Growth and independence
You will experience freedom to make your own choices and decisions.
Along with independence comes responsibility, which means taking account of your actions and potential consequences. Therefore it is essential to think over important choices twice before making your final decision.
Building new relationships
For many, university can feel like a whole new world, moving to a new country can feel daunting and overwhelming. You may be surrounded by unfamiliar faces which can make you reluctant to approach someone and introduce yourself.
However, at university you can get involved in many different ways, including going to events, joining societies and volunteering. These will not only help to familiarize yourself around university but you will also meet new friends, realise your strengths and feel so much more connected with your new home. So take advantage of these opportunities.
Active learner
At university you will not just be attending to sit and listen to lectures and seminars. Sure, you need to be a good listener and take notes, but there is so much more to it.
You need to carry out your own research, present projects, participate verbally and share your thoughts, ideas, opinions and questions in seminars and figure out and solve problem sets on your own. This involves acquiring a range of skills set.
Queen Mary offers a lot of support. Your lecturers have office hours where you can speak to them directly about any troubles you are facing or anything you do not understand. There is PASS (peer assisted study support) run by students for students, Buddy scheme, Unibuddy ambassadors and writing centre among many others. You should take advantage of these supportive platforms. They are there for a reason.
Various events to attend
University offers a lot of events in the form of tours, talks, fun activities and workshops. You can get involved and acquire new skills (e.g. computer programming/coding). This helps students to learn something new and de-stress. Societies plan many dynamic and exciting events throughout the year which can be a great get to know others who are doing different courses to your own.
Make sure to sign up to receive updates on newsletters, as there are many exciting events and new opportunities. Take an interest!
I would like to end by saying ‘be yourself always and think positive always’.
Part of life is being faced with changes, it's completely normal. It takes time to settle in, so be patient. Something new can be something fun.
Ask me in the chat room.