HERE TO HELP 02: - Choosing a degree and University

Throughout the UCAS process I was as indecisive as ever and thought about doing many subjects. My personal statement wasn’t difficult to write as I’d done and was doing so many things with my time, the difficult part was choosing the course. Eventually, I thought of a way to aid my decisions – order as many university prospectuses as the post man would deliver and go through them crossing out which courses I DEFINITELY didn’t want to do or my subject choice wasn’t quite qualified for. I hoped that this way my interests would come out and I would narrow down the bazillions of choices I had in front of me.

I visited many universities on open days and made an opinion about them almost straight away. I had a kind of university snobbery and I only wanted to attend the elite to get my degree.  I wanted people and future employers to look at me and my CV, raise an eyebrow and be surprised as to where I graduated from. I finally decided on my course, after a long narrowing down process and many online quizzes, I decided what my favourite subjects were and combined them to decide my degree - Economics. I was not at the time interested in what I considered to be Economics – ie. The 2008 Financial Crisis that flooded the media, in fact I turned it off or changed the conversation when Economics was even slightly involved but nevertheless I continued with my decision.

I also had found the institutions I wanted to study, two of them were old polytechnic universities of which I had no intention of going to but I chose them as I was told to ‘pick some for safety’.

I really, really, really wanted to go to University One, when I visited I loved the city, the university and the way it was laid out, I loved how pretty it was and I knew that I would do well there. Unfortunately they didn’t make me an offer and so I had to become more excited about another University on my list.

The next was University Two , the day I visited, I stepped out of the car, turned to my then boyfriend who was next to me and said ‘this is it, I love it’. And I did, I loved it more than University One, I loved the people, the setting, the countryside, the layout, I loved everything about the place and University campus and I knew it was the place I wanted to be for the next 3 years of my life and my degree.

I visited University Three and loved the course and the academia of it all.

I visited University Four (one of my safety choices) and discarded it almost instantly as it felt to me like a sixth form college as opposed to a University.

Finally, I visited University Five (my other safety choice) and I hated it, as soon as I arrived I could see why it would appeal to some people but not me, no way. I had to keep it as a backup though. I visited more times to see if my mind would change but it just didn’t, I didn’t like the feel of the place, nor the people that I met, nor the reputation the institution had (cue university snobbery), and I certainly didn’t like how close it was to home.

When it came to choosing my top two universities ( firm and insurance choices) I had to ponder over it a lot and I changed my mind many times (Surprise surprise!). I guess the reputation of the two institutions played a big part in my decision. I soon decided that I wouldn’t get the grades needed to attend University One and I changed my choices to having just University Two as my firm choice. I didn’t want an insurance choice as by this point I thought ‘if I don’t get the grades to go to University Two, I don’t want to go anywhere’. Also, the only other institutions I had to choose from were ones I knew from the very pit of my stomach I definitely did not want to attend, just the thought of going to University Four or Five to read Economics made me feel nauseous. 

The story ends where I had to go through clearing, I am still studying Economics but I had to reapply to University Five. The thing is I didn’t intend to study here but I’ve had a wonderful first year, I’ve met many people and I love my course.

My advice would be to follow your heart, when you find a course you’re interested in, read around the subject a little find out what parts of it you’re interested in, seek advice from past students and don’t be scared to email the university! They’re there to help you! Go to all of the open days, get a feel for the place and ASK THE STUDENT AMBASSADORS, they know more than anybody what it’s like to study at their university and they will be totally and completely honest – they know how hard the decision is and they don’t care about admissions numbers, they’re just there to add a few quid to their drinking pot and help everybody out along the way! 

I hope reading my journey has helped, leave a comment if you have any questions!

It's student sense. 

