Tips for starting university

Hi, I’m Jubeda, a first-year BEng (Hons) Chemical Engineering student from the University of Bradford.

As a prospective university student, you must be brimming with curiosity about what this life will entail. Well, allow me to introduce some key aspects of university life, such as schedules, budgets, and social life.

Scheduling: how to manage study and life

As a university student, managing your time falls entirely on your shoulders. Unlike school, university does not have any rigid timetabling system. As such, it may feel very daunting to suddenly schedule everything by yourself. But if you follow these tips, you will find it easy to build a routine.

Developing a routine

You will typically receive your term schedule at the start of the academic year, which provides the times for your classes, exam dates and assignment deadlines. I like to put all those important dates in my calendar, both physical and digital. This way, I will always know what’s coming, and I can focus on each task. I use the default calendar app on my phone, but there are so many customisable apps you can download. These tools will allow you to keep on top of your workload.

Prioritising tasks

After you have created a routine, you can easily highlight important tasks that you think need more attention. This way you can rank everything you have to do in order of importance, and this will allow you to carve out time for your social life. I found that I am mostly busy near the end of my term, so I always plan all my social outings at the beginning. This means I can enjoy social events without panicking about an upcoming assignment or a looming exam.

Social activities

You can enhance your uni experience by partaking in various social events. The best way to make new friends and enjoy your time at university is to join societies. There are countless groups you can join. But if there’s something you’re interested in that doesn’t have a society, you can even create your own. The best part is that most events fall when you do not have a lot of academic pressure.

Budgeting

Another important thing you have to deal with as a student is budgeting, especially if you are not working. Knowing how much money you have, either from your student loan or savings, is key to budgeting. You can then calculate how much you need weekly for necessary purchases. After all your needs are taken care of, you can allocate spare funds for fun stuff. Personally, I use a budgeting app called GoodBudget, which really helps me track my expenses.

You can also take full advantage of your student ID card and sign up for student discounts across a variety of stores. You can also sign up to get a Totum Card, which gives you frequent student deals, saving you money.

These tips will help you to settle into university life, and with a little practice, it will be smooth sailing for you. Best of luck!

Do you need help with university life? There are a range of support services available to students at Bradford.