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Four years in St. Andrews
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St. Andrews University
As for most St. Andrews alumni, St. Andrews is attached to many fond memories. During four years the three streets sidled with old university buildings, many pubs, some shops and a few cafés were the setting of my life. What remains with me today are my friends, my degree and the memories built up over four years of ups and downs, successes and failures.
 It would be a lie to say that my four years of St. Andrews were nothing but bliss. In that time there is bound to be good and bad, happy and sad times, but overall St. Andrews has left me with many memories well worth keeping – and they start with my very first day.
First Day Surprises
 Imagine just having left your home to start university in a place you have never seen before. After taking the boat with a car load from Sweden across to Newcastle and driving North, the first thing you see when entering your new home town is – a pig farm! And my heart sank. I would be lying to say that it improved much after entering my allocated housing to be met by my far less than friendly house mates to be. After a second trip to the accommodation office, things did however pick up.
As I moved from Fife Park to David Russel Hall (replaced now by new housing), I was determined. This was not to be an indication of my future at university. And as I learned my first lesson – things are not always as they seem – I also made my new best friend. She thought I was an “obnoxious American” and I thought she was a “quiet little mouse”. Going on ten years later, we are still the best of friends. As a further curiosity of fate, I learned a few weeks later that had I stayed in that first house I left in such a hurry, I would have ended up living with another great friend, who also corroborated my story of the horrid house mates.
Life Goes On
After that first day, life settled into a steady pace speckled with lectures, tutorials, exams and a ball or caleigh to brighten up most weekends. Free time was spent in any of the numerous pubs around town, having coffee with friends or playing volleyball, going to boxing practice and even the odd spot of trampolineing. Another great opportunity for those who play golf is naturally – to play golf. I managed to hold out for four whole years, without a single golf lesson. Some are horrified, others just think of me as steadfast in my principles. I’ll choose to go with the second, and give a little chuckle.
 During my time at St. Andrews I tried a little bit of everything. My initial degree was meant to be in economics and psychology. I ended up dropping economics because it bored me stiff. Psychology turned out to be a little harder than I thought, and I finished off with surprisingly good grades in my management classes. So, an honours degree in management it was. And after four years of living with many of my friends, some still friends, others not so much, I faced graduation with a lot of mixed feelings. None of us were quite sure what waited outside the town walls. All I had was a determination to try out life without housemates and to find a job in marketing.
Just as St. Andrews took a little bit of getting used to, so did life outside it. Today, after a lot of city hopping, I now live in Stockholm with my own apartment, a great job that I love, and some very fond memories. St. Andrews gives a lot both in experience and opportunity. What you take away is up to you. I can most definitely say that the little town on the Scottish coast has left me with many valuables in both knowledge and experience that will probably stay with me as a part of who I have become. For anyone considering the University for their future, I can just say that it is a place unlike any I have been before or after. First and foremost coming to St. Andrews is not just going to university. It is the whole experience of the school, the people and the ambience of the surroundings. A close community with a small town feel, and lots of history all around. If this sounds like something you might want to explore – I recommend it dearly.
Monika, Graduate 2003
» More information about University of St Andrews and its educations here
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