Looking back: My first year in Sport and Exercise

Written by Tijana Sharp, UTS Bachelor of Sport and Exercise Science student

Before starting my degree, I had visited the UTS City Campus a few times, and I was somewhat familiar with the area. However, I had never been to the Moore Park precinct.

So, when I went there for the first time, I was completely blown away – my first thought was ‘Wow’. The building is so stunning with state-of-the art facilities, and I was honestly overwhelmed by what I was walking into.

Even though there are just three UTS levels in the Moore Park precinct (the others are for Rugby Australia), I managed to get lost a few times! The way the classrooms are labelled can be a bit tricky at first, but I quickly got used to it. Whenever I was at the City Campus, I would get lost as well! Luckily, there are heaps of maps available online, which makes it so much easier to get to class.

Plus, the Light Rail is up and running now, which will make it easy to get to Moore Park from Central Station.

Apart from navigating the campus and buildings, I also found that it was a big transition from high school to university.

It can seem like you’ve got a lot more on your plate: doing uni work, making friends, socialising and working all at the same time.

But I quickly found that if I stayed organised and started all my assignments early while also doing a reasonable amount of shifts at work, I was able to do everything I wanted without feeling overwhelmed.

I was even able to dance all throughout my first year! I was able to dance, compete and get through university, so it is totally doable.

You just have to be determined and stay on top of everything that you’ve got going on.

Looking back, I realise that I learned a lot in my first year – and not just in class!

For example, having a good timetable is so important. In terms of enrolling, I always try and do it early. Classes do tend to fill up, so stay on top of enrolment. There’s nothing worse than having a five-hour gap between your classes!

Plus, try and make friends. In this degree, your lab classes are structured really well so that you’re doing a lot of group work. That’s the best time to make friends and build your support system.

Find out more about studying Sport and Exercise at UTS

Related: How to make the most of first year when you’re studying sport and exercise