What have the Editors in Chief been thinking about this week?
As we both enter 4th year, myself and Molly have been talking a lot about our time at uni (get ready for some self-reflection!) We’ve mostly been thinking about how much we’ve changed over these 4 years. As the cliché goes, university is meant to be the best years of your life. But as we’ve experienced those years it’s become clear that whilst we have had some amazing moments and made memories, uni can be bloody difficult as well.
Isla: Whether on a coffee shop study date with a friend or crying over your essay draft that’s 200 words over the limit, it will come as a surprise to no one that uni can be a tricky place to navigate. From flatmate drama to nightmare lecturers it’s clear that university has a million different ups and downs, it’s almost a cliché. It’s hard to believe as you’re experiencing them, and yet the late night library and passive aggressive post-it notes for your flatmates are so formative that if you confronted your first year self on graduation day, both of you would be shocked!
Anyone who knows me would say that I’ve always been relatively independent, opinionated, and loud. However, moving to a city and knowing nobody at all was certainly an eye-opening experience, particularly as a student. Coming from a rural area, parties were not too common as everyone was fairly spread out, but clubbing or simply drinking at the pub after class appears to be the norm here. My first experience clubbing was certainly an eye opener, and to be totally honest here, I left after about 5 minutes. Thank god my first year accommodation wasn’t far away, so the walk back only took about 5 minutes as well. So much for my first night out as a student - it only lasted 10 minutes! Although that does lead me nicely onto my delighted surprise that I could do a grocery shop in about 10-15 minutes, or simply being able to walk to the shops.
Entering into my first year of academic work, I would say my first year was okay. Nothing special in terms of grades or altering to a new structure or style of learning, but I do often reminisce about that first assignment I did which I’d completed 2 weeks before the deadline. Now that would be virtually impossible to imagine, so I’m not sure where my triumph as an academic weapon went! Although it seems that the nightmare lecturers were held in reserve for my second year, so at least I wasn’t traumatised upon arrival.
The friendship side of things isn’t exactly a walk in the park either. For me, first year was mostly taken up with forming friendships - there wasn’t so much on the drama side of things until second or third year. Yet even without extensive drama, constant arguments or taking sides it can be a difficult scene to navigate. I was definitely amongst those who thought that your friendship group would be forming during Freshers Week, and although I did meet a few people I would go on to be friends with post-Freshers, looking back most of the friendships that have stuck were those I met later on, whether through classes later on in the year (I’m looking at you Molly) as well as many from second and third year. Then again, some of those friendships haven’t lasted either. You make and break friendships at every point along the road, but ultimately the ones that matter are the ones that stick around. Not the ones that drain more of your energy than your 5000-word research project.
If I could say one thing to myself 4 years ago it would be that uni will not solve all of your problems. In fact the next few years contain some of the more tough experiences in your life so far. Some things may even get worse. Of course I wouldn’t say I was naïve going into student life, but it’s simply not something you think about when you’re deciding which kitchen cupboard you want to claim on that first day at your accommodation. You will have some difficult experiences to go through, but you will become stronger, wise, bolder, and all the better for it. And who knows, you may have some funny anecdotes to tell in 5 years time. You don’t have to be anything special to muddle through. Although I would say that the movies lie to you, and not everything needs to be a drama filled rom-com moment followed by a sudden rain-induced epiphany. Focus on getting through each barrier as it comes and learn to figure out what truly makes you happy.
Molly: Coming from a relatively small high school in Toronto, Canada to university in Edinburgh, Scotland was a huge jump! There were so many culture shocks that came with that transition, and from my perspective as an international student, everything you experience in your first year is ever-so-slightly more challenging to navigate. Of course it’s an immense privilege to be here, and there are more positives than negatives, but first year for me certainly had its ups and downs.
Now in fourth year, I feel truly settled in this wonderful city and at the uni. I finally know my way around without needing to pull out google maps every five seconds. I have favourite cafes (Edinburgh Coffee Lounge!) and bookstores (Toppings!), can recommend great spots in the city (the west side of princes street gardens, such a nice walk), and know the fastest shortcuts to campus from my flat. I feel much more at ease and comfortable here, a far cry from my constantly-anxious first-year self.
More than learning how to live independently, manage my time wisely, and balance uni life with a social life, I’ve come to realize that over these four years I’ve gained so many life lessons; an education that you can’t find inside the walls of a classroom. In fourth year, I’m much more sure of myself and I’ve improved my self-confidence by a long shot. Self-development is a constant cycle, but I think it’s hard not to get caught up in thinking “what can I improve next?” that it’s easy to overlook how far you’ve already come.
To help with that, something I started in my first year of uni was sending emails to myself one year in the future. It’s through a website called Future Me. This is possibly the best journal exercise I've ever done and I’d recommend it to anyone. It’s the closest you can get to having a conversation with your previous self. I somehow always manage to forget when the email from the past year is due to come in and so it’s always a nice surprise. It’s a great way to check-in, to see what is different now and what is still the same. It can help to see what was on your mind then, and how far you’ve come since then.
In my fourth year I’m really trying to savor everything. It being my last year here, everything feels so final a lot of the time. So, I’m really trying to appreciate everything for what it is, make the most of spending time with friends, explore new parts of Edinburgh I haven’t yet, and try new experiences. As it goes, “Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” (Thank you Ferris Bueller!)
Thanks for sticking around while we rambled away once again. Isla and I really hope you’ve enjoyed this installment and we’ll see you again next week, same time, same place. This week, our challenge to you is to reflect on where you were a year ago; physically, mentally, and academically. Do one thing that will make your next year self proud. Whether that’s learning a language, striking up a conversation, joining a new society, starting (or catching up on) your GoodReads reading goal. It can even be as simple as doing something you from one year ago would not have had the confidence to do. Whatever direction our weekly challenge takes you, we sincerely hope it’s a good one. Have a lovely week!
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