Transitioning from A-Levels to university: what to expect

My life during A-Levels was very structured. I would go to Sixth Form from 9am-3pm every day, get home, walk the dog, have a shower and study for the rest of the evening. My routine was familiar and steady, and I had expected this to continue into my university life. However, this wasn't the case.

University life has a lot less structure than I had imagined. Lectures can vary in time, some being 1 hour, some being 2, and maybe longer depending. They can be any time from 9am until 7pm, the same is true with seminar classes. The time spent at university varies from day to day, with some days being spent entirely on campus, and others mostly at home. This took a lot of getting used to, but now I feel I have a lot more freedom, and more time to myself compared to my A-Level experience.

For my Sociology degree, I do not sit exams, instead my grades are almost entirely coursework based. Coursework and essays are not all due at the end of the academic year, but instead there are 2 assignment periods - Christmas and Spring. While this is much different from A-Levels, I definitely prefer it to having one final exam at the end of the year. The splitting of assignment periods into two has meant that I do not have to worry about 'forgetting' content from the autumn term when it comes to the end of the academic year.

My biggest piece of advice for this transition into university life is to be open minded and be resilient. I remember during my first few weeks at university, I really wanted to go home and give up. I felt lonely and overwhelmed, but in time I began to find my pace and space within university. Now, I am finishing my second year of my degree and going into final year, looking forward to what my future will be. I am so happy that I didn't let my worries and anxieties get the better of me, and that I stuck with it.