Upon beginning the crazy adventure that is University, you will most likely be told that you are going to meet your lifelong friends and make forever type of connections. Although this is true for some, it is not the case for all, and that is totally okay. However, after conducting primary and secondary research, I have wondered and found an answer to whether or not there is a benefit to making friends at Uni, even if it is short term.
Although I feel like I have found this answer, keep in mind that my sample size is quite small and relates to strictly Communication and Media students, in BCM212. I sent out a survey on my Twitter for these students to take and I managed to receive 30 responses. I also sent out to 8 of the responders a second survey which asked more in-depth questions, and this is where I found an answer and refined my research.
As seen above, 83.3% of 30 respondents said they had the intention of making friends when starting Uni and this shows the expectation of friendships to be made whilst studying. Going in with the mindset of forming relationships really helps shape the way you will experience Uni and determines the relationships you are forming. This leads me to another question in my first survey.
Out of the responders, 60% thought that an individual’s mentality highly affected whether or not a student will form relationships. This proves, in order to make these connections, there needs to me a mindset of wanting to form relationships.
Most individuals stated that these aren’t lifelong friendships as they either won’t speak after the semester ends or they can tell that it will eventually fizzle out once completing Uni. Seeing this, truly crushed having an expectation of creating these lifelong friendships at University, nevertheless, this doesn’t mean that these friendships don’t have its benefits.
Deakin University wrote an article about whether or not starting Uni means the end of High School friendships. 50% of responders of my survey started Uni with friends and majority of them found it to be more beneficial when it came to making friends at Uni as it gave them a confidence booster and enabled them to not feel alone during their first year. Deakin University writes that some of these friendships will drift no matter the cause and one of the benefits of making friends at Uni is that these friends will have more similar interests to you. Not only this but they will more than likely have the same goals and enable you to grow as a person through a diverse group of friends. This article also shows how the people you meet at Uni would probably have grown up differently to you, and that this will assist you to learn more about yourself. One point that stood out in this article was that making friends at Uni will also help you to define the friendships you already have and that you are willing to continue life with compared to those who aren’t meant to complete life with you, this is such a strong benefit to making friendships at University.
ABC Life wrote an article about friendships being the best part of Uni. This article states “studies consistently laud the wellbeing benefits of healthy friendships” meaning that making healthy friendships helps to increase the overall wellbeing on an individual. It states that healthy relationships reduce the risk of mental and physical illnesses as having people to talk too and live life with causes a much healthier overall lifestyle. Similarly, University of Saskatchewan wrote an article titled ‘Good Friends Help Us Live Longer and Happier Lives’. Studies have shown that in order to improve one’s mental health, a way to do this is through a great social support system and connecting with friends through school to lessen stress and enjoy having a companion which ends up improving your grades. It sorts of ends up being a ripple effect.
Comparing the secondary research to my primary, I have found that most responders find that forming relationships at Uni is positively affecting their Uni experience. A responder said, “they give me help with assignments which helps with my stress.” Another said, “I feel like I have a wide network of people I can ask questions too and understand the work a lot more.” This is showing the benefits of having Uni friends, even if they aren’t lifelong. This being that the benefits may be short term however these benefits are still major in one’s life. With Uni, comes stress and making friends at Uni, even if they are not lifelong friends, they have a high chance of reducing this stress and enabling you to live a fun, young Uni life.
Two articles I studied by Year 13, both related to not being able to make friends at Uni. Both these articles spoke about how these individuals struggled to make friendships through Uni and felt that there was something wrong with them. This was due to the expectation of making lifelong friendships at Uni, but they were only making friendships that would end after the semester. Although their expectations hadn’t been met, they still found benefits from this. This being, they had people to help them through tutorials which allowed them to have a familiar face and it taught them they although they didn’t make friends at Uni there was still plenty of opportunities through life to make lifelong friends. The lesson learnt here was to not expect anything, go in with an open mind and if lifelong friendships aren’t formed then allow it to teach you a life lesson.
Similarly, a responder said that making Uni friends, “actually made me excited to go to Uni. Some days I’ll go just to hang out even if I don’t have a class.” Another stated “… helped me feel more comfortable in class and motivates me to show up to lecture and class when I know they will be there.” Being open to meeting people at Uni not only makes Uni life more fun and enjoyable but it makes it so much easier and allows you to stay motivated and connect with people going through what you are. When making friendships at Uni, whether that be study buddies, friendships, life partners or something a little more casual, overall these friendships will help you in the present moment. They will reduce stress, allow you to have a support system with people who are going through the same and allow your student life to be a fun one.
References:
Ferdous, A, Sharman, M, 2018, Does Starting Uni Mean the End of High School Friendships, Deakin University, 26 April 2020, <
https://this.deakin.edu.au/study/does-starting-uni-mean-the-end-of-high-school-friendships >
Hamde, M, 2020, Friendships can be the Best Part of Uni. Here’s Where they Start, ABC Life, <
https://www.abc.net.au/life/making-friends-at-univeristy/11923050 >
Joseph, 2018, Why I Gave Up Finding Friends at Uni, Year 13, 27 April 2020 <
https://year13.com.au/articles/gave-finding-friends-uni >
Student Wellness Centre, 2017, Good Friends Help us Live Longer and Happier Lives, University of Saskatchewan, 26 April 2020 < https://students.usask.ca/articles/friendships.php >
Unknown, 2018, Am I the Only One Without Uni Friends, Year 13, 27 April 2020, <
https://year13.com.au/articles/without-uni-friends >
- Ruby.
immerse into media 