The anxiety of A-level results day has passed, and now you are fulfilling the next chapter of your education and life journey…. studying at university away from home.

A new city, new study, new people, and new living – everything will be unfamiliar and exciting. Welcome to Bournemouth University! Where you will be studying by the south coast with sandy, salty seaside shores for the next 3 years.

University studies and living in England are completely different from the American shows, that we watched before university. For example, students in the UK will have their own bedroom and ensuite with a shared kitchen within a cluster of flats in their halls. The whole university journey is to prepare you for adult life – something that I’ve learned over the last year! You’ll learn to cook within a budget, pay your rent on time, move to new places, and manage your workloads (university, work and having a social life).

First Day at Uni and My Internship with Kortext for Bournemouth University

University studies consists of the majority independent learning, which has a combination of lectures and seminars, and it does require a lot of reading from academic journals to the weekly reading list. You will also be asked to do preparation tasks for seminars for discussion with the class – it is important to attend your lectures and seminars since this builds your knowledge which helps your assignments and professional learning.

Bournemouth University facilitates Study Skills Sessions ran by the library which you book online – these sessions are helpful with adjusting to the requirements of university studies and have different topic sessions i.e., Bournemouth Harvard Referencing, Exam Preparation or Seminar Discussions, of which assist with effective and positive changes in academic habits – they have helped me A LOT in precision and reading long academic texts with notetaking! These are based in both, Lansdowne and Talbot Campus, and the times could vary. 

Cooking in my halls and surviving my first week of lectures and seminars

Top Tip: If your halls are too loud to study and read – the library will be the best place to study/read, also most of the books are available online!!

Balancing workloads around university, a social life, and work (your maintenance loan will not cover all expenses) can be a challenge to manage, but I had created a timetable that helped me manage my time effectively and not take shifts which affect my work and coursework deadlines. My job as a Student Ambassador is a zero-hour contract, and I assist Bournemouth University with Open Days, Schools Liaison and Working at Dorset UCAS fair allows me to develop transferable skills for my future jobs – It allows me to network with other course students and meet new friends.

University allows growth for adult life and enjoy the next 3 years while studying for your degree.

It will be a roller coaster – it will go fast. Good luck and enjoy!

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More tips from current students!