Over the past month my social media news feeds have been filled with glamorous photo's of people in their gowns graduating. I'd be lying if I said it didn't fill me with envy and questions...
Did I make a mistake?
Should I have gone to Uni?
How different would my life be if I had?
I'm an extremely indecisive person, I flutter from project to project and I can spend hours in my wardrobe each day deciding what to wear.
This is probably why after Sixth form instead of making the leap and going to Uni I spent an extra four years in college!!
Whilst my friends had clear career goals and were passionate about the paths they were pursuing, I on the other hand had no interest in any academic subjects and had no idea if my love for art was worth spending £9000 a year for a degree.
I don't love admitting this but when I was at this crossroads in my life and I was deciding what I wanted to do next, I was also at the beginning of my relationship with my boyfriend Mike. I knew that I couldn't move away to Uni and risk ending things with him, even though deep down I had the urge to travel somewhere new for my education. I do believe now that you should always put your own goals first and then allow your relationship to come second but at the time I was so infatuated with him that I did put us first.
Just to clarify I don't regret this, I try not to have any regrets in life since I'm a huge believer in "everything happens for a reason" and my decisions have led to my incredible life with Mike and our fur-baby!
Another factor that stopped me from choosing Uni is my anxiety. The thought of going to a completely new campus on my own and having to arrange my own accommodation and basically start a new life was incredibly daunting. I'm a confident person but I'm very quiet with people I don't know well and if I'm going somewhere new then I usually suffer with panic attacks in the lead up.
After year 12 I realised Sixth form wasn't the path for me and instead I spent two years studying Art and Design and then a further two years studying Special Effects Makeup in The City of Liverpool College. For me the years spent at College were like a University experience. I met some amazing, like-minded people and I was constantly having new experiences and getting up to hilarious adventures.
I can't reccomend going to college enough, for me it was a less committed version of University. College cost me A LOT less than Uni would have and it also allowed me to experience different media's and find what direction I wanted to go in with my art.
I think this learning curve is really important and unless you are certain on the career you want you shouldn't rush in to Uni. A lot of people choose subjects that they kind of enjoy or they get really good grades in, but I think it's important to be passionate about your chosen subject and to have a path planned out knowing that the degree is useful and it really is what you want.
I believe taking a gap year is really important if you aren't yet certain about your life goals. Travelling, meeting new people, getting to know yourself and trying new things will all help the process and make decisions so much easier.
So what I'm trying to say is don't rush in to University. Don't feel the need to jump from school straight to Uni just because everyone else is doing it.
There is plenty of time to decide what you want so just live in the moment while you can.
At this point in my life I think I'm ready to go to Uni, I have a home and a stable job that allows a lot of flexibility. I'm eager to research different courses and see what my local Uni's have to offer. I'm glad I waited till I'm old enough to experience life and figure out what I'm passionate about.
If you have any tips for going to Uni or about reducing anxiety please let me know!
Thanks for reading...
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