Advice for New University Students: Work Hard, Play Hard, PRAY harder

Are you a young Muslim starting university this month? Or a mature student, looking to improve your career prospects? Either way, life is about to change big time – new surroundings, new friends, and new opportunities – along with new trials, new temptations, and new traps. Change can be good, and change can be bad: so listen to the sage advice of some seasoned MM-ers to ensure that your life changes for the better, insha'Allah!

ISoc2Sick

A classic tip from King's College London graduate, Bushra:

“Seek out your university's Islamic society and SIGN UP! They will be your lifeline out in the scary world of student-hood.”

Logo for one of the best ISocs in the world. I may be biased.

A lot of ISocs (a.k.a. MSAs for you Americans) have Freshers' (first-year) events in the first few weeks of term for new students. You can contact them before you start via their websites and Facebook pages (Google is your friend). If your university doesn't have an ISoc, try searching for Muslim cultural societies, like Pakistani, Indonesian, Malay, Arab, Somali, etc. Even if you're not from those cultures, they should still welcome you, and at the very least, show you where the best places to pray and eat halal are , inshā'Allāh.

It's also important to remember prayer room etiquette: give salām, smile, be friendly and welcoming to all. Just because someone doesn't seem as pious as you are (note: thinking you're better than others is a sure sign to check yourself!), or they pray a little differently than you, doesn't provide any excuse for you to give them the cold shoulder. You don't want your prickly nature to be the reason why someone doesn't offer their ṣalāh in congregation, or avoids attending circles of knowledge, or even regular ISoc socials, a'ūdhu billāh.

“Don't be judgmental- whether you are super-practicing or not. University will introduce you to many more different characters than those at school and will test your own patience by making you accommodate for these people. It will refine you.” – Bushra

Freeeeedom!

Beware the price of freedom.

A warning from graduate of Imperial College London, iMuslim:

“Don't let your first taste of 'freedom' go to your head – especially true for those sisters like me, who were rolled up in cotton wool most of their young lives! Suddenly teachers and parents aren't there anymore to keep their beady eyes on you, and Shayṭān's whispers becomes more like Shayṭān on loudspeaker!”

Without raining on your parade, the amazing high of your first few weeks away from home can also be dangerous for your īmān. You don't realize how much of your Islam is dependent on the opinions of family and other authority figures until they disappear from view. Strangers, especially non-Muslims, aren't going to care whether you pray your ṣalāh, or 'eat of the good things'. Now it really is between you and Allah; time to familiarize yourselves with His Attributes: As-Samee', the One who hears all; Al-Baseer, the One who sees all; and Al-'Alīm, the One who knows all. In conclusion: feel free to disobey Allah in the place that He can't hear you, see you or know about it. {smile}

However, greater freedom and a strange place also has its advantages:

“Starting uni is a great opportunity to renew yourself. Often school can be a very suffocating place because there is so much peer pressure from your friends – and even the people you dislike! If you've always wanted to start praying, wear hijab, clean up your language, volunteer more, and so on, but your peers were holding you back, uni is the best time to break the chains, wipe the slate clean, and start again with a 'bismillah'.” – iMuslim

Friends Forever

The heart is precious. Be careful who you let in.

Leaving behind childhood friends can be hard, especially if it takes time for you to make new ones. As lonely as you may feel at times, try not to fill that void in your heart, and the gap in your social calendar with just any company:

“Surround yourself with good people. Not just ISoc members, but also good friends on your course who may not be Muslim, but they live clean, and they respect you and your faith. If you left one bad group of 'friends' behind, don't fall into the same trap again now you've been given a second chance. The Prophet, ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam said: 'A person is likely to follow the faith of his friend, so each one should consider whom he makes his friend.' [Sunan Abu Dāwūd]” – iMuslim

Campus Superstar

You are going to spend a lot of time in here. Study tip # 1 - try not to fall asleep.

With all the fun of new friends, clubs, and societies, you may forget that university is actually for something called, STUDYING.

To help you along, here are some awesome study tips from University of California student, Meena, and University of Washington graduate, Safia:

“Don't give up the work habits that you established in high school. Most people have chiller schedules once they go to college and all forms of self-discipline and timeliness disappear. The hardest workers will do the best. Being “smart” isn't enough. Make iḥsān in everything you do – even school.” – Meena

“Be a known presence, not just in the university community at large, but also in the classroom. It's critical to visit during office hours and get to know your professors more. This is more general academic advice (of course, it's a da'wah opportunity also), but when you familiarize yourself with the teacher, it has many advantages:

• One, they'll know you're a serious student because you went beyond the classroom.
• Two, the more memorable you are to professors, the easier time you'll have getting the critical letters of recommendation that you will need for jobs and grad school.” – Safia

And a bucket load of academic advice from Wharton School of Business MBA grad, Amad:

• Remember why you are at college: to earn a degree. Keep the focus. It's only 3-4 years and if you put your mind into it, you'll reap the benefits
  for the rest of your life. You almost have to treat it as an extremely important investment that may dictate your career, your future family, and where you might live.
• Talk to senior students in your major. You can usually get great advice on professors, classes, and when you need something to lighten the load, professors who repeat the exam questions every year!
• It's not important just to “like” something to make a career out of it. If you want to be bread-earner, then you have choose something that will get you a job after you graduate. It affects what area you might be able to make a living in. For example, if you desire moving to the Middle East at one point in your life, scan the jobs that may be available in the region.

More practical advice can be found in this must-read MM post.

Don't Forget Your Roots

This is how happy your pops will be when you call him (before you ask him for more money).

Our EIC, Hena – graduate of the University of New Orleans – keeps it real:

“Call your mom!! Dad, siblings, grandparents, and old friends too – if you call them and keep in touch, it is less anxiety for them and they won't think that you have changed.”

Absence makes the heart grow fonder – but also more forgetful! Don't let the excitement (and stress) of college life make you forget those who helped you to get there in the first place. That goes double for the One who provides for you in every way: Al-Razzāq. Keep in touch with your Creator via your daily worship, dhikr, and regularity of good deeds.

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We hope that our sincere advice is of benefit to you. May you be successful in your studies, and enjoy every moment of this new and unique life experience, Ameen!
Feel free to share your own pearls of wisdom in the comments below.

Related Article: A Message to Anyone Interested in a College Degree