Robert Greenwood
Are you a 90s baby? Yes, and apparently that makes me somewhat of a dinosaur now.
Born in 1998, depending on who you ask, that makes me a young millennial or an old Gen-Z. I’m old enough to remember Playstation 1, I enjoy childhood without the internet being all-consuming, but young enough to be the guinea pig generation of social media (back when Facebook was the cool one, Snapchat had no filters or story feature, and Instagram was people posting pictures of their dinner to the tune of 2 likes.) This was before moderation or adults had a clue what we were up to (don’t eve ask about Habbo or ask.fm.)
At 18, anything over 21 sounds geriatric. I thought the same at that age. It’s weird how quickly it comes around and when it does, I can’t stress this enough, every year after 21 goes quicker. I still catch myself thinking I’m 23, then I realise I need to add a few years to that. And the hangovers, wow the hangovers. Make the most of it because after 25, I don’t know if it’s the slowdown in metabolic rate or being out of your biological prime but, they get incrementally worse with each passing month, let alone year.
Kim, 27, found that ‘it’s challenging- like they’re talking a different language’
But how does this play into my uni experience?
I THINK THE DOUBLE-SIDED COIN OF ANXIETY AND EXCITEMENT IS AN INNATE PART OF THE STUDENT EXPERIENCE
It’s been a learning experience all around. At home, I’m used to being the youngest one amongst my friends and, most of the time, at work too. As a student, most of us experience some level of imposter syndrome and I think the double-sided coin of anxiety and excitement is an innate part of the student experience. On one hand, I’m so happy to be here and doing this with my life now but then also I think what the hell am I doing here? Am I experiencing normal fresher’s fears or is this heightened by being 5-8 years older than the ‘typical’ student? If I were to have followed the year-by-year life map we’re ‘supposed’ to be on (GCSE’s, A- Levels, Undergrad, maybe a Postgrad, graduate job) I would be well into my chosen career by now. So, to be here can often feel like I shouldn’t be, especially when the majority of people I encounter are following the structure.
Most people don’t care about my age but some people, when I tell them I’m not a ‘returner’, not am I 19 or 20 (thank you factor 50) have a certain air of apprehension to socialise with me, maybe even the faintest hint of disgust.
The best one I’ve had yet was in one of my seminars: after telling people I’m 26, someone asked ‘why?’ to which I responded, ‘why am I here or why am I 26? Because my mum gave birth to me in 1998’.
Dan, 30, found it ‘quite difficult to engage and make friends’
AGE DOESN’T ACTUALLY MATTER THAT MUCH AT ALL
In my life back at home, I have friends ranging from their 20s to their 60s. Outside of education, as you enter the world of work, you’ll find that age doesn’t actually matter that much at all. You’ll work with, and likely become friends with, people of all ages- they’re not just teachers or family members. There’s a lot to learn from older people outside of a classroom or lecture hall.
One thing that makes me feel the age gap though, is that I’m losing touch with slang- apparently ‘sn’ means ‘say nuttin’, (gone are the days of ‘snm’), ‘neek’ is a combination of ‘nerd’ and ‘geek’, where we would’ve just said ‘goon’ (I’m told that means something entirely different now) and I’m still unsure what ‘sg’ or ‘taking an L’ means? I’m still up to date with music (for now), I think.
Brat summer, right guys?
What I have definitely noticed, both at home and at uni is that Gen Z, for the most part, is far more health conscious, a lot more politically aware and never off their phones. That’s not to say that there aren’t millennials and even boomers that aren’t exactly the same, but my generation’s idea of a good time was inspired by Skins- a bottle of Glenns Vodka, a 10-pack or L&B Blue (£3 believe it or not!) and a bluetooth speaker in the park, whilst your parents thought you were tucked up at a sleepover. I was the drunkest at most of the fresher’s events I attended and the amount of dirty looks I have had for having a cigarette in hand is unreal. I mean, it’s great that Gen Z are make better health choices but reckless hedonism was our idea of a good time- you could be responsible and care about the consequences when you got old… and then we got old.
