Which? University (the free and impartial guide to choosing degree courses and universities) have asked this year's freshers cohort how they’ve been settling in to life on campus - and how their experiences, from academic to social to financial, have measured up against what they were expecting.
Encouragingly, more than half the students spoken to were enjoying their degree course more than they actually thought they would – with 44% of students finding lectures more interesting than expected and 55% saying their university’s facilities had exceeded expectations. Having said that, nearly four in 10 students didn't agree that the tuition fees they pay offer value for money (while 6% had missed at least half of their lectures!).
Worryingly, the findings revealed that four in 10 first-year university students are finding managing their money harder than expected - and almost a fifth are worried about being able to afford to stay at uni. 19% have already gone into their student bank account overdraft, while 3% had used a bank loan to help pay for some aspect of university.
Socially, more than half of freshers said they'd joined a society, club or sports group, though 28% said they'd struggled to find any extra-curricular activity that appealed to them. And about a third of students said they’d also felt pressurised at some stage to go out socialising.
Read the full freshers’ first-term report over on Which? University and check out this student infographic - any of these stats sound familiar..?