The 5 Biggest University Myths – Debunked

As a soon to be university graduate, I’ve been feeling nostalgic recently about these past three years. I’m constantly thinking about all the things I was told before I started that couldn’t be further from the truth; so, to prepare all the bright eyed, soon-to-be freshers, it only made sense to debunk a few myths in a blog post…

1.Pretty much everyone will meet their ‘soulmate’
As a quick disclaimer, I have been very lucky to meet my boyfriend in uni who is absolutely, positively another half of me, so this obviously won’t apply to everyone. Right, cheesyness over. The reality of the situation is, most people will not be leaving uni with this so called ‘soulmate’. I don’t know about you, but I was under the impression that I would go to uni with a platter of smart, ambitious boys to choose from. I finished first year single, not interested in anyone I knew at my uni, with the only boy I had really spoke to on a personal level that year being a pretty horrible person that I didn’t even like anyway. I went into that summer thinking… “well, damn.” So, as a warning to all the girls and boys who think a move from secondary school to university will mean it’s well and truly going to be the time where you find your life partner, that just might not happen. At the end of the day, it doesn’t even matter. You leave university in your 20s, which is young enough that it’s not a big deal. But if your expectations are too high, you might find yourself getting disappointed.

2. First year doesn’t count
In my university, my first year counts for one ninth of my final grade. However, even if your first year doesn’t count towards your final grade – it still counts. How does that make sense? Well, first of all, if you fail first year, you’re not getting into second year. Second of all, when it comes to second year and you have to start applying for internships and thinking about your future career, you might be a bit shocked to find that a lot of firms ask for a full break down of your first year grades. So, if you’ve messed around too much in first year, it can most definitely come back to bite you in the ass.

3. Your degree determines your job
This was drummed into my head a lot in sixth form and secondary school. Hence, choosing my degree seemed like one of the biggest decisions in the world. You will come to find that your degree (unless you do medicine, dentistry or other degrees related to very specific jobs), does not determine where you’ll work. I’ve been doing internships in the financial industry since I started university, and I have come across students that study languages, Social Policy, Law, and a whole range of other things outside of Economics, Accounting and/or Finance. Of course these courses will help in the job, but most jobs offer training for students of different disciplines to very quickly get up to scratch. Getting a uni degree is not always so much about what you learn academically, but sometimes what you learn in terms of hard work, organisation, discipline, and generally developing your way of thinking.

4. If you get a first, you get a job
Getting a first is amazing (I’m a week away from getting my results and want a first so bad that thinking of not achieving one gives me heart palpitations). But unfortunately, getting a first does not mean you’re going to get a job. Actually, most firms just ask for you to get a 2.1, and most firms care less about your academics than they do about your extra curriculars. For two equivalent people who do the same course at the same university, if one got a 2.1 but had some applicable work experience and got involved in university sports or societies, and the other got a 1st and did nothing but study, the person with a 2.1 would get the job. So, definitely work hard to get your first, but also make sure you’re doing other things to develop yourself into an overall well rounded person.

5. If you go to university from home you won’t make any friends
I moved out for all three years of university and I’m also going to continue living out once I start working full-time, but I do know quite a few people that actually spent their first year living at home, which is the year everyone tells you it’s crucial to live out. Living at home as a fresher definitely makes things harder, people tend to form into groups quickly with their hall mates, and travelling can be a bit annoying. However – it’s not impossible. If you live at home, you just need to be that little bit more social, and put in that little bit work to make your university experience enjoyable. It is definitely possible! So, if for you moving out is not an option, don’t let people scare you into thinking you’ll end up as a loner – if you don’t want that to be the case, it won’t be.

But then again, there are a few uni myths that actually do seem to be true. For example, you probably will fall out with at least one of your second year flat/house mates, you’ll likely forget about your first friends you make, and you will meet some absolutely amazing people. If you want me to do a post about 5 university myths that are true, just let me know in the comments below, by e-mail (admin@skylish.co.uk) or by social media (@_skylish for Twitter and Instagram, kemiakinn for Snapchat)