A letter to first year me: Mimi

Posted on: 2 June 2025 by Richard Finch in Student experiences

Mimi is a Class of 2025 Marketing with Year in Industry graduate. She looks back at her time at the University of Liverpool and thinks about what she would tell her first-year self.

Dear First Year Me,

You’re 18, nervous, and about to move across the country to begin a journey you never thought would be yours. I know how scared you are, leaving home, stepping into the unknown, wondering if you’ll fit in or if you’re even meant to be here.

But just stop for a second and look at how far you’ve come. Little 5-year-old you, arriving in the UK without speaking a word of English, facing challenge after challenge — and now, here you are, standing at the edge of something incredible. You’re graduating. You’ve made it. Not just with a degree, but with strength, resilience, and a story that your younger self would be so proud of.

First year won’t be easy. There will be doubts, moments where you question your course, your choices, even your ability to keep going. But you will. With the love and support of your parents, friends, and family, you will push through every challenge.

Second year will bring joy, growth, and new tests of your resilience. You’ll gain and lose friends, navigate grief, face academic stress, and go through the highs and lows of placement applications. But you’ll also laugh harder, live more fully, and grow stronger.

Then, you’ll do something magical — literally. You’ll spend your third year working at Disney, living in London with girls you barely knew at first but who’ll become some of your closest friends. That year will change you. It’ll be exciting, terrifying, and everything in between. You’ll prove to yourself just how capable, independent, and brave you really are.

And then, final year, the best one of all. You’ll feel fully yourself. Confident. Grounded. Surrounded by friends who lift you up. You’ll find peace in who you are, pride in what you’ve achieved, and excitement for what’s next. If someone had told you in first year that you’d choose to go travelling instead of jumping straight into a graduate job, you wouldn’t have believed them. But that’s what you’re doing, chasing experience, joy, and growth on your own terms.

University will teach you more than just academic knowledge, it will teach you resilience, independence, love, and self-belief. You’ll walk away not only with a degree, but with memories, friendships, and a version of yourself you’ll be proud of.

So, breathe. Be kind to yourself. Trust the process. It’s time for your next adventure.

Com amor e carinho,

Mimi