Top ways a Residential College helps students transition into uni

Written by Larissa Brand

For many students, university is their first time moving out of home and this comes with many responsibilities, making it a daunting time of transition. Living in a college can help ease the nerves students face at university and help them manage the balancing act between study, socialising and work commitments.

University College Tutors

Our University College tutors organise tutorial sessions for all major subjects and are available for private one-on-one consultations as well. These sessions are great for asking questions and getting advice from someone who has already completed, or is familiar with, your course. They offer a great additional support to your university tutors and lecturers - who ultimately are the ones who mark your work, so don't forget to consult with them too! While our tutorials aren't compulsory, we have found they help strengthen academic performance, so we strongly recommend them in order to help you transition to university-style learning, which is quite different to high school. College tutorials are highly personalised and allow for a detailed discussion of your main concerns and questions. UC tutors can also offer feedback on assignments or help you form a study plan.

24/7 Library

University College also has its own library, where you can borrow textbooks for the semester rather than buying your own. This is a quiet study space that’s open 24/7 with study rooms for group study sessions. It’s great because it means you don't have to travel to do some focused studying before exams (unless you prefer to of course!). We also have computers and printers for students to use if needed.

Design Studio accessible to you

For the many architecture, fine art or design students we have at University College, we have a design studio decked out with computers, art materials and an A1 printer. We also have backdrops for professional photography. It’s a spacious, collaborative area where you can work with others and share ideas. It’s the kind of multi-purpose space that every design student dreams of having right next door.

Make friends quickly

Going to a residential college quickly introduces you to hundreds of people, so you are bound to find someone studying the same thing as you to go to classes and college tutorials with. It makes a huge difference on your first day of university, when you’re struggling to find classes in an unfamiliar campus, to share that experience with a buddy. It’s a great place to network with students from other universities as well. Once you settle in, college quickly becomes your safety net of support.

Going to university classes

Navigating a new campus is one of the key stressors of attending university, especially when the campus is so big, there's construction everywhere, and you only have 10 minutes between classes. Due to the proximity of University College from the University of Melbourne campus, we find our students become very familiar with the campus quite quickly, as you’re likely to walk through it often, even if you don't study there. Students from other universities may need to do a bit more prior planning to make sure enough time is allocated for the short travel into the city, but nothing unmanageable. The great thing about living in the city is that the public transport is frequent and easy to navigate.

Ease into independent living

Moving out of home comes with many more responsibilities alongside studying or working. College is a great way to ease into your new-found independence as meals are fully catered for and you share the same experience with 300 other students. Once a fortnight your room is given a general clean, which is a nice-to-have. The college offerings allow you to put more focus on balancing studying, socialising and/or working, while making the most of your young adulthood.

Support during exam period

Around the exam period, the college enforces a ‘zero-tolerance period’, where noise is restricted after 7:00pm. During this time, there is an increased number of study spaces and increased academic support. The wellbeing committee also gives out little care packages with special kitchen snacks every afternoon to help student get through this stressful period.

Easy conversation starter

Colleges are also a great discussion point and conversation starter. At university, students who don't go to college are always very interested to hear what college life is like, and those who go to another college always want to compare their experiences. Yay to friendships!