My Experience with my first year of University
From a student's perspective
Today, I wanted to try and explore something a little different from what I usually write on this Substack Page. Normally, you would expect me to post the usual fiction piece or a serialised chapter from the Tales of Erda series (which I should get back into the swing of doing at some point), or you would see me write a non-fiction piece about stuff that interests me, like video games, films, TV shows or books – which I really ought to try and do more often.
Today, dear readers, I am going to talk about something that has taken up a lot of my time this year. I am, of course, talking about my first full year at University. This has been a life-changing experience for me, and I am highly thankful for it, as it has allowed me to flourish in ways I hadn’t even imagined.
It has also been filled with emotion and trouble, mainly in part because my beloved cat, Cato, passed away in March. Believe me, it has been almost two months since it happened, and I miss her dearly. But, I digress. You’re here to understand what my experience with university has been like.
I will divide my experience this year into five key sections. Firstly, we’ll look at what drove me to go to university, and you will get an insight into what I used to do before I started my journey – both at university and with my writing. Next, we’ll examine what daily life has been like for me as a student living at home. We’ll then look at the two different aspects of my university course individually. And finally, we’ll look at my overall thoughts on the year as a whole and what advice I can give to people looking to join a university, start an apprenticeship, or pursue any other vocation.
Without further ado, let us begin.
Section 1: The Origins
To understand why I decided to go to university, we must go back to the year 2019. I had just started Sixth Form at my Secondary School. This was an especially crucial time for me as I was about to start my A-Levels, which would dictate where I would end up after Secondary School. I found myself drawn to the more Humanities-based subjects of History, Geography, and English Language and Literature. These three subjects would shape the overall basis of my writings, and they continue to fascinate me.
English Language and Literature was a no-brainer, as I had heard repeatedly that if you wanted to be a good writer, you needed to read a ton. However, I ended up biting off more than I could chew as the English Language and Literature syllabus involved critical analysis. I just hated the idea of having to analyse the texts of another author, as it often felt like I had never left GCSE English Literature – which was largely true. History and Geography, however, were far more ideal for my tastes, as it was fun to look at the past and understand why certain events panned out the way they did. Plus, since History examined the Westward Expansion of America from the Louisiana Purchase through the closure of the frontier in 1890, it was honestly therapeutic for me.
After a while, we had to consider our options for leaving A-Levels. Over here in the UK, A-Levels are just one of the many options one can take when they finish their GCSEs. They, much like GCSEs, dictate what our options would be when we finish compulsory education. The other options include apprenticeships, attending a trade school, or completing an International Baccalaureate.
In my case, I had to consider my options after finishing my A-Levels. At first, I wanted to go into an Apprenticeship to train as an estate agent. However, after much consideration, I concluded that being an estate agent wasn’t exactly the ideal career option for me, and as such, I decided to reconsider. This was when I decided to focus on attending university to study Creative Writing.
My interest in Creative Writing stemmed from my experiences playing with Lego as a child, more specifically, Bionicle. I believe this was because of my difficulties communicating with others and my tendency to refuse to open up. However, it was because of these things that I was inspired to want to tell my own stories to the rest of the world. And not just stories I had heard, but stories I had created.
At the time, there were plenty of options for me to choose from. If I wanted to, I could’ve gone to King’s College in London, the University of Leeds or Oxford University. However, they are very stringent on whom they can accept. Another thing for me to consider was that they were very far away from home, and I would’ve struggled trying to make a living while studying for my course. That was when a new option arose, one that was very close to home: Bath Spa University. This university was perfect for me. It was within commuting distance of my hometown, offered the course I wanted to study, and it was geared towards creative minds. It also had the added bonus of being one of the best places to learn Creative Writing.
So come 2020, I was getting through my A-Levels with the intention of going to university at a great institution. Then things started taking a turn for the worse thanks to a certain pandemic. We were all stuck at home, forced to study online. I was able to cope just fine as I had ample resources and excellent internet. In September, we entered our final year of compulsory education and were amping up preparations for university, or whatever it was we were planning to do. Come January, we were then locked inside our homes for a few months and forced to experience a sense of déjà vu. Our A-Level exams were cancelled, so we were assessed based on our coursework. I barely got the grades necessary to get into university, yet I was accepted anyway. However, I decided to take a Gap Year due to the pandemic. This was primarily due to my family being placed in a high-risk category, and they were extremely worried about me catching any infections at the university.
