meant my mental health wasn’t great. The biggest lesson I got from first year was to make time for myself, keep up with putting effort into the food I was cooking, having a daily routine which gave me stability and the best mindset to go out and socialise. words by: Shaniece O’Keefe

of First Year

Heading to university with reassurance from those around me that a vibrant social life lay ahead, I believed the chances of ever being lonely remained scarce. In reality, I was met with flatmates who I felt miles apart from on the similarity spectrum alongside the grim feeling that everyone apart from myself was breezing through first year having immediately made lifelong bonds. Pressure put on myself, fuelled by the ‘university is the best years of your life façade’ left me lonely in a way that I could never have imagined and prepared for. Instead of blaming and turning on myself for not having secured a nourishing group of friends in this time, I wish I had been guided by the reality that the loneliness I was going through was universal and not something to be ashamed of. University is frequently sold as a place of guaranteed immediate friendship and connection. When I found myself consumed by isolating loneliness within a kingdom of social fun, guidance that natural connections and meeting those who you truly bond with takes time, would have been and is crucial. Do not mistake university loneliness as an issue within yourself, your future life-long friendships are out there, they just take time to be found. words by: Lucy Matthews There’s only so much you can do whilst working towards getting a degree. Take a look back at just how intensively you worked – a lot of regrets about events missed were made no longer worth fretting about with a quick glance at your lecture and seminar timetable. Balancing your time is also more difficult now you’re responsible for yourself. Sometimes cooking dinner is the highlight of your day and the next an erroneous chore; you just have to keep going. Don’t beat yourself up over mistakes as of course everyone makes them. The truth about meeting so many new people is that it can be tough when you don’t always gel with the people you want to be friends with. Confidence is key. Don’t worry; as you’re only starting out, you should get another few cracks at the whip at what you want to achieve at university, academically and socially. words by: Billy Edwards