Should i go to university (UK)

Thoughts and tips from a graduate

Should i go to university (UK)
Author:
Published:

17th Aug 2016 17:00
 
Modified:
 
17th Aug 2016 17:10
With the standard price for most courses coming in around £9,000 a year it’s worth seriously considering whether the time and money you have to spend to go to University is really worth it.

I graduated from the University of West England in 2012 with a 1:1 Bachelors in Information Technology (Website development, programming and databases). Since then i have worked for myself on a freelance and contractual basis starting from my bedroom and moved currently to renting office space in central Bristol.

Here's a breakdown of the thoughts me and my peers had to help anyone tackling the question of “Should i go to University”.
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I’m not sure what Uni course to take


If this is the case just wait. There are always loads of people that drop out during their first year or change course. There's no real reason to go straight to Uni after you finish collage. Half the people on my course were above 25 years old. If you don't know what you want to study then wait until you do. Go get a job in an industry that interests you, take a gap year or work on some personal projects or business ideas. Don't spunk your time and money on a course that doesn't interest you just because you don’t want to miss out on getting drunk with your friends. Just visit your friends if that's your worry, much cheaper and less stressful.

I want to do a course in X but I'm worried i won't get a job relevant to it


Always go for a course that interests you. The vast majority of people i knew at university that didn't like their course ended up with a rubbish grade which didn't help them get a job anyway. If you leave University with a top grade in something you really enjoyed then you will be in a much more employable position regardless of the industry you move to next. And at least you will have extra knowledge under your belt rather than a grade you don’t even bother including on your CV.
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Tips for getting a good grade at University


The obvious things are put the work in, know your stuff and always backup your claims with proven research and published papers. Remember your a mere student and you don't know anything yet so you better make sure you back up claims with good references.

But here's the main reason i believe i came out of University with a top grade…

There is much more to getting a good University grade than knowing stuff. Your relationship with lectures is KEY. Attend as many lectures as possible. Engage with your lecturer and answer questions when they ask the class. Make sure the lecturer knows you by name and sees that you appreciate their class. It's your lecturer that marks your work. If he/she doesn't even know your name, or notices you never turn up and don't pay attention, that will be in their mind when they mark your work.

Don't get me wrong, i’m no ass lick. Back in secondary school and college i messed around to much and always sat at the back. I worked my way through Uni to pay the fees and for me that changed the game. I treated Uni like a game. I made sure all the lecturers knew me and i listened carefully to the things they were most passionate about. I tailored my writing style in a way that i knew the person who was reading it would agree with.

I’m not trying to say you just need to suck up to your lecturer to get a good grade. You just need to listen to them and give them what they want. Your at University because you DONT know stuff. Some of my peers used a writing style that made arguments that directly went against what the lecturer was saying to try and be smart. Those were the people that ended up with the lower grades.

That's the main things i can think of right now. If you have any specific question post a comment below and i’ll get back to you.