Six of the biggest lies King’s students tell themselves at the start of the semester

The start of a semester is often like the start of a new year. Everyone believes that this is the term in which they become the best version of themselves. But these “resolutions” rarely last until reading week.

We all like to think we’ll be academic weapons, prioritising passing our degree not going to the pub, but realistically, this just isn’t true.

So, here are the six biggest lies KCL students tell themselves at the start of a new semester, from someone who’s definitely said all of these things before.

1. ‘I will go to all of my 9ams’

For most, this is incredibly wishful thinking. Whilst we all aspire to be early risers and show up bright-eyed with a Pret coffee to our 9am lecture, it is inevitably far more appealing to just stay in bed and say you’ll watch the lecture capture later. Especially if you’re a fan of a Wednesday sports night (The Vault or Guy’s Bar, it’s your prerogative) or a Thursday at Heaven. No one wants to be sat in a lecture theatre nursing a hangover.

2. ‘I will not spend all of my money at coffee shops’

It takes some serious willpower to ignore the temptation of a caramel iced latte when your campus is within walking distance of more coffee shops than are in your entire hometown.

You may have the best intentions at the start of the semester; with a brand new water bottle and a plan to drink a gallon of water a day. However, after a few weeks, it becomes hard to resist a barista-made drink.

3. ‘I will go to the library after my lectures’

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There is something very romantic about finishing your contact hours for the day and going to an aesthetically pleasing library to conquer this week’s reading. Yet, as the semester goes on you become more and more drawn to the bus stop or the tube station.

You find yourself abandoning the Maughan, or perhaps New Hunts House, and hurrying back to your accommodation to spend the rest of your day scrolling on TikTok and questioning how you can be so exhausted after only attending a two hour seminar.

4. ‘I will be serving looks every day’

Once again, we all want to romanticise our lives. We stare wistfully at our Pinterest boards and then manifest and plan out the best fits possible for the year. Especially those of us on Strand campus, we really feel the pressure to show up and show out when it comes to our clothes.

However, we all eventually fall victim to rolling out of bed into whatever jeans we find on our bedroom floor and any top other than the one we wore out last night – hoping that seeing those international students in our seminars who somehow always look put together won’t send us into too deep a shame spiral.

5. ‘I will do all of my reading before my seminars’

A nice, very sensible idea, in theory.

But it is inevitable that, as motivation slowly starts to decrease, everyone shows up hoping and praying they can waffle enough during the seminar to hide the fact they spent last night planning an outfit for the next sports night or in a theatre society rehearsal rather than on Keats.

6. ‘I will not ruin my sleep schedule’

I feel this one is fairly self-explanatory. Whether you stay up late chatting to your flatmates, out at a social, trying to catch up on reading or texting your campus crush. We all inevitably fall victim to the stereotype that all students stay up late and sleep until lunchtime.

It’s time to stop all these lies. It’s not healthy for the soul.

Recommended articles by this author:

• Six things you should never do as a student at King’s College London
• King’s College London ranks as the UK’s best university for sociology and social policy.
• Attention to all freshers: This is how to survive your first semester at King’s College