Seminars, sweet treats and sneaky pints: A day in the life of a third year York student

Ah third year, the peak of our uni careers! With graduation (hopefully) looming in the distance, this year is all about working hard and soaking up those last moments of freedom. Cheeky pint in Courtyard anyone?

Here’s a general idea of what to expect from third year, featuring plenty of reading, long-established emotional support library spots and, potentially, a cheeky cry now and then when you change your dissertation idea for the third time. But it’s not all doom and gloom! Many a sweet treat will be had this year so join me for a busy Friday in third year land, and first and second years come and get a glimpse into your future!

9am (or maybe 10): Time to motivate!

Although I may be in third year, I still haven’t quite mastered the art of waking up early. If my seminar doesn’t start until 11am I am seriously going to struggle to wake up before 10, as was the case this morning. Now it’s officially autumn I have no shame in wearing the comfiest, warmest clothes humanly possible.

So, I get ready as quick as possible and I’m out the door! I found a free audiobook of the reading I hadn’t quite finished and listen to the last few chapters on my walk to Vanbrugh – third year is all about multi-tasking!

12pm: Mid-seminar snacks

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The first seminars of third year are going strong… there’s already some really nice people in my new groups and getting to choose your modules this year makes all the difference. To all my first and second years struggling with compulsories right now, I promise it gets sooo much better! This tutor brought in biscuits as a mid-seminar treat for us which honestly really brightened my day and made the seminar actually pretty enjoyable for a Friday morning.

1pm: Fuelling on caffeine

@yorkunisu

What’s better than a hot drink in this autumnal weather? A hot drink in our brand new Long Boi travel mug! ☕️ Get yours now at The Kitchen @ Alcuin and get five free hot drinks at either The Courtyard or The Kitchen. #uniofyork #universityofyork #longboi

♬ original sound – York SU

With my first seminar of the day done I popped over to The Kitchen @ Alcuin for a quick caffeine fix. I was hoping to get my hands on one of the new Long Boi flasks (RIP) and the five coffees that come with it!

In my mind, free caffeine is just about the best thing you can have as a third year, and the girl maths in my brain was really excited by the prospect of a free anything. But alas, they were sold out, so I settled on a tea with oat milk and headed to the library for some lunch (goodbye student loan).

2pm: Library sesh

One thing about being in third year is the sheer confidence I get from my emotional support study space in top floor Fairhurst. Those comfy little booths just make me feel protected from the outside world of noisy freshers and dissertation supervision meetings (still a sensitive topic, still don’t want to go there). I hit the jackpot and found one right by the window, then settled down to eat my panini and finish reading my plays for the next seminar, which I managed to do in record time!

3pm: Seminar number two

I managed to coordinate a quick hi and bye at the Nisa with my boyfriend before heading to my next seminar. Of course, I picked up an energy drink since I’m starting to lag a little bit – but I didn’t even end up drinking it. I have my first seminar for my other module this term and it actually went surprisingly well! No biscuits in this one but there’s still hope for next week I suppose…

5pm: Cheeky Courtyard trip

All my tutor’s talk about his relaxing weekend plans seriously put me in the mood for an end of the week wind-down, so I gather as many friends as possible and claim one of the booths in Courtyard. My boyfriend brings along some board games from home and we all get pizza and pints and get pretty competitive in a game of 30 seconds. Obviously third year can be pretty intense but a little reminder to take a breather now and again is totally necessary.

7pm: Hometime!

On the walk home from Courtyard, we pop in for a quick house tour from some of our friends (classic) and then me and my boyfriend head home to eat some chocolate and watch Gilmore Girls (autumn essential) for the rest of the night. Overall, a pretty great day as a third year student! Cheers to that!

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•The top 10 most underrated societies at Uni of York, and all they have to offer

•Spice, spice, baby: Here are the most aesthetic spots you’ll find in York this Autumn!

•11 random Uni of York moments which make you feel like an actual functioning adult