1. Manage your work well
Kaylie Knowles, 24, began her studies at Nottingham Trent University and proceeded to do her PGCE at Derby University. According to her, staying on top of one’s workload is key.
“I was doing well during my undergrad at Trent, however my last year at Derby was massively stressful, and had 4 or 5 meltdowns in that year.
“All I’d advise is let your workload come first and remember to take some time off whenever you feel the workload is exhausting.”
2. Plan a weekly budget for expenses
Mary O’Connell, 23, who studied English literature at York University as well as an MA in Film at the King’s College London, recommends coming up with a weekly budget.
“Take care not to spend all your money on Freshers Week. Perhaps if you’ve never taken a job before uni probably you haven’t had such an amount of money in your account. But know that it’s a loan that you have to use sensibly. Student summer storage is a worthwhile expense as it really takes away the burden of moving between university and home.
3. Create backups for your work
Peter Rogers, 22, graduated from York University last year and advises on the need to back up your work in multiple places.
“All of us had Gmail accounts during our time in university, so I saved all my stuff using Google Drive, and it was stored in the cloud.
“A good tip is making sure you save various versions of any piece of work as you move forward.
4. Enjoy the first year as much as possible
The first year may be less difficult in terms of academics compared to the following years, that’s what Peter say, and so it’s worthwhile enjoying it.
“In case your first year doesn’t matter when it comes to your overall grade, enjoy the freedom you have at that time,” he says
“I still go back and think I’d have done less work (no one wants to know what I scored during my first year ) and invested more of my time on sports, fun activities or just hanging out with collegues.
“Of course the academics are essential but that gets crucial in the second and third year.”
5. Don’t mind being choosy about friends
Emmeke Megannety 21, is a second-year journalism student at Nottingham Trent University and says it’s important to take your time and find good friends.
“Students beginning uni need to keep in mind that people you meet on your 1st week may not be your long-term friends in life.
6. Look out for colleagues
It’s sad a lot of students deal with mental health issues, like anxiety and depression. 146 students committed suicide in 2016, according to recent statistics.
Peter advises on the need to keep an eye on your peers and ask them some searching questions.
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“I used to be, and still I’m regularly astonished at the number of individuals who’d look as well as act fine on the outside but in the real sense, they were suffering.
“I think talking directly, would help in this case, and especially with the men. I’m sure if someone asked me ‘How do you feel?’ I’d just maybe beat around the bush and give a generic answer.
“But in case a friend asked ‘Do you think you have a problem with your mental health as a result of…..? ‘ we might give a more honest answer.
