Featured illustration: Dylan Meek
We all prioritise different things in life: our relationships, academic achievement, and financial success. While these can be great catalysts for short and long-term goals, making us resilient, fixating on these goals can become overwhelming, even detrimental. Focusing on what we feel we have to achieve can make it easy to lose sight of the present. This also applies to university life.
People choose their degrees for many reasons: interest in a subject, new opportunities, moving away from home, or exploring career options. It’s common for students to start to regret their degree at some point; often after the initial buzz of first year and a new city has worn off, and the reality of growing up and deadlines start to sink in.
A 2022 survey by Student Minds stated that 57% of respondents self-reported a mental health issue. According to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, these factors can be financial and academic pressures and the absence of familiar social and emotional support networks. Feelings of failure concerning your degree can be hard to deal with. For those who no longer align with their course, the pressure to find your purpose is even more insurmountable. Don’t let this catapult you into existentialism just yet.
The opportunities that come with studying are not limited to your chosen degree. Regardless of academics, university can open up new social possibilities, independence, and self-awareness regardless. Maybe the real degree was the friends we made along the way. Whether it’s the society you spent every Wednesday with or the person you finally started talking to after three years of sitting next to each other in lectures, all these people matter in your story.
Investing time in social achievements and learning more about those who carved your path will build a clearer image of what you want to leave behind. Amongst other things, our friends and relationships are our legacy. Think about the people you want to tell your story to, what would they say?
A personal legacy can be very motivating because it makes humans compelled to feel a sense of purpose. Whether you’re an undergraduate or a postgraduate student, the desire to leave a lasting impact can be strong and quite intimidating. Take a moment to break the existential cycle by recognizing the small achievements and morals that make you the main character.
Featured image: Evie Atkins When Vogue Business asked the question on everyone’s lips – “Is Manchester the next big fashion city?” – the world was forced to pay attention. The publication spotlighted Manchester Fashion Institute (MFI) and Manchester Met, highlighting the 1,800 students training to be the next generation of designers and fashion change-makers. For…
Photography: Isabelle Dargue, Ellie Williams, Bradley Sansom and Natalie Carragher Manchester’s streets were transformed into a vibrant sea of lights and colour on Saturday as Lights Up 2025 brought together more than 200 cyclists for a night-time ride across the city. The free, community-led event organised by Bee Pedal Ready and Station South aims to make…
Featured image: Evie-Iris Atkins Grace Wales Bonner’s appointment as the new creative force behind menswear at Hermès feels less like a surprise and more like a moment of long-overdue recognition. Not only does it cement the 35-year-old designer’s position as one of the visionaries for a new era of the fashion industry, but it challenges…
Featured image: Gracie Hall Leeds Festival 2025 is one for the history books. Across three relentless days, Bramham Park transforms into a dust-choked, glitter-soaked arena where breakthrough acts collide with stadium giants and fans leave dusty, voiceless, and aching for more. This year’s lineup proves Leeds still thrives on extremes: chaos and calm, confetti and…
Leave a reply