Reasons Why Students Aren't Quite As Awful As You Think
10th June 2016
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As always, in 2016 the British university student is a breed as strongly disliked as 5p carrier bags, Donald Trump and the tampon tax.
As an English Literature undergraduate, I have gritted my teeth at all the ridiculous misconceptions that are thrown my way, and it seems that my Facebook friends shared my feelings, when I asked them to reveal the misconceptions that really get under their skin these were the most common.....
"Students do nothing all day and have no idea what stress is."
Frequently I find myself juggling three assignment deadlines, a part-time job, four books to read each week, as well as a vague social life and the upkeep of my general wellbeing, I think it is fair to say that there is plenty to cause me stress!
Certain, ignorant, people seem to think you need to have certain things to be ‘stressed’. These can include a full-time job, a family to look after or a relationship breakdown.
Despite common misconceptions, the young are among the highest of those at risk of stress disorders, with a 2013 NUS survey finding a staggering 92% of respondents suffering with mental distress. I can safely say that I am unaware of the concept of sleep, and a state of stress and panic has become part of my general demeanour, as I am sure is true of many students across the country and indeed young people across the world.
"Your degree isn't even worth anything nowadays."
Now I will admit that perhaps a degree in internet memes may not get you very far in life, however as a student working on a degree in the arts, it is definitely grating when you're told that you are wasting three to four years of your life for a piece of paper that will not get you anywhere, and all you have to gain is a lifetime of debt.
Despite this popular misconception, I have learnt an incredible amount besides the meaning behind a Dickens novel in my two years at university, and I truly believe that university teaches an individual so much more than a level of expertise in their subject area. I am sure many other English Literature students in particular would agree that we have essentially taken beginner's courses in History, Sociology, Psychology, Creative Writing, plus Religious, Film and Media Studies, as we learn a startling amount besides the number of deaths in Hamlet.
Our career options include marketing, sales, the media, publishing, charity work, journalism, teaching and so many more, all of which consider a degree in the arts to be hugely valuable, if not an essential, asset.
"You all live in squalor, don't wash and are incapable of cleaning anything."

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