If you’ve done these 13 things you’re definitely ready to graduate from Exeter

Graduation is starting to loom over our heads now, as well as the choice on what outfit we should wear to graduate in. Exeter has its own little quirks about living and being a student here. Unlike many other places, we always add a bit of “rah” to every possible activity. So, here is a checklist of things that are a sign of you being ready to graduate from Exeter. Or ignore them and delude yourself into thinking you’re still a silly fresher.   

1. Cried at Reed Hall

Oof, starting off with a cracking one. Reed Hall is the best spot on campus, it’ll be there for you at those great highs but also for those great lows – especially when you’re writing your dissertation. Now, crying here is fine (once, or twice) but if you are just repeatedly going here of your own free will to “reconnect with nature” you need to leave.

2. Defending your life on Overheard 

It turns out not many other unis (in fact probably none) resell their club tickets for over £200. If you find yourself posting on Overheard every single day begging for TP tickets (or Fever Monday if you are down bad), you are ready to graduate. Your friends have started to notice and it’s getting quite embarrassing. Worse yet, if you have been accused of being a scammer, this is a wakeup call.

3. Gone to the corner shop more than three times in one day

Come on now guys, you are getting too comfortable here.

4. Cried because of FIXR

Moving on from Overheard, to FIXR. Now, we all remember EGB ticket gate. Three times, FIXR? To this day, I still believe that there is some wizardry about getting TP Wednesday tickets as I could never get them. It isn’t normal to have the entire Apple Ecosystem up and running whilst trying to buy a £2.80 ticket to The Piece. The amount of coordination it takes trying to plan a night out is tough. But, if you find yourself crying because of FIXR, it’s time to graduate…Exeter has taken too much out of you.

5. Thinking its normal to drink at 2pm for Batty Bingo

Guys, this is actually not normal (apparently). In Exeter, pres begin EARLY. It’s going to be rough adjusting back to the real world when you’re used to preeing at 2pm to be blackout by 6pm.

6. Coffee shops are no longer fun

From relentlessly studying in your favourite coffee shop, they have become ruined for you. It’s time to leave.

7. Gone to the same club every day for a week solid

Okay, yeah let’s all be brave and admit this one together. We thought we were quirky and different by doing a week bender for no clear reason, but hitting up the same club everyday guys? There is more to life than TP. We already lost Unit 1, and Zinc was never really an option for us, so all that leaves us with is Fever and TP. But that doesn’t stop us from going out nearly every day. Come on, you got to soak up the nightlife while you still can.

8. Exhausted every costume possible

If you have been spending your student loan on costumes for uni nights out, this is yet another wake up call guys.

9. Engaged in a bit too much “Exetah” culture

Happens to the best of us, one too many visits to the Exeter Races or an Enchanted Garden Ball change the mindset of the person you once were. It’s going to be hard getting “rah” out of your vocabulary.

10. You are friends with the bouncers at Spoons

The best side characters at uni are the bouncers. You know you are ready to graduate when you have built up a rapport with the bouncers at Spoons though… You know their names, schedules and perhaps more about their lives than you actually ever thought you would want to (or need to) know. This is a testament to the sort of person you have become at uni. You are conversational, mature and a well rounded person, but please, go home.

11. Trying out different chip shops after a night out

You have built up a resilient liver after your time here so you need to reward yourself with cheesy chips after a night out. To add some thrill to your night, you try out a new place – even if that is a random chip van that gives you food poisoning. After three (or more) years of going out and attempting to make it to your 8:30am seminar the next day, you have perfected the art of trying to avoid hangovers by nursing them with something dangerously greasy and cheesy that will inevitably just make you feel more ill. I see this less of a sign that you need to graduate and more of a sign that we ALL need to get out more (beyond TP). Maybe I just need an intervention.

12. If you have a favourite seat in the library

If you have been used to getting to the university at 6am to get your favourite seat in the library and then been excited about it, you need more thrill in your life now.

13. Bought a pair of white linen trousers

You know who you are now. You have become a true “Exetah” gal.

Related articles recommended by this writer:

• Nine types of people when it comes to moving out of Exeter Uni
• Here’s the 13 types of people you will meet at an Exeter Uni summer ball
• Freaking out about leaving? Here’s six pieces of advice from Exeter Uni graduates