Open Days, UCAS and the bone-crushing realisation that the end is nigh

Hello people.

Today is going to be a recap of the universities I have looked at so far, the stress of submitting my UCAS application, and coming to terms with the end of my childhood pretty much- this probably won't be a very light read, sorry bout it.

For context, I wrote this post weeks ago when I submitted my UCAS (early-mid November) so though I am not currently living through this, it has happened in the not so distant past.

First, I should give you some background about what I want to do at uni. I am currently on a BTEC Journalism course (yes, haha it's a BTEC, but jokes on you because I bloody love it and when you will be pulling your hair out over exams I will be chilling with a margarita on a yacht somewhere (in my dreams yes, but alcohol will definitely be involved in reality and the point is I won't be in a stuffy exam hall).

In the words of Patron Saint Alyssa Edwards from the Haus of Edwards, "Don't get bitter, just get better" *hairflip/deathdrop*

So anyway, the idea is to continue with journalism for the ol' uni degree, and somewhere along the line end up stealing Fiona Bruce's job meaning you lot have to put up with my mug on the news every night (haha), whilst simultaneously taking over every media outlet and then, THE WORLD mwahahahahahahahahahaha. 

All jokes aside, I think I've got my eye on broadcasting- print is dying and although writing is my thang, I could fulfill that through blogging or scriptwriting for example, so it's not all bad. 

Back to the point of this post, my open day experiences began back in June, when I went to Brighton with my grandparents and visited the Uni of Sussex. An absolute shambles to say the least. The thing with journalism is that it is advised you obtain an extra qualification in shorthand, court reporting and media law alongside your degree, to save valuable time and money if you were to do it as an extra year somewhere else (the nearest college that does it is in Essex... no thanks!)

As this was my first uni, I wasn't quite sure what I was looking for (and neither did my grandparents, who it's safe to say, were utterly useless open day buddies). 

The uni didn't feel right from the get-go. I'm a city girl at heart- living near London has the perfect blend of rural and urban, though I will always tell people I'm from the Big Smoke :), so the amount of green at this uni wasn't really for me, and when I found out the journalism course did not have this extra qualification it was a fat no. 

I later found out that Brighton was the uni with the right qualification- stupidly Sussex advertised themselves as 'the uni in Brighton' which obviously confused me- are they trying to do it for popularity? Cos bubba, that won't work.

So, slightly disheartened, I returned to London, and vowed never again to go to another uni, or place where I would ultimately have to make a big decision, with my grandparents. 

A few weeks later I decided to get back on the horse and try again, this time to the Uni of Westminster, whose Journalism course is at the Harrow campus (perfect for me as I'm not even half an hour away), with my parents. In comparison to Sussex, I got a feeling from the very beginning. I could definitely see myself going there. The teacher was lovely. Facilities were great. Library... wow. The student guide was so helpful. It just seemed like a much better atmosphere and a place where I could see myself going for three years. 

They, however, do not do the extra qualification as mentioned before, which is a bit of a pain. It means I would have to attend extra classes alongside my degree, resulting in a lot more stress, or take another year to get the qualification, more money and more stress- and the possibility of not getting a job for another year after uni.

Westminster did however have the most positives from anything on my list, with free parking, a radio station, loads of extra curricular and the campus is not too far from home, but also fairly close to London. The issue was that after going there, every uni I visited was compared to it. And none of them felt as good as Westminster did. 

Moving swiftly on, I skipped loads of open days over the summer, mostly cos I couldn't be bothered- open days take so much energy, and if you don't know exactly what you are looking for- which I did not at the beginning of my search- you will not get as much from the day and also having to chat sh*t for so long about yourself gets tiring!

The next uni I visited was City. It was good and it's my second option, but I didn't get the same spark I got from Westminster so I don't know. I could however see myself going there, and even doing well, but it's another idk.

The same day I visited Goldsmiths in Lewisham. Total waste of time. The facilities were about 30 years old and I couldn't speak to any teachers- if they don't care about their course and prospective students, why should I? 

Then I went to the Uni of Kent- we first went to the wrong campus in Canterbury, such fun and so arrived too late to hear the talk. When we did arrive in the right place it felt good. I initially met some students and two of the teachers in the exhibition thing that they all seem to do on an open day, and really liked them. The teacher really liked me and the course sounded interesting but when I went to the facilities and met one of the other teachers, he was rude, misogynistic and patronising and made me want to leave immediately. 

He asked me if I'd ever written an essay, taken an exam, or had any idea at all how much of a challenge uni would be. He took me to the radio room, pointed to the window, and told me 'that's where you see through to the other side', pointed at the microphone 'that's where you speak through and it will record, pointed at headphones 'that's what you put on your ears and listen to'. He was talking to me like I was an idiot!

And that, along with the awful facilities, ruled out Kent. 

The next uni was Sheffield, where they told me I couldn't see the facilities, because it was 'closed on the weekend'. They also told me that if I didn't put them first on my list from the beginning, they wouldn't even consider me. 

Sheffield was ruled out too.

The most recent one was Bournemouth, but I didn't actually like it so there goes that.

I have plans to visit another one in December, but from what I've heard I'm not too enamoured with it (spoiler alert, I didn't go!)

And there you go. I don't know if it's just me but my experience visiting unis has been a bit of a telenovela!

As for UCAS, I sent my application off weeks ago... I am stressed AF. Now I'm getting all these emails for interviews- typically on the places I'd really rather not end up!- and I'm sat reading them, silently stressing in public places whilst trying my hardest not to melt my ice queen exterior. Luckily I have also received conditional offers for four of my five choices- a massive relief, just got to meet those grades!

And just like that, another post done and dusted! A longer read today, I though you would appreciate some rants about the useless unis I have visited and swiftly ruled out. There are more stories (believe me, I could write a novel just on the open days!) but I will spare you the details and leave you with the 'bare necessities' as it were.

Bet you're sick of me now! 

Thanks for reading xx