8 Reasons Why University Is Different To High School

Remember the leap from primary school to high school? Running around like a headless chicken with a backpack twice the size of yourself, trying to find where your maths class is... Bugger! You read your timetable wrong and actually have History that period... Kook slams.

But you got used to it, right?! You figured out where your classes were, the best food at the canteen, how to avoid detention... It's the same with uni. It's just another leap!

So to save you the culture shock, here are some of things that are different between high school and university.

1. Your lecturers aren’t as invested in your success

In high school, there were always teachers grilling you to get good grades and to stop chinwaggin' in class and actually listen. 

You started to grow weary of the ‘see me after class’ scrawled in red across the bottom of your test paper, and you dreaded the parent-teacher interview nights where your every academic move came under scrutiny.

God forbid but... you'll miss this. In university, your lecturers teach literally thousands of students a day, so it’s impossible for them to become personally invested in every student. You'll be lucky if they remember your name. 

2. You have to be self-motivated

Because of this lack of personal investment, you’re not going to have anyone clearly define to you what needs to be done and when. Often assignments timetables are handed out at the beginning of the semester and then never talked about again, so it’s up to you to know when something is due.

It’s rare that your tutor will sit down with you and tell you that you’re doing a bangin' job, or that you need to up your game, and no one is going to razz you for online shopping during a lecture. Being self-motivated and having self-discipline is key to succeeding in university.

3. You might find it harder to make friends

In high school, you saw the same people every day. You hung out with them at lunch, you did group tasks together in class, and you sat next to them in assembly.

In uni, none of this applies. There are tens of thousands of students milling around on campus every day, all of them with different schedules that can make it difficult to find a lunch buddy or someone to hang out with in tutorials. You'll definitely make mates but it's a more conscious effort so it may be time to brush up on some classic icebreakers.

4. The food is better, but it’s more exxy

I remember the first time I visited a university open day - it was like a miniature city! It had buildings, banks, shops, and food courts all of their own, which really put my high school canteen to shame. However, while there might be a better variety of food choices at uni, chances are they’re going to be a lot more expensive than you’re used to (and your 'rents aren’t going to be giving you lunch money either ya scab). My word of advice? There’s no shame in a packed lunch.

5. The campuses are bigger, or sometimes non-existent

Usually, universities have a ten-minute leeway before and after classes so students have time to make their way across campus, but sometimes ten minutes just doesn’t cut it when your lecture hall seems like it’s halfway across the world and the journey includes scaling treacherous flights of stairs and dodging the hundreds of other students trying to make their own way to class.

Even worse is when you go to a uni that doesn’t really have a campus, only select buildings scattered across one of Australia’s major capital cities, and you have to battle impassable crowds as well. In this case, a pair of old-school Heelies wouldn’t go awry (disclaimer: wearing Heelies may hinder your ability to make friends).

6. You'll have a lot of assignments at the same time

This might have already seemed the case in high school, but in uni your subject coordinators don’t converse with the coordinators of your other courses about when to set assignments.

When it rains, it truly pours. A lot of the time, your assignments will be scheduled all at once. Jump on those assignments early to avoid being blindsided by assignment overkill.

7. You'll be working strange hours

Say goodbye to 9am-3pm days, and hello to 6:30am bus rides and 8pm finishes. Prepare your mind and body, 'cause some of your university classes are going to be scheduled at ungodly hours, particularly as you get further into your degree. Unfortunately, there’s not a lot you can do about this except suck it up and grab a massive latte on the way to class.

8. It’s a lot harder to be exceptional

With so many students from all different backgrounds in education, those people who were exceptional in high school can quickly fade into the masses in university. The workload and subjects are a lot tougher; in short university is a whole different ball game. To get through university you’ll need to grow a tough skin, and the ability deal with failure every now and again will prove invaluable.