Hello, I’m Sarah and before getting into the blog, I just wanted to remind you that there is no right way of doing things! Everyone is different and has different ways of working, hobbies, commitments and priorities… that’s what makes us unique! But here is just an insight into a typical day for me. The rest of this blog will give you a taste of what it is like to be a second-year Nutrition and Dietetics student at Surrey University.

Mornings

I tend to wake up naturally quite early at Uni and, as a morning person rather than a night owl, will get my day started straight away! I like to spend a bit of time stretching, catching up with messages or things on my phone that I haven’t yet managed to, and making a nice nourishing breakfast that I’ll enjoy with a little TV or You-Tube or a crossword! Then, just before starting the working day, one of my house-mates and I get out for a morning walk which is a lovely way to catch up and get some fresh air before going back to sit at my desk.       

So, now it’s time to work, and depending on what is timetabled for that day and what I’m working on, I will either get on with pre-recorded lectures, do some coursework or attend a tutorial; either on Zoom or in-person on campus – it really varies!

Afternoons

After a nice lunch with my housemates, it’s back to the scenery of my room for an afternoon of work! I like to treat University work as if it’s a job and keep it within the hours of around 9am and 7pm (with breaks in-between), depending on what is going on that particular day. So, the afternoon will look much the same as the morning – a repeat of Zooms, tutorials, coursework or lectures. Sometimes, I’ll pop into town, go for a cycle ride, or go out to see a friend which nicely breaks up the day.

Evenings

I like to take the evenings to myself – free from work. So, will try to finish what I’ve been working on that day and sometimes head out for some fresh air before making a lovely dinner after which I’ll settle down for the evening. We enjoy watching TV or playing a game as a house and find that this is a great way to spend time together and wind down.

Sometimes, the evenings will involve a society or a social – I am still a part of Musical Theatre (MT) Society and attending their weekly Instagram live or zoom sessions, occasionally I’ll also do Zoom yoga and sometimes dance. Sometimes we have MT socials too, which are a great relaxed environment of organised fun! These are all great ways to enjoy your evening, socialise and connect with friends and society members for an hour or so, and really take a step back from the work that you have been doing that day.

Weekends

These two days fly by so fast and tend to get filled up very quickly without even planning to! If there are no impending deadlines or lots of lectures or things to do for the next week, I’ll take them completely off Uni work – but again it can really vary and I take it week-by-week.

The weekends can include: seeing friends, catching up with friends and family on facetime, spending time with my housemates, doing the weekly food shop, walks and maybe some cleaning! There are so many walks around Guildford too, and you can find some ideas in one of my posts on the @surreystudent Instagram page.

I also like to get sorted for the upcoming week, so will look at my timetable and lectures for the next week and create a ‘to-do’ list which really helps to set out what that week will entail. I’ll also add things on here like appointments, meet-ups, societies, socials and any other things to cover that week.

I hope this has given you an insight into a day in my life – as you can see from the variety of things I get up to, there is really no ‘typical’ day as every day is very different, but that’s the way I like it! I try to make sure that every day will include: getting outside, good food, seeing/talking to friends, Uni work and some time to relax and unwind. For inspiration from other people’s days see these blogs – Amy a vet med student and Caitlin a music student.