University is scary. The department you become part of will be bigger than your current year group. No ones forcing you to do any work, but if you don’t, it’s on your back. You’ll go from being a big fish in a small pond to a big fish in the Atlantic ocean…
…and all the other fish are the same size as you.
But, it’ll also be the best decision you ever make. I was so nervous before Uni that I packed all my stuff up two weeks before I was due to go, I was that paranoid. I only live in Leeds but those 45 minutes over to York were the longest 45 minutes of my life.
What if my flatmates hate me? What if I hate them? What if my course is too hard? What if I can’t do it and drop out? What then?
But then we arrived. And I’ll admit it, the first hour was awkward. Some enthusiastic guy in a yellow t-shirt came over and told us where we needed to go and helped with the bags. I queued up to collect my room key and student card, talking to people who, unbeknown to me, I’d later bump into on nights out and be like “Oh my god! You’re so and so from the first day! Aww man its so good to see you! How’ve you been??!?” without having spoken to or seen them for months. After collecting my key I went and unpacked, awkwardly passing people on the stairs not knowing wether they lived with me, were a member of the university already, a sibling of a housemate…
The most difficult thing about that first hour though by far was getting rid of my parents. They wanted to stay and soak it all in and meet my housemates and cook me dinner and take me for lunch, but it was the most exciting day of my life so far! I wanted to experience it for myself! So, one tearful goodbye and some hugs later and it was done it. I was a fully fledged, independent student at the University of York. And gradually my housemates filtered down into the kitchen having gotten rid of their parents and we sat outside at a picnic table with a couple of beers and just talked for hours.
I was in a house with seven other people last year, I now live with five of them and stay in contact with the other two. I guess the moral of the story is that your first day will be stressful. You’ll feel every emotion possible at least once, and a couple of times question everything and how you got here. But at the end of the day, it’s so worth it.
Jack
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