I was pretty chill about moving away from home. I like meeting new people and have been told countless times ‘first year doesn’t count’ so I figured uni would be like a holiday away from my friends and family and I’d be back in no time at all. I’ve travelled alone before and I can cook and clean up after myself so I wasn’t concerned about living alone; 8 weeks into uni life and it’s been a crazy ride but finally things seem to be falling into place (some days).

I went out 8 nights in a row during freshers week. I had planned on staying in a few nights, but with all the events literally 3 mins from my front door, it was hard to say no. My favourite nights out were the silent disco and neon night and least favourite was toga night (3/10 would not recommend wearing a bedsheet in the rain) and in the daytime I had fun doing inflatable obstacle courses and learning to make hummus. Overall it was a fun week although I was consequently ill for approximately 20 days.

Being ill did not make my intro to university level maths easy at all and up until around week 5 I considered dropping out daily because none of my course made any sense and I felt like I was in way over my head. There is no accountability in terms of attendance or handing in problem sheets (which can make it hard to justify waking up for 9am lectures) and pure maths is unlike any subject I have studied before and is taught and learnt in a very different style to what I was accustomed to. I am currently in week 8 and I still spend half my lectures sitting and listening with no idea what is going on but I now realise there are +350 students who feel the same way. Sometimes I still wonder if I’m on the right course but these thoughts occur once a week or fortnight as opposed to 24/7.

On the more social side; uni is the best! I joined veggie society which provides free dinner every Wednesday (10/10 would recommend even if you’re not veggie) and Bath Uni Maths Society (BUMS for short) which organises fun events like my recent night out to Bristol and I attend Ballroom and Latin dance classes a couple of times a week which is really exciting. I also got onto 2 competitive cheerleading teams which involves 5-6 training sessions per week, but I really enjoy it!

I go out a couple of nights a week, a few times a fortnight I go to the library and I regularly attend 14/20 of my contact hours so I think I’m doing okay with the whole work/life balance thing. Although I miss my friends and hometown and some days I’m sick of adulting, I am thoroughly enjoying living away from home and the being independent.