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Sydney students share things they’ve learnt here

23 August 2016
New campaign features personal experiences of current students

Our students are in the driving seat of a new campaign rolling out across Sydney train stations, street posters, and online channels.

The pop-up video booth on the University of Sydney Camperdown campus.

Picking a uni and what to study can feel like an overwhelming choice. Your world expands and a new life begins – different people, unfamiliar surroundings, and greater independence.

As Year 12 students grapple with their UAC applications closing at the end of September, those who’ve done it all before provide the perfect support system to give some reassurance. That’s why we asked our current students for their best piece of advice: what’s the most important thing you learnt at uni?

What’s the most important thing you learnt at uni?

Earlier this year, our students were invited to enter a pop-up video booth and reflect on their university experiences, sharing the advice they wish they’d had when starting out at Sydney.

Their honest answers are captured in the videos and posters around campus and across the city, forming the campaign The things you learn here.

“Starting university is exciting, but it is also a time of great change, and the prospect can be very daunting for students in years 11 and 12,” said Vice-Chancellor Dr Michael Spence.

“Who better than our current students to give those beginning to consider university, advice about what they can expect the experience to be like? And their message is reassuring: you don’t have to have all the answers when you start, and you will fit in, no matter who you are.”

Medical science student Ayshe Sahinovic encouraged Year 12 students to “just go for it. Do what you enjoy at the time and uni will open you up to so many different things. As long as you’re doing what you enjoy, things will turn out for you”.

Make the most of your opportunities

Rebecca Lawson, who is studying engineering and project management, reassured that “not everyone starts out with a plan”. “Take every opportunity that comes to you because you can work out your plan as you progress through your degree.”

Other advice resonates with everyone who has ever embarked on a new challenge: “Everyone’s as scared as you are,” said veterinary medicine student Liam Douglas. “I don’t think there’s a way around it, you just have to push through it.”

More student insights will be featured on posters on campus, online, and on train stations, buses and street posters across metropolitan and western Sydney this week in the lead-up to the University’s Open Day on Saturday 27 August.

You can also view the video and read more about our students and graduates.

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