Is uni for you?

Find out if you're going for the right reasons.

The agonising choice of whether or not to go to university is a tough one. Everyone has different reasons for wanting to further their chances of getting that dream job, so how do you know you're making the right decision? Maybe this will help:

Good reasons to go to university

• Gaining that degree and adding more sparkle to your well-polished CV: Arguably the central reason why you're going to university in the first place. A degree is the reward for all that hard work and your future employers will look at it and admire you for earning one.   
• Make friends and create a whole new social circle: Making new friends is so important at university; after all, you will be spending three years with these people. Not only that, you'll mix with people from all sorts of backgrounds - people you may not get to meet without going to uni.
• Spread your wings and gain more independence in a new environment: This is probably the most useful of all the reasons to go. You will become more mature and self-sufficient in your ways, which will be helpful for when you leave, both at work and in your personal life.
• Find out more about yourself and your personality: Joining some of the many clubs that your Student Union has to offer is a must. This includes sports or societies that you may never have participated in before. You might even discover a talent you never knew you had.

Bad reasons to go to university:

• Pushy parents who want you to go to university without fail and expect the best: It's only natural for them to want the best for you but don't feel like you're letting your folks down if you don't go. Tell them what you really want to do in a mature manner and they should understand.
• Your mates are also going away to university and you feel left out: Remember that you're an individual and you have to decide what you want to do with your life. Real friends will stay that way no matter what path you chose - they are not real friends if they forget about you in a hurry.
• Hanging onto student life as a replacement to a full-time job: Unfortunately, this is the fact of life that most people dread, with lie-ins few and far between. If you make the mistake of hanging on to your student years longer than you should, it could turn out to be a costly error in terms of both money and time.
• You think that the lifestyle of waking up at midday, getting drunk on cheap beer and watching Countdown for a living is the one for you: If the stereotype of the lazy tax-dodger appeals to you then fine. But you will be in for a nasty shock when you realise that work actually has to get done, and you have to meet strict deadlines. 
• Are you going to university simply to get away from it all? Have you chosen a totally random course that you just won't enjoy? If this is a reason for going, then don't bother. Putting distance between you and your problems won't make them go away, in fact the pressures of uni could make them worse. Talk to someone, maybe a lecturer at college or your parents, and see what advice they can offer for you in your situation. Another option would be to go to your local careers advisor.

Written by Scott Woodthorpe

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