Features / student advice
Navigating life as a postgrad
The prospect of freshers’ week as a postgraduate was exciting: a chance to meet new people and start a new chapter. I was fortunate to study in a city I had already known for three years. Even so, I felt daunted, and the prospect of endless icebreakers and finding my feet was intimidating.
While students’ unions do great work in helping to foster communities at university, I began to feel imposter syndrome creep in when I attended events targeted at undergraduate students. I wasn’t living in student halls or with other students at all, and I felt quite detached from what I had perceived freshers to be.
I learnt very quickly that I felt I was getting “too old” to be out clubbing four times a week, and I was baffled by how I didn’t have a hangover every minute of the day as an undergraduate. However, as I was assured and am in turn assuring you, these feelings are totally normal.
is needed now More than ever
The key is to make freshers’ week work for you. Maybe staying at the Brass Pig until 3am on a school night isn’t your thing (kudos if it is). Still, don’t lose your ‘try new things’ attitude.
Susie Long was the Editor of Bristol24/7 Student Guide 2024 – photo: Ella Clarke
It’s easy to think you’ve already done the whole ‘uni experience’ bit. You may feel that your postgraduate studies are when you should just knuckle down. Of course, it is time to work hard. But immersing yourself in your new city, environment and peers is still incredibly important.
My coursemates and I started the year by doing just that. We organised a massive pub crawl and those of us who knew Bristol guided the rest down Gloucester Road, getting more intoxicated at each stop. My course had only about twenty people, so it was easy to organise. Getting everyone together was formative for future friendships. That pub crawl remains one of my favourite uni memories.
Most of my socialising with coursemates has involved random outings, evening meals, gigs or chance meetings in the supermarket that turn into full days spent together. Although I haven’t bonded with people over clubbing or late nights, it’s refreshing to see how easily you can connect with strangers over a shared love of niche post-punk or a mutual appreciation of Cornish pasties.
Don’t think postgraduate life is just errands and being in bed by 9pm. My point is that it can be whatever you want it to be. There is no such thing as being “too old” to enjoy any events your uni or city offers. It’s really about how you feel, not what others say. I advocate for stepping out of the uni bubble, but that doesn’t mean you have to abandon it completely.
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Regardless of age or background, university life is yours to shape and define. If you want to be in a club every night, do it. If not, no one will mind.
You need to focus on the substantial workload that comes with a postgraduate degree. Still, the world around you doesn’t stop. Now, more than ever, remember to relax, unwind, and have fun sometimes. A postgraduate degree means plenty of work — but remember to play, too.
This article is taken from the Bristol24/7 Student Guide 2025
Main photo: UWE Bristol
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