19 of the Most Frustrating Things That Happen at the Start of Every New Term at University

By Chloe Lane Updated Feb 15, 2021

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Introduction
1. Having to go to a lecture at THE CRACK OF DAWN (aka 9am)
2. You mess up on the first page of your brand new notebook when you were trying so hard to make it neat.
3. You swear you’re going to be on time for your lectures this year, but then get distracted and end up walking in late with coffee.
4. You go to one lecture where the lecturer just reads directly off the slides, and you really just wish you hadn’t gone.
5. This same lecturer is the one who tells you to order three super expensive books for their module.
6. You try to make this money up by selling your textbooks from last term, and realize old textbooks aren’t as valuable as new ones.
7. You’re all ready to go home and have a nap but one student WON’T STOP ASKING QUESTIONS!
8. You also can’t keep track of the names of all the new people you keep meeting, which leads to some pretty embarrassing situations.
9. Your new timetable says you have two classes five minutes apart, both on opposite sides of campus.
10. You decide this fits in with your ‘new term new you’ fitness regime, which lasts for approximately two days.
11. This also applies to your new term healthy eating plan. You also give this up after two days.
12. After a long summer of no uni work, you are suddenly given 7287783273 university assignments all due tomorrow.
13. At least two of these university assignments will be group projects. The group you are put with will not be people you like.
14. There will be one person in the group who doesn’t do any work at all.
15. You also find out what the layout is like for your modules this term. It’s not pretty!
16. Your decision to do the assigned reading before each class doesn’t work out like you thought it would, as it turns out other things are more interesting. Like Netflix, or napping.
17. In fact, your entire motivation for this year melts away very quickly
18. If you’ve just moved house at the start of the new term, you’ll naturally try to make it look aesthetically pleasing and clean. Once you’ve lived in it for a week, however, it just becomes super messy again.
19. Despite all this, you realize how much you love uni and that you never want to leave.

19 of the Most Frustrating Things That Happen at the Start of Every New Term at University main image

If you’ve just started back at university, you’ll know that every new term brings a multitude of extremely frustrating things. If this is your first ever term at uni, read on to find out about the 19 frustrating things that you will encounter every new term!

1. Having to go to a lecture at THE CRACK OF DAWN (aka 9am)

via GIPHY

No one should have to get up this early.

2. You mess up on the first page of your brand new notebook when you were trying so hard to make it neat.

via GIPHY

It’s still neat… one mistake doesn’t matter. Right?

3. You swear you’re going to be on time for your lectures this year, but then get distracted and end up walking in late with coffee.

Every morning I find myself staring into the bottom of my coffee cup & pondering the important questions.
Questions like "Why am I awake?"
— NotTHATSheila (@peb671) April 23, 2015

If you didn’t want me to turn up late with coffee, you should have made the lecture later on in the day. Not my fault.

4. You go to one lecture where the lecturer just reads directly off the slides, and you really just wish you hadn’t gone.

when you have to teach yourself a subject because your teacher is useless pic.twitter.com/bKbMWuCUDZ
— PUNS (@omgthatspunny) January 22, 2017

I got out of bed for this.

5. This same lecturer is the one who tells you to order three super expensive books for their module.

When your books expensive and you don't have a discount code pic.twitter.com/9ssirQNSS5
— College Student (@ColIegeStudent) August 31, 2015

What do you mean $75 per textbook?! That’s a joke right?

6. You try to make this money up by selling your textbooks from last term, and realize old textbooks aren’t as valuable as new ones.

Who knew the value of a textbook could depreciate 97% in 4 months?
— Student problems (@StuProblem) May 12, 2019

You can’t even buy a used one because you need the online code!

7. You’re all ready to go home and have a nap but one student WON’T STOP ASKING QUESTIONS!

via GIPHY

Please stop. Nobody cares.

8. You also can’t keep track of the names of all the new people you keep meeting, which leads to some pretty embarrassing situations.

MY PROFESSOR ONLY LIKES TO BE ADDRESSED BY HIS FIRST NAME AND I PUT BRAIN INSTEAD OF BRIAN!!!!!!! pic.twitter.com/AVWsh2739n
— jazmin (@fukeryyy) January 31, 2019

So sorry, that email was actually intended for my brain… I must have got you two confused. Won’t happen again.

9. Your new timetable says you have two classes five minutes apart, both on opposite sides of campus.

via GIPHY

RUUUUUUUUN!

10. You decide this fits in with your ‘new term new you’ fitness regime, which lasts for approximately two days.

via GIPHY

Finally, a real use for the treadmill.

11. This also applies to your new term healthy eating plan. You also give this up after two days.

via GIPHY

You can’t say no to freshers fair pizza. We don’t make the rules.

12. After a long summer of no uni work, you are suddenly given 7287783273 university assignments all due tomorrow.

How many Sunday nights end up like this...?! pic.twitter.com/OeBLF8bveE
— Wallpark (@WallparkUK) June 10, 2015

Aghhh how has this happened?!

13. At least two of these university assignments will be group projects. The group you are put with will not be people you like.

I’m gettin real fed up w group projects pic.twitter.com/oZDTf6USud
— Lil uzi fan page (@chelexaaaa) April 12, 2018

Where do they even find these people?!

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14. There will be one person in the group who doesn’t do any work at all.

