WIWIK: WHAT TO REMEMBER

Some things about university life you just can't know until you've got there. 
  
Or can you? We asked some of our speakers and writers to tell us what they wish they'd known before stomping the ground to graduation.

Here's the fourth WIWIK (or 'what I wish I'd known'... slick, right?).

What to remember by Sarah Wray (English @ Newcastle) 

1. When freshers' week starts
   
   It all starts here, so make sure you're there from the start if possible. This is a week when you can make 100 New Best Friends™, including some who'll last for years and some who, come Christmas, you'll be crossing the street to avoid.
   
   You can go out every night, get to know your campus and city and maybe have a drink or two.
   
   Although freshers' week can be a bit full-on at times and you'll probably have the same conversation 4,000 times over, it's still undeniably great fun and the best approach is just to go with it.
   
   Be prepared to trot out your A-level results and course name on demand. And stand in a lot of queues.​
   
   
2. What you won't need to take
   
   Before you pack up your whole bedroom and leave so little room in the car that your mum can't see out of the back window when driving... stop and think. Firstly, your room is probably going to be pretty small if you're living in halls of residence. 
   
   ​Ask yourself, are you really going to be juicing every morning?
   
   You might think that taking every vinyl and book you own and displaying them all in your room will make you look impressive and in-the-know. Well, it might – relationships have been founded on a lot less – but if you have to lug your Crosley up ten flights of stairs when you get there, you'll probably be sorry.
   
   Especially when you never use any of it and get allergic from the dust they gather. Key points: music streaming and the library.
   
   Only take what you really need. Clothes, phone charger, wallet, cuddly toy, for example. Someone from home can always post things down later on or you can get them when you visit.
   
   And what university moving in day is complete without a parent-funded trip to IKEA and Tesco?
   
   
3. The money stuff
   
   ​Have an idea of what your weekly budget is before you go. You won't have a lot of time for fiddling with figures in your first few weeks. Doing a mental 'miscalculation' and then running out of dosh by October is no fun.
   
   ​When you have your weekly budget ready, double it or triple it and that's probably how much you'll spend in freshers' week. Well, sometimes you do have to speculate to accumulate... friends, snogs, best haunts etc. It's an investment.
   
   It's also a good idea to sort out your student bank account as early as you can.
   
   
4. It won't always be a bed of roses
   
   It's easy to put university on a pedestal and idealise it. Prospectuses are full of pictures of students lounging on lawns and grinning; generally looking solvent, intellectual and carefree (and smug). For most, it's true that university is a truly happy and life-changing time.
   
   However, problems can still arise and you'll probably still get the blues from time to time. There are plenty of support networks at university to help you in difficult times.
   
   Just be prepared that if a few clouds do gather, it doesn't mean it's all going wrong. It just means you're a normal person and that going to university doesn't involve entering a utopian parallel universe.

Bear these things in mind and the rest will become clear once you get into the swing of uni life. And, I haven't mentioned it because it hopefully goes without saying: you're going to have to study and work hard. But it'll be great.



Interesting? If you'd like to see your words of wisdom on this page, drop us a line with what every student should know before going to university.

If you'd like to be a writer, get in touch with a copy of your CV and a white hot cover letter to [email protected].