How University has made me more independent

Coming to university was a massive step in the direction of becoming an independent adult. Before moving to Leeds, I lived with my family. I had been through a schooling system until only a few months before I left. I had worked, but never full time: all-in-all, I was not a very independent person.

The sense of independence hit me the night after my parents dropped me off to live in Broadcasting Tower. I had cooked for myself before, and I had cooked for my family, but now I was in a flat with three people whom I had only met a few hours earlier having to cook food that I got from a store. This is a normal thing to have to do in your everyday life, however, having lived with my family my whole life, this was not an experience I was very used to. As I cooked that night, I reminisced on my mother’s home-cooked meals, and realised how much I would miss her cooking, but getting to cook for yourself opens up a lot of new opportunities and gives you the chance to explore many more cuisines than you may have in a family home.

Of course, living alone was a massive part of feeling independent, but that is certainly not the only part of university that pushed me towards being independent. The system of education in university here is very different from that of the United States high school education system. As a filmmaking student, much of my education here is self-guided, unlike the very direct-to-student education process experience in high school. With this approach to education, I have a much higher standard to hold myself to. Similarly, in high school I would ride a bus to school, then have to be there for the rest of the day until the end. Now, I walk to university and I have lectures and classes scattered throughout the day, so I have to manage my time and make sure that I attend everything, even though I entirely have the option not to if I wanted to. Having the freedom to skip lectures, to avoid doing assignments, and anything like that, but choosing to put in the effort to make sure that you are getting the best value out of your education, is one of the most important parts of being independent in university. The only person that can hold you to the standard of your work is you.

Independence does not only appear in the act of living alone and in dedication to one's education, but also in financial decisions. Whether you have student loans, you are working part-time alongside your degree, or any other way of financing your life as a student, beneficial financial decisions are an extremely important part of living your independent life. For me, cooking and making good financial decisions go hand in hand. Knowing what ingredients you are going to need, and when you are going to cook them (so that they do not go off), is very important. Similarly, knowing where to buy what you want for the best price, which is likely different for different ingredients. Cooking for yourself tends to be a much better financial decision than getting takeaway, but that’s not to say you should never treat yourself.

Treating yourself is another part of being independent. Now that I live away from home, and I go and buy groceries all the time, I could easily go out and buy ice cream, chocolate, and all sorts of other sweets all the time and generally neglect what I should eat, but of course, I do not do this. Knowing how to treat your body right is important. This goes from eating well and having the occasional sweet treat to maintaining a good sleeping schedule and maybe staying out with some mates for a night every once in a while. If you are a gym-goer, it means going to the gym a healthy amount and knowing not to over-do things. If you are not the biggest fan of going to the gym, it means reminding yourself to go out for a walk every now and again and getting your body moving. Nobody else is in control of your body, and nobody else will take care of it for you. Taking care of yourself does not have to mean going to the gym 3 or more days a week, it does not have to mean following whatever diet you found online, it just means treating yourself right: eating, drinking water, getting enough sleep, and so on. When you are independent, it is your job to do what is best for your body.

When I first moved to England, I was, in no way, one of the most independent people I knew. Now that I have lived here for over a year, and I have had to be in charge of my own life, I feel that I have grown as a person thanks to the necessity of being independent when you go to university. I am very grateful for all of the valuable lessons that living alone and having to be responsible for myself have taught me over my time in university, and I hope everybody else takes this time to grow into the independent person that they know they can be.