When the person in the group project who didn't do anything gets all the recognition... pic.twitter.com/PU0ixSD38C
— Cameron Elliott (@DCElliott1996) December 3, 2014

You can be sure they will take the credit for your hard work thoough.

15. You also find out what the layout is like for your modules this term. It’s not pretty!

https://stellinata.tumblr.com/post/170693909510/virginamerica-the-worst-thing-about-college-is

Wait. I have to actually turn up to lectures now? I never agreed to this…

16. Your decision to do the assigned reading before each class doesn’t work out like you thought it would, as it turns out other things are more interesting. Like Netflix, or napping.

Me: *has a lot of homework*

My brain:
Don’t do it
Don’t do it
Don’t do it
Don’t do it
Don’t do it
Don’t do it
Don’t do it

*takes nap*
— College Student (@FactsOfSchool) August 26, 2019

Hate it when these things happen, but what can you do?

17. In fact, your entire motivation for this year melts away very quickly

don't you just hate it when your 15 minute study break accidentally lasts a whole semester
— Lydia Florence (@Lyd_the_Kid) March 5, 2015

Hmm… motivational YouTube videos will fix this.

18. If you’ve just moved house at the start of the new term, you’ll naturally try to make it look aesthetically pleasing and clean. Once you’ve lived in it for a week, however, it just becomes super messy again.

via GIPHY

Oh well, at least you tried.

19. Despite all this, you realize how much you love uni and that you never want to leave.

via GIPHY

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Written by

Chloe Lane

As Content Editor for TopUniversities.com and TopMBA.com, Chloe creates and publishes a wide range of articles for universities and business schools across the world. Chloe has a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from the University of Reading and grew up in Leicestershire, UK.

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19 of the Most Frustrating Things That Happen at the Start of Every New Term at University

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Table of contents

Table of contents

1. Having to go to a lecture at THE CRACK OF DAWN (aka 9am)

2. You mess up on the first page of your brand new notebook when you were trying so hard to make it neat.

3. You swear you’re going to be on time for your lectures this year, but then get distracted and end up walking in late with coffee.

4. You go to one lecture where the lecturer just reads directly off the slides, and you really just wish you hadn’t gone.

5. This same lecturer is the one who tells you to order three super expensive books for their module.

6. You try to make this money up by selling your textbooks from last term, and realize old textbooks aren’t as valuable as new ones.

7. You’re all ready to go home and have a nap but one student WON’T STOP ASKING QUESTIONS!

8. You also can’t keep track of the names of all the new people you keep meeting, which leads to some pretty embarrassing situations.

9. Your new timetable says you have two classes five minutes apart, both on opposite sides of campus.

10. You decide this fits in with your ‘new term new you’ fitness regime, which lasts for approximately two days.

11. This also applies to your new term healthy eating plan. You also give this up after two days.

12. After a long summer of no uni work, you are suddenly given 7287783273 university assignments all due tomorrow.

13. At least two of these university assignments will be group projects. The group you are put with will not be people you like.

Testimonials

14. There will be one person in the group who doesn’t do any work at all.

15. You also find out what the layout is like for your modules this term. It’s not pretty!

16. Your decision to do the assigned reading before each class doesn’t work out like you thought it would, as it turns out other things are more interesting. Like Netflix, or napping.

17. In fact, your entire motivation for this year melts away very quickly

18. If you’ve just moved house at the start of the new term, you’ll naturally try to make it look aesthetically pleasing and clean. Once you’ve lived in it for a week, however, it just becomes super messy again.

19. Despite all this, you realize how much you love uni and that you never want to leave.

19 of the Most Frustrating Things That Happen at the Start of Every New Term at University

Save

Share

Table of contents

Table of contents

1. Having to go to a lecture at THE CRACK OF DAWN (aka 9am)

2. You mess up on the first page of your brand new notebook when you were trying so hard to make it neat.

3. You swear you’re going to be on time for your lectures this year, but then get distracted and end up walking in late with coffee.

4. You go to one lecture where the lecturer just reads directly off the slides, and you really just wish you hadn’t gone.

5. This same lecturer is the one who tells you to order three super expensive books for their module.

6. You try to make this money up by selling your textbooks from last term, and realize old textbooks aren’t as valuable as new ones.

7. You’re all ready to go home and have a nap but one student WON’T STOP ASKING QUESTIONS!

8. You also can’t keep track of the names of all the new people you keep meeting, which leads to some pretty embarrassing situations.

9. Your new timetable says you have two classes five minutes apart, both on opposite sides of campus.

10. You decide this fits in with your ‘new term new you’ fitness regime, which lasts for approximately two days.

11. This also applies to your new term healthy eating plan. You also give this up after two days.

12. After a long summer of no uni work, you are suddenly given 7287783273 university assignments all due tomorrow.

13. At least two of these university assignments will be group projects. The group you are put with will not be people you like.

Testimonials

14. There will be one person in the group who doesn’t do any work at all.

15. You also find out what the layout is like for your modules this term. It’s not pretty!

16. Your decision to do the assigned reading before each class doesn’t work out like you thought it would, as it turns out other things are more interesting. Like Netflix, or napping.

17. In fact, your entire motivation for this year melts away very quickly

18. If you’ve just moved house at the start of the new term, you’ll naturally try to make it look aesthetically pleasing and clean. Once you’ve lived in it for a week, however, it just becomes super messy again.

19. Despite all this, you realize how much you love uni and that you never want to leave.