Eventually, I decided to opt out of university and try to find a job to help make ends meet. This led me to work at a plant centre in a nearby village. I had worked there for two and a half years, and I will tell you this, dear readers, it was absolute hell. Initially, I had a really great time working there; my co-workers were lovely, the cat that regularly visited was really affectionate towards me, and it was nice and simple.
But things took a turn for the worse when the business underwent a management buyout. The new managing director was really nice, but his wife was a whole other matter. She would often insult me in front of customers, force me to work in really tough conditions and even demoralise me. This would eventually contribute to me having to take antidepressants in order to even cope. So, after two and a half years, I left my job and decided to go back to my original plan of studying Creative Writing at university.
I reapplied to Bath Spa University and was accepted straightaway. However, I had plenty of time before the first year started. So, I decided to occupy my time by undertaking a series of online courses from Oxford and Cambridge, as well as a Teaching Assistant course from an educational body in my home county of Somerset. I had even started volunteering at my town’s food bank, where I took on several tasks, including retrieving and organising food donations. Things were looking up.
Then September rolled around, and I was ready.
Section 2: The Circle of Life
Now, we come to the daily life of a student. Unlike most students at my university, who tend to live in accommodation or halls of residence, I was fortunate enough to continue living at home. Instead, I had to commute into the city where my university is based and catch a bus that goes to my university’s campus.
My day always started at 6am. This was when I woke up. After my awakening, I would either lie there and contemplate, or immediately get up, shower, do some skincare, get dressed, go downstairs and then have breakfast. I would then either help get my younger brother to school, doss about for the next couple of hours, or walk my two Cavachons: Jax and Arlo. I always prefer to walk Jax and Arlo because it gets me out of the house and gives my young dogs something to do.
After that, I would then head straight to the town centre to grab a latte before waiting for a bus. This was the case for Semester One. Semester Two, however, was heavily reliant on the world-renowned British railway network. For that semester, I would grab a coffee in the town centre, then walk for 12 minutes to the other side of town to catch a train. The timing for this changed a lot throughout my first year, as the time I got into university would vary depending on that day’s schedule. This semester, I had to catch a 9am train quite often, as most of my lectures were in the morning.
As with most things, I often had to contend with the joys of British public transportation. In the South West of England, anything can happen. One day, you can look out a bus window and see a naked man underneath a railroad bridge. The next day, your train gets held up because someone decided to play Grand Theft Auto in real-life and park on the tracks. I’m telling you, Britain really needs to get its act together and invest heavily in its transportation networks. On the plus side, at least using public transport allows me to read whatever book I have on hand.
Anyways, as soon as I arrive in the City of Bath, I leave the station and catch the bus that takes me to Bath Spa’s Newton Park Campus. Ah, Newton Park. It isn’t easy to describe such a place of outstanding beauty but allow me to try. It is far removed from the hustle and bustle of the city centre and surrounded by a picturesque forest, complete with two connected lakes and a vast plot of agricultural land linked to a nearby farm. This past month, I’ve been blessed to see a great herd of sheep and their lambs grazing happily among the fields.
I would then go about my business, attend the required lectures, seminars and workshops, then leave the campus and head home. Occasionally, I would buy myself something to eat and drink on the way back. As soon as I return home, I would then focus my efforts on my coursework, have a one-to-one meeting with my disability mentor, and then figure out a way to unwind. Often, this would result in me learning to play guitar, going to the gym, going boxing, or simply playing a video game to relieve my stress. I eat, go to bed, and the cycle begins again the next day.
On the days I didn’t go into university, I would often use those to work on my assignments, research various subjects for my writings or work on the various writing prompts given in lectures. I would even use the time to try to improve my own writing, ensuring it is as good as it can be.
Section 3: We Write Our Destinies…
Speaking of writing, I should talk about my experiences in the Creative Writing and Publishing course thus far. I will divide it into two parts. For this section, we’ll talk about the Creative Writing aspect of this course. It was an interesting experience, to say the least, and I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a prospective university.
For the first semester, my time was heavily focused on Creative Writing. As for how it was organised, I can best describe it as half exploratory, half creative. Semester one’s exploratory half involved examinations of four pieces of prose fiction, each written by a different author. These four books were as follows:
· The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury
· Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neal Hurston
· My Sister the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite
· Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
We had to read these four books and then write an author study on them, where we could either compare them with another of the set texts, use an author outside of the syllabus, or focus heavily on one of the required authors. There is a catch, however; we also had to compare them with our own writings from the exploratory module. We were even allowed to analyse writings we had done outside the university. If you’ve actually seen my Substack page, you will know I have done plenty (and I totally recommend that you subscribe immediately!)
