Challenges Faced by First Year University Students

University life can be a great experience. It can be fun and educational and, on the other hand, full of hardships. First-year students at university face a lot of challenges. These challenges can be divided into groups of which three are making adjustments, security and being lost. First-year students have to make a lot of adjustments. Students face difficulty in adjusting to a completely new lifestyle. University life is totally different from living at home and going to high school. For example, many students are living alone and adjusting to being alone is difficult. Furthermore, students get a lot of freedom since they are renting or living alone. They have to adjust otherwise they will find themselves moving adrift from their studies. Too much freedom also leads to getting involved with wrong crowds. Thus, the new way of life is difficult to adjust to. The learning methods used at university is different from what it used to be at high school. Students find it difficult to fit in to this learning environment. At university, students have to attend lectures whereby a lecturer comes and discusses everything from the front. Students also have to do a lot by themselves, which they find difficult since they are used to the spoon feeding which they received at high school. Study workload is also immense therefore students have to stick to a strict timetable. Therefore, learning methods are difficult to adapt to for first-year students. Furthermore, adapting to the immense workload and influence from outside university is also difficult. Students have to study for longer hours to keep up and for their progress, and at the same time do household choirs, which is even more when the students are living away from their parents. Other external influences such as peer pressure, partying with friends and socializing also affects a first-year student’s life and studies. Thus, first-year students find it challenging to cope up with the workload. Security is one of the major needs of all individuals and even more so for a student. Parental support and guidance is one major need for all first-year students. Many students live away from their homes and parents and therefore, lack social security. Many students are renting with other students and since they are first-year students, they find it hard since hey are not used to this form of lifestyle. Moreover, without any parent or any other r elder to guide them, first-years drift away from their path into doing wrong things. Other students who live in hostels have some level of control instilled by the hostel but it is not equal to the guidance which a parent could provide. Thus, living away from parents is a major hindrance and challenge for first-year students. Financial security is another challenge for first-year students. Money is most vital when pursuing higher education and lack of it can cause the collapse of one’s future. Money is needed to buy textbooks and pay fees, which is very costly. First-year students at university tend to spend a lot of money when they first come to university since they do not understand the importance of money and they are not able to control their expenditure. Situations are improved when the student has been awarded a scholarship, since they might not have any source of income. Therefore, finance is another problem faced by first-year students. Being in a new environment, first-year students find themselves lost for a couple of days. Students face difficulty in finding their required rooms. Universities have a lot of lecture theatres and rooms in different buildings under different faculties. First-year students are unable to find their lecture rooms and are at times late for their lectures during the first few days. Tutorials and lab exercises also occur at different places and finding them using the room codes is very challenging for new students. Moreover, many new students do not know where to go for help or advice. Being new, students do not know whom to turn to for help. First-years find difficulty in signing up for labs and tutorials and have problems deciding on which session to select. Due to this, they end up missing classes due to clashes. This causes a drawback to their studies. As a conclusion, first-year students do face a lot of challenges at university regarding security, adjusting and being lost. These challenges are, and will be faced by first-year students since they are being introduced into a new system. Students must not be disheartened or give up on anything since life will become normal when they get used to the system. There is always a first time and no student will remain new for long, which also goes for the associated problems.