Five lessons uni will teach you (that are not from a slideshow or lecture!)

The primary reason people to go to university is to become more educated. But, amongst the plethora of PowerPoint slides and countless study hours in the library, you may find the occasional life lesson sprinkled in. They are not wrong when you say that you learn a lot at university – however, it is not always something you can find in a textbook. Here, I present a (non-exhaustive) list of eye-opening realisations that university will throw at you, whether you expect it or not. 

1: The art of small talk 

At university you will master small talk. From bumping into old faces to being stuck on a table with the same group of people every week for exactly one hour – you will get plenty of opportunities for short-lived, sometimes awkward conversations. However, these conversations can spark the beginning of great friendships, future connections, or even... love. While small talk can seem uncomfortable at first, it is an important skill to have. After all, you never know who you will meet! 

2: “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail” 

Initially, I stepped into university with a very laid-back approach, saying “I think I will skip that lecture and watch it online instead” ... these are the famous last words of someone who fell very far behind. University is a balancing act, consisting of limited time, endless assignments, social events and work. It is very difficult to juggle all of these at once without effective planning. But, once you find the method that works for you (Google Calendar, Notion, a physical diary), managing your life gets that tiny bit easier. 

3: The power of caffeine 

Do you ever feel tired after cramming all night for a midsem? After staying out too late on a weeknight when you promised you would be home before midnight? Suffering from depleted energy levels? Caffeine is there for you. With many varieties of beverages ranging from coffee to tea to energy drinks – there really is something for everyone. While you may walk into class feeling like you do not have your life together, holding a comforting drink in your hand makes it look like you do.   

4: How to procrastinate... effectively 

 At university, there are lots of fun distractions, including pub crawls, clubs, committees and cute cafes. In contrast to the gruelling assignments waiting to be completed, it is easy to procrastinate on these approaching deadlines by pursuing a fun side quest or two. However, university is the place where you will learn when is a good time to get distracted and when is not. Perhaps grabbing a coffee with a friend in between lectures is a good way to have some downtime and relax, but putting off completing your part in the group project to watch eight hours of Netflix is not – you might have some angry messages waiting for you in the group chat. Thus, procrastination is good, only when balanced out with some productivity. 

5: Nobody cares – hooray! 

Entering a lecture theatre with 500 people you don’t know can be very daunting. However, after a little while you soon learn that everyone is doing their own thing, and no one really cares that you rocked up five minutes late to class or that you brought your own lunchbox to uni. While it may seem scary that no one is there to hold your hand or keep an eye on you, this means that you have complete freedom. At university, you can embrace your true self, because everyone is too busy worrying about themselves anyway. 

University offers so much more than just lectures and online assessments – it delivers insightful reality checks and character-building moments, through both challenges and celebrations.