Preparing for university

Student insight

By Emily Arnott / 16 September 2026

Emily began her degree in biomedical engineering at the University of Sheffield in September 2026. 

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In a few weeks I’m going to the University of Sheffield, which was my first choice of university. I chose it for a range of factors, but especially because of how they teach my course, since lots of universities have one, two or three years of general engineering before you can study biomedical engineering, whereas Sheffield and a few other places teach biomedical engineering from the very start, which was a requirement for me. Since I also wanted to be in England but not in London, this narrowed it down to four universities. From there, I chose Sheffield because it has lots of green spaces, achievable grade requirements for me, the best student union in the country and was close to the peak district.

To help with this decision, I attended seven open days, as I wanted to see in person almost every place I applied to. My priorities were the accommodation and the course, so I made sure to look round lots of rooms at each university and look around the buildings I would be using for my course. Some places offered taster lectures, which were a great way of seeing both how I felt about biomedical engineering in general, and how it would be taught at the university. What really stood out about some open days including Sheffield, was that they made me feel like they wanted me there, unlike some others who made me feel like I might not be good enough to go.

To prepare for starting at Sheffield, I have been given lots of online induction tasks, like securing my accommodation, getting my university email, uploading a photo for my student ID, and getting the hang of all the different apps and websites I will be using in the next few years. Also to prepare, I have the more exciting task of going to IKEA and getting everything I’ll need such as duvets, mattress toppers and storage boxes, as well as kitchen utensils and cooking equipment, as my accommodation is self-catered.  

Although my biggest fear is making friends and getting on with my flatmates, that is also what I’m most excited about. Moving to a city you know almost no one in is quite daunting, but I’ve been told that everyone is eager to make friends and we’ll all be in the same boat. Another fear for me is moving away from home. It will be hard not having my family around, though they are all very excited for me. I’ll also really miss my dog, especially if I’m having a hard time because he always boosts my mood. Most of my current friends are going to different places next year too so I’ll miss them as well, though we intend to keep in close contact and update each other on our lives as much as possible. 

Despite all of my nerves, I can’t wait to get started and after the long summer, I feel ready and excited for the change.