Starting the four hour train journey back to Dorset, I found myself reflecting on all the things I’d seen and done in my first year at Sussex. Everyone says your first year at university flies and it really does. I can remember my very first day in September, nervously leaving mum and moving into a halls full of people I didn’t know. Now I’ve just hugged, waved and said goodbye to most of them, leaving the fast-paced and noisy university life behind for the time being.

There are things I certainly won’t miss! The mess of a kitchen used by 12 people, the smell of stale smoke and alcohol in the corridors and the loud music of an aspiring dj along the hall. But the quiet of a sleepy country town and the company of just my family will take some getting used to and I’m already restless  to get back to student life in Brighton.

Exams went well, I think. I had three exams; a seen-exam (which required essay planning and a good memory), a multiple choice statistics paper and a one hour environmental risks and hazards exam. Having not done an exam since A-level, the most nerve-racking part was walking through a silent exam hall, searching for my candidate number amongst the hundreds of desks. Results are out in mid-July so for now it’s back to supermarket work and enjoying an exam-free summer.

It wasn’t really sad to leave my first year behind as I am going to be moving into a house in September with four friends. I will also be able to put a greater concentration into social based geography through my elective choices for next year and escape statistics and environmental learning (hopefully once and for all!). The long stretch of summer and supermarket work is a little daunting, without a student loan or exams to concentrate on, but I will be doing a writing internship in France next month and have plans to travel before returning to study for my second year.

A big part of my first year has been working with SAGE through this blog as well as attending various conferences and running student focussed events. At the beginning of the scholarship I had no idea what to expect, but our work has progressed well and it’s exciting to think it will develop further over the next 2 years. It has influenced my choice of summer internship and has also encouraged me to write in my spare time, something which I am looking forward to continuing into the summer.