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2ND DEC 2008
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The question that I have been asking myself recently is whether or not there are big differences between making the transition from college to university. The answer might seem quite simple yes there is, but ask yourself this is it really that clear.
In answer to this question I think that there is a major difference between university life and college life. That major difference being the way you are treated and also the fact that you are now classed as an adult because you have to make lots of major decisions on your own and you now are living on your own. These I believe are the major differences but there is a whole load more.
The differences that I mentioned above are major because when you look at them, they can scare the pants off college students, like they did for me when I made the transition this year from Coleg Powys in Newtown to Aberystwyth University because making decisions on your own and living on your own is something which I and many others have never experienced before, because this is the first real time that we have all left home.
This is the first major obstacle because in college you used to have to just get on the bus in the morning and then have lectures all day before going home at night to your parent’s house and have some tea before doing what you want. This would be my day to day routine for two years without having to make any major decisions like when to go and buy some food and what to cook for tea!!
The other differences are that in university you are treated a lot differently (well I was). You are treated in my opinion more like an adult than you are in college because you are shown more respect and also you are supposed to control your life and make your own decisions without anybody else telling you what you can and can’t do. So for example some of the decisions that you have to make are what day you are going to do your washing and also you have to make sure that you have no clashes with lectures on your timetable and many more.
So this is the first real difference between college and university the next change between the two is one that I have already mentioned briefly and that is living on your own. This is not really true you do not live on your own because there are lots of other freshers (first year) students living in the same block or apartment as you so you don’t feel truly alone but you do have your own room to yourself which you have to look after, e.g. keep clean and maintain. But living on your own is different because you can do what you want, when you want without anybody telling you that you should not do this. So for example if you fancy going to the pub for a few drinks then you can without finding out if somebody has already planned something for you.
Also I think that another major difference between the college and university for me was the fact that instead of being taught at the same time as doing the work I am now taught through lectures where I have to take notes and then implement what I have been learning later on in the week. So what this means for me being a computer science student is that where as before when I was being taught in college I could just implement whatever the lecturer was doing at the same time, so I felt that it was a bit easier to learn because if you have any questions while doing it then you can just ask them straight away. Where as in university it is different because now you can’t implement the solution straight away during lectures because you don’t have a computer with you. So you have to wait until the lecture is over and then try what you have been taught on your own, without any help to begin with but you can get help later on.
Another thing that has changed is the university timetable compared to the college timetable. Where as before it would be like a normal school day where you would have to work from 9 till 4 and then go home, now in university you might be working until 6 at night. Which makes the days seem slightly longer, although the timetable does have its advantage over the college timetable because you might have days off with only one lecture in that day and also you may be able to have longer to sleep some days because lectures might not start till the afternoon or mid morning. So overall the timetable does sometimes have its advantages over the college timetables.
So in answer to the question is there a difference between college and university life, the answer is yes there are differences between the two but where as they might seem like big differences at the start they soon become very little changes and some differences might have its own advantage. So overall university life is very easy to become accustomed to and it does have its perks over college, you just have to give it a chance.
Provided by Daryl Grimwade (United Kingdom)
Studying at University Of Wales, Aberystwyth |
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