You’re at FEUP, congratulations!

You have certainly heard these words when you knew you had entered this university, and that is indeed a source of pride and congratulations!

However, entering college isn’t always easy or without its challenges and you may feel something other than excitement.

This is an important period of transition between the world of school that you’ve known from an early age and the so far unknown world of academic life. You may feel lost or alone among new corridors, classrooms, classmates and teachers. The amount of material and the teaching and assessment methods may be quite different from what you were used to. It’s natural to feel that you’re “just one more” among so many students. On the other hand, there are many attractions, activities and projects you can get involved in: from academic groups, volunteering projects to student associations! While you’re adapting to all these new things, the relationships you’ve had up to now, with friends and family, may also change, since the routines you’ve kept and the contexts in which they’ve been inserted have also changed. At the same time, you’re worried about the development of new bonds and how they may or may not be maintained…

Indeed, entering university represents a number of major challenges that can test your resilience and possibly uncover some weaknesses that you may have had unresolved until now. On the other hand, you can see this phase as an opportunity to discover and explore yourself, to know your limits and how to adapt to adversity!

Take the opportunity to explore the world around you, through your eyes. Get to know yourself and find a balance within what is important to you. Challenge yourself in the face of novelty and try to tackle any obstacles that may arise, secure in the knowledge that it’s natural to have difficulties and that you’re not alone!

Click here to save a summary of these and other tips!

If you experience significant difficulties in any of these areas or feel you need professional help, book an appointment with us.

U.Porto is concerned with promoting the integration of students and, to this end, it offers different resources such as the Academic Integration Kit or the Academic Integration and Well-being service.

At FEUP, the Projeto FEUP Curricular Unit is designed to facilitate the social and academic integration of new students.

Getting involved in different activities and associative groups can help you not only integrate into the university, but also improve your academic performance!

Here’s a list of associative groups that you can join:

• UP Volunteering
• S. Porto
• Entrepreneurship Club
• Debating Society
• FEUP Technicians and Hosts
• Theater
• Painting and Music Workshops
• Radio Engineering
• Student Association

You can find more information about these activities here.