You’ve found a great university, had an amazing freshers’ week, made some great new friends and after all that you’ve come to the realisation you don’t like your course. What on earth should you do?
Updated: 29 Apr 2025
After all the excitement of starting university dies down, the real work begins. For many, this means getting stuck in to the course they've been excited to study for months.
However for some, this brings a horrifying realisation: they don't like their course. This can be extremely disheartening and stressful. But don't worry – there are things you can do...
Sounds obvious, but it’s very important to remain calm at this point and take a step back to process the situation. Essentially, don’t make any rash decisions that you may end up regretting.
Think about why you aren’t enjoying your course and make a pros and cons list about all the different elements of it. Having a written list in front of you will help you assess whether it’s something small that’s bothering you (like the teaching style of a particular lecturer) or something bigger that can’t be changed at all (such as disinterest in the topic as a whole).
Look over your list and evaluate it carefully, particularly as some of the cons could change over time. For example, if it’s a specific module making you want to quit, it’s worth reminding yourself that you won’t be doing this element of the course forever, and although you may need to put in a little more work now to understand it, other modules are on the horizon.
If you do realise it’s a specific element of the course you’re struggling with, make sure you make an appointment with your lecturer asap, as they can help and support you both in and outside the lecture hall, and make you feel a lot more comfortable studying an unfamiliar or new topic.
Many students blame their course for the reason they aren’t enjoying university when really, it’s down to other (perfectly understandable) reasons such as homesickness, anxiety about unfamiliar surroundings or struggling to make new friends.
These thoughts and feelings are completely natural and will improve with time. However, if you’re really struggling to adjust to uni life, talk to your students’ union or the university’s student support team, they’re there to help in situations just like this, and you won’t be the first (or last) student to approach them with such issues.
Whether it’s one lesson you haven’t understood, or an entire module, then talk to your lecturers. Explain the situation, either face to face after a lecture or via email (whichever you’re most comfortable with) about how you’re finding things (honestly), as they’ll be able to advise and help you out.
Don’t worry about your lecturers judging or being angry at you for not understanding either, they’ll be glad you’re making the effort and aren’t staying silent or giving up. You never know, you might not be the first student who’s spoken to them about struggling in certain areas, and it could lead to extra sessions that help your fellow classmates too.
Again, the university’s student support team will also be helpful to speak to, as they’ll have more than experience with plenty of students who are in a similar situation. Remember, you are not alone!
Tried all our suggestions and still feel like you want to leave your course?
That’s totally fine and it’s not the end of the world (although it probably feels like it right now, but we promise it’s not). It’s just time to explore your options.
If you like the university, just not the course, you can still remain there. You simply need to explore the university’s courses further to see if you can find another that would suit you better. Just remember to do extensive research into what the course involves is like to ensure you will enjoy it!
Once you have found an alternative course, then there are steps you can take to change.
If you feel the university also isn’t for you then it’s possible to transfer universities. However, make sure that it’s definitely the university which isn’t right for you, as it will take time and paperwork to transfer. Although it can be a lot of work, it’s certainly not impossible as many universities will still have spaces left well into the academic year.
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