As compared to the average university student, I think I had my first year bad as I couldn’t adapt to the transition from college/high school to university very well. After having been in University of Auckland for one semester under the Bachelor of Arts, and spending the next semester in University of Melbourne, pursuing a degree under the Faculty of Economics and Commerce, I have finally completed my first year of university, but not with a great sense of satisfaction.

I entered university with the great expectation that it would be far more intellectually stimulating than college and high school. After all, when the last six years were so exam-driven, we hardly had time to discuss the things that matter. The teachers were all rushing to complete the appointed syllabus before the year ended and the examination period loomed, such that the only things I associated education with were nothing but a chore and studying.

I took a six month break after completing my A levels, which was very welcome, though much to the dismay of my parents, who wanted me to complete my education as soon as possible. I spent those six months learning French and it totally changed my perspective on education. I met great friends and had such a good laugh with the things that we learnt (like asking the professeur how to swear in French). I enjoyed learning so much that I even volunteered to take the language assessment exams at the end of the semester.

It was definitely disappointing to be in the education system again where the lecturers were just trying to cram the whole syllabus in the whole semester of 12 weeks. Thankfully, I had a more enjoyable experience in my tutorials as the tutors were friendly, open to questions when a concept was challenged and of course, to finally get to talk with some familiar faces from the tutorials in the lecture halls. Some friendships were forged pretty well, while others remained as mere acquaintances, which I will talk about later on.

One thing I really appreciated the university for was the coursework-exams grading system. I am a jitterbug when it comes to facing the exams; hence, I welcomed the given opportunity to do well in my assignments. Coming from a stringent education system, I had more than my fair share of failures and the lousy feeling of being mediocre. As such, when I was studying Auckland, having doing well in my coursework, naturally, it boosted my ego and encouraged me to do even better for exams.

Another thing is that the classes I was taking were foundation classes, hence the class sizes were huge and all that information seemed to be sweeping by- massive concepts, fancy jargon… Nothing is very specialised in a merely introductory course to advance levels. Fortunately for me, I have never done any of my first year subjects before, so all were new and fresh to me. However, I have heard from friends who had to learn the same things again, such as microeconomics and accounting courses which they had already learnt in pre-university level. Definitely, for anyone who thinks that university is about furthering whatever you have learnt, hold your horses! It only happens after the first semester.

I think I speak for most students studying in universities when I say that it is a very lonely environment. In high school/ college, we have a homeroom, a class that we are assigned to, a certain group of people we’re certain to spend most of our school hours with. You wouldn’t be sitting alone in a boring lecture trying to keep your eyes wide awake as the lecturer goes on and on, in the cafeteria munching away at your sandwich while staring into space. In university, you would be fortunate to have a friend who shared the same faculty as you. You would be even more fortunate if you took the same subject as him/her, and both of you might as well be soul mates if you had managed to share just half of the same lecture/tutorial slots together.

That said, it is not a battle lost. Attending the first lecture may be intimidating because you wouldn’t know anyone among the sea of people entering the same lecture hall, however, as long as you wear a bright smile and friendly disposition, you will be able to find friends somehow, somewhere. My first semester in university was full of uncertainties. Firstly, I went to Auckland alone, not knowing anyone until later on. Secondly, although I stayed in a hall, I was one of the only two people in the group that I hung out with who was a first year arts student. I entered my first psychology lecture as a lone ranger. However, at the end of the lecture, I was fortunate to meet this student whom I sat next to while waiting for the lecture halls to be opened (but not during the lecture) and we have been good friends ever since. The thing was, while we didn’t speak during the waiting period, it just didn’t seem right to have walk out the lecture hall without having to catch each other’s name. Lesson learnt- be open to meet new people. She is my first Samoan friend who is a mature student, studying part-time at the university.

I think that first year in university was not as fantastic as the time I spent in college; I spent most of the time adjusting to my living environment, the academic environment, and the social life… Adjusting all of my expectations of what university life should be. As my friend puts it, I caught the ‘freshman bug’.

So, where to from now? I’m glad that the semester has officially ended, with exams all done and over with. I am officially a year 2 next semester, (YES!) enrolling myself into two level 2 subjects in marketing. I already have in mind some activities to be involved in- volunteering at the children’s hospital, finding a job. Hopefully, next semester onwards, it will all be more fruitful and productive. Cheryl says that as long as I pass through first year, subsequent years would be much better.

Lastly, the grass is always, always, greener on the other side. I had to learn it the long hard way…

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