Dan, 31, said that a mature student’s experience ‘depends [on] what stage a mature student is at [in life], that ‘as a mature student in the arts, it has been beneficial to have that life experience’
COVID’S IMPACT ON THE CURRENT COHORT OF STUDENTS CAN NOT BE UNDERSTATED
I don’t think Covid’s impact on the current cohort of students can not be understated. To be in lockdown during such socially formative years means a lot of people have missed out on many coming-of-age experiences that were typical for their predecessors (not to mention the long-term effects on mental health.) Pair that with the cost-of-living crisis and I can start to see why Gen-Z aren’t as big on going out. And whilst smoking is out, vaping is certainly in.
Posting on social media is cringe now (bizarre for a generation that rarely has a waking moment off their phones) which almost feels reactionary to my teen years when everyone posted everything- even what they brought home from the shop to feast on for the evening, ‘MUNCH’. This was back before everyone had an Iphone, when Blackberries were the phone everyone had or wanted (do they even still make them anymore?) But now everyone wants to be mysterious and post minimally. Certain emojis aren’t to be used- or is it all emojis because that’s cringe too?
When I say ‘woke’, I don’t mean it like it’s a bad thing/ pejoratively- I’m glad I live in an era where people have awareness of what they say and do to feed into a much larger systematic oppression. But there is always the anxiety that you might offend, and people who take political correctness to a new level of zealotry- just don’t be a dick, for the most part. I’m not sure this is the ‘woke generation’ that the Daily Mail and your grandparents bang on about ruining the world- I certainly didn’t get that impression at the freshers’ fair when I approached the ‘Students for Life’ society, right at the end, in the corner, next to the Conservative association society.
‘Is this for mature students?’ I asked.
‘No, but mature students are welcome’ one of the two men at the stall said. As he said that I noticed the anti-abortion and anti-euthanasia posters surrounding them. He kept talking but all I could think was how do I exit this conversation politely?
Are gen-z coming to save the world or are they the most conservative generation in history?
Alexia, 22, said that she ‘found that being a mature student, you don’t have as many hang-ups about going to social clubs. You just go to these things and you talk to people and it’s much easier to settle and get to know people’
‘Why now?’ times
I can’t count the amount of times I’ve been asked this. It’s the first fresher question when people find out my age, after ‘what are you studying?’ and ‘Where are you from?’ I usually give the answer, ‘stuck in dead-end jobs’ and or, ‘I felt wasted and I was bright enough.’ This is partly true, but also I’m not really sure. My friends back home are getting engaged, buying houses, climbing the corporate ladder… and here I am going back to school.
After a few years in the real world, It’s not pretty out there (or wasn’t for me)- I spent most of my twenties clock watching my days away in jobs I hated. I tried applying for ‘good jobs’ over the years, but the prerequisite was always a degree or experience for an entry-level role that was a similar wage to what I was on anyway. If you want to work in a field you’re actually interested in, then (most of the time) a degree isn’t an asset, it’s a necessity- especially when such a high proportion of the working-age population has one (though there are other options such as modern apprenticeships.)
Most employers don’t care what your degree is in, just that you’ve got one- it shows the discipline and determination to study for three years. That’s a lot of debt, stress and time for it to become the employment standard. Although, you can still succeed without a degree- I had one friend who left school with minimal GCSEs, started in call centres and then worked their way up into a very lucrative financial job. Another who got a degree in music tech, worked at Boots, then HMRC and now works for one of the Big 4 in international tax. I didn’t fall so lucky. If I’m honest, I just wanted to have a good time- like anyone in their late teens or early twenties does. But you can’t stay that age forever and life will get hard and fast if you don’t put in the work.
Robert Greenwood
Featured imaged courtesy of leenokitty via Flickr. Image license found here. No changes were made to this image.
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