To better understand the texts for our author studies, we were recommended to read them in preparation for a lecture on the book. Of the four books set, I liked only one. That one book was The Martian Chronicles. Their Eyes Were Watching God was nothing too special, but the other two books were too poor for my tastes. I ended up giving My Sister the Serial Killer and Half of a Yellow Sun to a charity shop after the module was completed. There was some creative writing involved in the module; however, it was primarily influenced by techniques used in the set texts. For example, we had to write a description of a place we know from the perspective of an extraterrestrial being.
For the creative half of the first semester, we were writing various pieces that we workshopped in groups in seminars on Thursday. We then had lectures on what we could use in our creative writing. This ranged from dialogue to onomatopoeia, and they were some of the best lectures I had the pleasure of attending. In these lectures, we were given prompts for workshopping in the seminars on Thursdays. I chose to write mainly prose because it is what I am most comfortable with. This was how the first semester went.
The second semester involved us working on a large creative project that we would workshop in Monday seminars. In all honesty, they were fun and highly engaging. I should also add that my tutor this semester was a fantasy author, and she really enjoyed having me as her student.
There was also the occasional online lecture run by one of the Creative Writing tutors every two weeks or so. There, we would have occasional guest speakers or go over various techniques covered in lectures. As to where I could take them varied depending on the semester. At first, I would’ve taken them in my studio. But when it came time for semester two, I was watching them in the university’s library.
All in all, the Creative Writing syllabus this year was an amazing introduction for me. Especially as it allowed me to get to grips with the syllabus and encouraged me to flourish like never before.
Section 4: …And Bind Them In Print
The Publishing side of my university course was something I didn’t expect to really enjoy. However, as I got into it, I really started to enjoy it!
The main reason I decided to take up Publishing alongside Creative Writing was to learn about the publishing process. Whilst that still holds true to some degree, I have found my ambitions somewhat changing as the year progressed. Now, I find myself wanting to set up my own publishing house to publish both my own writings and those of others.
I was pleasantly surprised to learn how much work goes into publishing a book and getting it out to the market. From the editorial stage to the design and printing of a book, it has honestly been an exhilarating experience for me.
The first semester, as mentioned in the Creative Writing section, was primarily oriented toward Creative Writing. As such, there was only one Publishing module for me to undertake that semester, and it was always on a Monday. It was a standard introduction to the module where I was getting to grips with the standard software used in the Publishing Industry. This software included Adobe products such as InDesign, Photoshop, and Illustrator. Whilst I have gotten used to InDesign and Illustrator, Photoshop is still a bit rusty for me, at least for now.
I really hate the fact that I have so much power with Photoshop, because it allows me to create atrocities like this image.
I find that it is best not to ask what goes on in my mind. Its inner machinations truly are an enigma, even to me.
Whilst the first semester was somewhat lacklustre in terms of Publishing, the second semester was where it really took off. This semester, we had two separate Publishing modules: one focused on the editorial and production side of the industry, and the other on more creative tasks undertaken in a studio-based environment. I really loved both of these modules, as they pushed me in ways I couldn’t have imagined. Furthermore, they further enlightened me to what I can expect in a professional environment. From research profiling to creating blog posts, there were dozens of avenues and plenty of opportunities for me to further advance in the course.
Section 5: Sagely Advice
Now, we come to the last section of this post. As the heading suggests, I will be giving advice to those looking for a prospective path.
The best advice I could give would be to follow your heart and see where it takes you. For me, if your heart is in the right place, you will love the work you undertake. If you wish to become a dancer, go ahead. If you wish to take up a trade, you can choose whatever you want.
However, if you choose to go to university. My main advice would be to work hard while also having fun. If you work hard at your chosen path and you do well at it, you will be rewarded greatly for doing so. However, it is also important not to over-stress yourself doing so. You should also take the time to find something that takes your mind off the stresses of life and recharges you mentally, physically and spiritually.
I would advise you to get well-organised and try to hand in your assignments early. This will put you in good standing with your lecturers and tutors and show them how methodical and prepared you are.
Overall, this has been my experience with my first year of university.
Thanks for reading.