It’s been 13 years since Veronica Stivala first set foot on campus as a fresher. She looks back at her university years with nostalgia and shares a few tips with those lucky enough to be sitting down for their first lecture.

As the temperature starts to dip ever so slightly and the palette turns to grey and brown, it begins to feel like autumn. And every year, when September comes, while I do join the rest of the country in lamenting the demise of slightly less congested roads, I also get a little nostalgic and wish that I were starting a new term.

The idea of a new academic year is so exciting: there is new stationery to buy, new books to read, new material to discover and, of course, new and old friends to meet.

I can still clearly remember my first day at university back in 2003. I even remember what I was wearing – a black top with a script in white and a pair of grey linen trousers – and I can even go back to those feelings of excitement but also feeling a bit daunted about the whole prospect of starting university life as I sat in the car, stuck in traffic (some things never change) as my mother drove me to Tal-Qroqq.

I made my way to the idiosyncratic quadrangle, which was elbow to elbow with students and lecturers who had gathered for the opening Mass. To my left was the canteen and student house, and to my right, that distinctive white boxed building, the library, that would become my second home for the following three years.

I look back at those years very fondly, because it was a time when I first felt independent and an adult. It was the time when I started driving, could stay out late, travelled abroad with fellow students, and put up a whole theatre production with my course mates. It was also a time when I had to learn so much and face the horrible beast that were finals.

But be they fun, difficult, sad or frustrating times, I look back at my university days with nostalgia. I don’t have any regrets, but perhaps I do wish I was aware of how lucky I was and how good life was back then.

Swot it is

How to make the most of your student days

Get involved

Freshers’ Week is great fun, not only because of all the parties in the evening, but also because all the activities you can sign up for are out on display and easy for you to learn more about.

Find a club or organisation you are interested in and sign up. Being part of an organisation helps you feel involved and allows you the invaluable opportunity to gain experience that will help you for the rest of your life. I learnt how to work better in a team and how to organise small events as a board member of the Arts Students Association and I still use that experience to this very day.

Travel

Being a student means you have long summer holidays. Use this time wisely and take advantage of the fact that you are a student and can get discounted rates on travel fares, accommodation and tickets.

Travel really does open up your mind and you’ll return feeling you can face your studies with a fresh mind. Also, consider going on an Erasmus exchange abroad. There are also other fun opportunities: I will never forget my trip to Rome when I went on an Aisec training weekend. I made friends, had the time of my life, and use the training I got in speaking in public to this day.

Read

They don’t say you read for a course at university for nothing. Use your free time to read up on your course work as well as on extra material. It’s amazing how much your mind can absorb when you are still young. And you’ll find you still remember quite a good deal of it later in life.

Take those extra courses

When I finished university, I said I would go back and listen in on that Chaucer course I always wanted to take but never did. I still have not got down to doing it. Do make use of your free time to listen in to lectures on a subject that interests you.

Have fun

Study as hard as you can but also relax and have fun with friends. Friendships formed at university are so important, and as you grow older I find you have less time to just hang out with friends.

And finally…

As young adults, we suffer a lot of pressure to do things, launch our careers and be successful. While this is important, do take the time to stop and think about what it is you really want to do. Don’t be afraid to take a year out before, after or in between undergraduate and postgraduate degrees to learn more about yourself and the world.