Love, Miss Indecisive xx

HERE TO HELP 01: - Choosing A level options

When I started to think about 6^th form and after my GCSE’s I wanted to take the International Baccalaureate (IB) – a worldwide recognised qualification that’s equivalent to A levels. I always knew that I wanted to go to University and I understood that the IB wasn’t as widely recognised in the UK or as fairly looked upon as A levels but still there was something about all the hard work and long hours that appealed to me. Unfortunately – or fortunately depending on how you look at it, my school could no longer offer the qualification as there wasn’t enough people that were willing (or stupid) enough to take on the challenge. Looking back, I can see I made the correct decision and I’m glad I was no longer able to do the IB, I wouldn’t have coped with the unnecessary pressure and stress that it provided. Therefore, I had to make another decision (I know! Difficult for a non decision maker) what A levels would I take? Luckily I got on with the head of 6^th form and he helped me in so many ways, from my confidence to my decision making.

I finally decided that I would start four A levels; Biology, Maths, French and Religious Studies, these choices were nothing to do with possible career choices they were simply subjects that I enjoyed, I was interested in and good at. I was only 16 and I had no idea what I wanted to do for the rest of my life (I still don’t) and unless you have a set career path in mind, it’s important to do subjects because you enjoy them and that will hopefully lead to a wonderful life and career.

 After two weeks of studying French, realising I had to be in school for 7am for an early lesson and my teacher giving me a French essay to write, I quickly decided that an A level in the French language was not for me. I had to change my mind and fast, the only thing that sparked my imagination (and that would fit into my timetable) was Sociology. I had always been rather sceptic of social sciences and I suppose I had subject snobbery (is that even a thing?) but I had no other option really and threw myself head first into the subject. It turns out I got the best grade in it and I really enjoyed the subject.

I well and truly threw myself into the sixth form experience and I believe it set me up well for life – as well as making my CV look amazing! I made many friends and held many responsibilities and I look back on those two years with fond memories. If I could give anyone advice it would be to do the things you enjoy, step out of your comfort zone every once in a while and make the most of your time being young!



It makes student sense!


Love, Miss Indecisive xx

Headspace!

So recently I finished my first year university exams and they couldn’t have gone any worse and it just got me thinking that maybe I’m scared of failure?

I have always been a really confident person, things in my life have just made me this way, I’ve been known to be quite opinionated and sometimes outspoken. I did really well in my GCSE’s, I was in the top set for everything and I had lots of friends.

Not doing as well as I’d hoped in my A level exams has always played on my mind, when it came round to university exams was feeling very stressed. My friend from home suggested ‘Headspace’ cool website which teaches you to meditate- sounds weird but don’t knock it until you’ve tried it! I signed up to a 10 day free trial and I can honestly say it helped me a lot. I felt really silly at first sitting by myself listening to a man tell me how to breath but honestly it helped me get a much better nights sleep and I developed a calmer outlook on my days. As a result I only failed one of my exams and looking back the exam was just after I’d finished my 10 day meditation trial and I was no longer meditating.

A few weeks after my exams were over I saw a topic on Loose Women – a morning chat show in the UK and they were talking about if meditation helped during exams. This could be a coincidence but I believe that it did help me through the stressful time. After the free trial you can carry on using the techniques it’s taught you if you don’t want to pay for a subscription!

The friend that recommended this website to me has a very busy schedule on a day to day basis and has no time for himself, I guess ‘getting some Head space’ has helped him not to feel stressed and uptight all of the time about his hectic lifestyle.

I also found that the podcasts on sleeping really helped. I was a bit sceptic at first but gave it a try and before I knew it, I had woken up, it was morning, the podcast had stopped and I had had the best nights sleep that I’d had for a while.

It’s free, doesn’t take long and has helped loads of people, so whether you’re a student or not, in work or not, maybe you’re just feeling agitated at life, GIVE IT A GO!

http://www.getsomeheadspace.com/

It makes student sense.

Love, Miss Indecisive xx

Bonjour everybody!

I always seem to set projects for myself but never get round to finishing them hence why I think a blog will be the perfect thing for me – an on-going challenge!

I plan to just have a little chit chat about life from things like friendships, food and drink, education and exams to things like skincare, beauty, music and shopping obviously all from a students point of view.

This blog is not aimed at any type of person in particular; hopefully it will appeal to both males and females alike. I’d like to think that I know a little about a lot and if I don’t know then I know someone that does. I will recommend things, let you know what I think of products and hopefully put your mind to rest about more topical and personal subjects.

I hope you enjoy this little journey along with me and if anybody has any suggestions – an email address is on its way!