OPINION: Busting the myths of university life and what freshers can REALLY expect in September

It can be quite shocking to find that no one will tell you off if you don't attend lectures and your teachers actually want you to answer back in lessons.

But it's safe to say, even if university appears to be all party and no work, behind closed doors at 3am when you're trying to finish that essay you put off for weeks, you will quickly realise it's not.

Preparation is key, as a student I found this out the hard way after crying my way through freshers and going home the same week I arrived.

It's one thing to be super organised and have everything bought and ready to go for your first year, but mentally preparing is something no one tells you to do.

What many people fail to realise, for those who have never lived away from home, is that being away can be really hard at first.

Homesickness will be inevitable, no matter how much you think you want to get away from your nagging parents.

If moving away from home isn't enough, as a fresher you'll be hit with a whole plethora of misinformation about university life. The biggest lie you'll probably hear in your first few months is that the first year doesn't count. Unfortunately you will have to do some work in your first year, even if it doesn't essentially count towards your degree, you'll always need enough to pass.

There seems to be a common misconception that whoever you meet in freshers week will become your friends for life. Just take your time and don't feel pressured in to making friends straight away. It's better to find people with the same interests as you, rather than latching on to the first group you meet.

You will be led to believe that clubbing is an essential part of uni life. Going out can be fun but it certainly isn't the be all and end all of uni life, there'll be so much more to offer in your chosen city than just a sweaty drunken night in a club. As someone who is almost at the end of their second year of their degree and has been out a total of six times, it can show that clubbing certainly isn't something you need to worry about.

A key tip when preparing for university is to get a separate bank account entirely for your loans. Not touching this account until your bills are paid will ensure that you won't eat in to your rent money.

Moving day will come around much faster than you expect and being prepared to live alone is something that is key. Before leaving home it would be a good to learn a few life skills to help get you by. Such as being able to boil pasta, wash your clothes and put the right amount of bleach down the toilet.

While at university it can be easy to forget why you are there and the fact that you are paying for everything, unlike school. Although it is important to give yourself a break every so often, you will still need to put in maximum effort.

You might find that for certain periods in the year you may have very little to do, don't waste this time, do something useful and get ahead on your assignments. You'll thank yourself later.