Living it up in Leeds
Only 3 weeks into university and I’ve already set off to Leeds to see one of my best friends, Elsi, for her birthday. Two other close friends from home Leah B, and Leah D also travelled from their different universities to spend the weekend together celebrating. I was so excited to see my friends from home because although we had only been apart for a month, it felt like a lifetime. The contrast from seeing these girls every day to being separated for weeks on end has been a huge adjustment.
To start with it felt strange seeing Elsi in her new life, because at university everyone’s lives change. After staying for the weekend, I felt like I had an insight into what her life is like now. Whilst in Leeds met her lovely flatmates, and a couple of friends from her course and church. We also experienced what it was like being a Leeds University student: attending a Student Union event, doing the long 30 minute walk from the university to halls, living in the cosy accommodation and seeing the little family that Block H was, as well as spending a lot of time in pyjamas watching films and relaxing.
One of the best parts of meeting up with friends who had gone to different universities all across England, was that we could discuss and compare our different experiences so far, and it was so comforting to know we were experiencing the same things. It was also interesting to see how over a short time we had all started to slightly change and adapt to university lifestyle. However, I felt las soon as we were all back together it felt as if we had never been apart, and that nothing had changed since our days at Bennett, even though all our lives had completely changed.
What was strange for me was that I had nearly gone to Leeds University, but finally decided that it was not quite the right fit for me. After visiting and having a taster of what being a student there would be like, I feel I made the right choice about what suited me best. I understand why Elsi loves being at Leeds University so much, but I feel the big city and the sense that the pressure of constantly striving to be the best rather than pushing or motivating me would have stressed me. The university is beautiful and the students I met were lovely and I did have an amazing time, but for me Coventry University was definitely the right decision. However, I will certainly be returning for more visits to Leeds in the future! It is tempting for secondary schools to encourage students to go to Russell Group universities, however, at the end of the day what I found most important was choosing a university that suited me, where I felt comfortable and happy.
When it was time to leave Leeds and return to our separate universities, it was hard to say goodbye, however knowing that I will be seeing them again at Christmas made it a bit easier. The thing that surprised me most though was that I felt I was going home. During the 3 weeks I have been at university I have made Coventry my home, which made leaving a lot easier (that and the stress of returning to coursework to keep my mind focused). I cannot wait to see all of my wonderful friends again and to see the progress we have all made.
