Goodbye Leicester, it’s been emotional

Yesterday evening, after three arduous years of studying Media and Sociology at the University of Leicester, I stuffed a car full of my personal belongings and timeless memories, as my last journey home commenced. Today, I have officially finished university and as I await my distinction results, I reflect on some wonderful memories that have been created whilst living in Leicester.

If anything, I feel as if I have learnt a vast amount about myself as a person (of course my brain has also been crammed full with lots of academic stuff, but that was a given!). Upon starting university, I was told that the entire experience would be life changing and for the first two years I was not convinced – my social life appeared to be quite slow and I wasn’t thrilled by my course. In my third and final year of studying, my long term relationship ended and one of the positive consequences (if possible) was the fact that I was pushed outside of what I deemed to be socially comfortable – this meant actively trying out new experiences and taking a couple of steps away from my comfort zone. As I learnt to be more confident in myself, I was able to enjoy my university experience on a higher level. Plus, I became more engrossed in multiple aspects of my course and even managed to enjoy writing my dissertation!

For many people, as they leave the contentment of their homes and move out for university, it is the first time that as human beings they are able to experience dipping their toes into the deep waters of life. Living in a strange yet exciting city for three years leads to some pretty solid friendships and wonderful memories that’s for certain. One thing I’ve learnt about an experience such as this, is the fact that in order to fully reap the benefits of university, it is essential to throw ourselves into the new opportunities and experiences that sit before us. Do something that scares you or initially can make you feel anxious, because the end result will be ten times more rewarding then staying in and watching re-runs of Orange Is the New Black (this is totally what I’ve been doing ever since I finished my finals – guilty!).