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A year ago, I was excited and nervous to start the first year of multimedia journalism at Bournemouth University.
I did not know what to expect and that made me more anxious. Now that I finished the first year, I have to say that it wasn’t an easy course but I already knew it wouldn’t be. In terms of friendships, I talked with a few people from my course but, honestly, I didn't have many friends. Most of the times, I would be alone at uni or I would be surrounded by my classmates but I wouldn’t talk that much. It’s not because my classmates weren’t friendly but because I was very shy and even though sometimes I wanted to start a conversation, I did not know how to do it without looking awkward.
In terms of the course, I have to admit that it required a lot of patience which was something that I was losing very quickly. The workload was not what drove me crazy although I sometimes wondered if I could even finish it on time. What was really bothering me was having good ideas for my assignments and then not being able to find people that were willing to be interviewed. The amount of times I was rejected is astonishing. Every time I was rejected, I felt smaller and smaller. It got to a point where I started to believe that maybe I wasn’t good enough for this career.
A lot of people dropped from the course which it did not surprise me bearing in mind the difficulty of this course. However, I wanted to see how long I could take this. Although, I cried most of the days and I was feeling anxious I did not want to give up so easily because I felt that I would not only disappoint my parents but also myself. So, I decided to keep going. A few months later, my parents realised that I was very stressed and that is when I told them everything. I cried so much that day and I thought that they would be so mad at me when I told them that I was thinking about changing course.
I was so surprised when they said: “I support your decision”. Those 4 words made me realise how important it was for me to have their approval in this crucial moment. They have always made their best to offer me the best education, they have always wanted me to be professionally successful in the future and more importantly, they have always wanted me to be happy. In my mind, I thought I was a failure but in their mind, I was brave enough to change instead of continuing on a course that would just bring me sorrow.
I decided to finish my first year and I did the exams. I was so happy when I received my transcript and found out that I passed all my units. Even though, I would not continue in the same course, knowing that I did not fail anything made me understand that I wasn’t as bad as I thought I was and it made me feel motivated to work harder in my new course: Media and Communication. You may be thinking that Multimedia Journalism and Media and Communication are similar which, in fact, they are. However, Media and Communication does not focus only on journalism. In this new course, I can also learn more about advertising and marketing. Learning new things is never too much. As it is said: knowledge is power. I love Media and I hope with this new course, I find my true passion and become more confident. In Multimedia Journalism I've learned that there is no point comparing yourself to others.
This year I want to start off on the right foot. I want to enjoy as much as I can and make incredible memories and more importantly, be happy while studying because at the end of the day that's the profession I will have for the rest of my life.
I hope that with all I said here, you, dear reader, realise that changing course is not the same as giving up. I’m not encouraging anyone to change course once things start to get harder at uni because the reality is that all courses have its difficulties. What I am trying to say is that, if you are in a course that doesn't bring you any joy and is making you feel miserable or worthless, changing course to another one that captivates your attention may be the key or take a gap year may be helpful so that you can decide what you really want to do in your life.
Sometimes a new beginning is all that you need to find happiness.
PS: I want to wish good luck to all the people who will be starting or already started school or university!
Nb: I don't own the picture above.
This year I want to start off on the right foot. I want to enjoy as much as I can and make incredible memories and more importantly, be happy while studying because at the end of the day that's the profession I will have for the rest of my life.
I hope that with all I said here, you, dear reader, realise that changing course is not the same as giving up. I’m not encouraging anyone to change course once things start to get harder at uni because the reality is that all courses have its difficulties. What I am trying to say is that, if you are in a course that doesn't bring you any joy and is making you feel miserable or worthless, changing course to another one that captivates your attention may be the key or take a gap year may be helpful so that you can decide what you really want to do in your life.
Sometimes a new beginning is all that you need to find happiness.
PS: I want to wish good luck to all the people who will be starting or already started school or university!
Nb: I don't own the picture above.
Jesika Gomes x
7 comments
Best of luck with the new course. Sometimes expectation or how they sell the course is vastly different to the reality and it is okay to change if it doesn't align with what you want out of it. Hope you enjoy the comms side of it more!
ReplyDeleteNat ◇ dignifiable
Thank you, Natalie! (:
DeleteI'm hoping this year I can feel more comfortable and happy.
Jesika x
Best of luck with the new course. Sometimes expectation or how they sell the course is vastly different to the reality and it is okay to change if it doesn't align with what you want out of it. Hope you enjoy the comms side of it more!
ReplyDeleteNat ◇ dignifiable
I dont know how it is like where you are from, but in holland it's quite natural to change courses after the first year. People feels sometimes overwhelmed or realize that the major is not for them. They end up doing something else, which is nice norm. Especially at this age where we all don't know what we really want to do. But whatever we do, we should be happy doing it.
ReplyDeleteKim
www.vanmenxel.com
Completely agree with you! What's the point in being on a course that doesn't make you happy at all? I rather change now, than regret myself in the future.
DeleteJesika x
Good luck!
ReplyDeleteThank you Erin! (:
DeleteJesika x