Aaron's story

"I had a good feeling so I followed my gut."

I came to Essex because of the atmosphere and environment. I got a good vibe from coming to an open day, so I was really excited to come here. Now I’m doing a foundation year in Computer Science and I really enjoy it, especially programming.

I think computer science is the future and there are a lot of careers for graduates out there. I want to have my own company after I’ve gained the right experience.

My friends told me that the first year is just about enjoying it and that's true, but my first year has been quite hard and the time for partying can be limited when you're working hard. I’m looking forward to ending this whole year on a good note. I’m glad I came to uni and when I have finally completed year 0 it will be such a good feeling.

I'm in the badminton team here at uni. I used to win quite a lot of competitions in badminton and volleyball; they’re my two favourite sports. For a short period of time I even played for England in the volleyball team and it’s something I’m happy and proud to have accomplished. 

If I had to give advice to anyone coming to uni, the key would be: manage your money and your time properly. It’s really important, for the future and for this current moment. Even if you think you have a lot of time, you slowly realise that it goes really fast. With A-levels you’re fixed in college from 9.00am to 3.20pm doing work all the time; but here it’s independent learning, so it all depends on you. If you work hard, you can get anywhere you want. Follow your dreams - even if it might be weird to other people - it’s your own dream so just follow it. Be yourself and be true to yourself. I did, I had a good feeling so I followed my gut!