Inside The University of Melbourne

So, you’ve survived your undergraduate degree at UniMelb. You’ve fought your way through 9am lectures (or, let’s be real, watched the recordings at 2am), submitted essays at 11:59pm, and stress-ate your way through SWOTVAC. Now, you’re either considering postgraduate study or you’ve already committed to another round of academic suffering. But what actually changes when you move from undergrad to postgrad?

Short answer: a lot. Long answer: Keep reading.

1. The Freedom (or Lack Thereof)

Undergrad:

You think you’re drowning in coursework, but at least you’ve got options. You can take electives, change majors mid-degree if you suddenly decide you actually hate psychology, and have plenty of time to nap on South Lawn. Your timetable is a chaotic mess, but hey, at least you can squeeze in a four-hour lunch break if you plan it right.

Postgrad:

Timetable? Ha. If you’re doing coursework, you’re locked into a rigid structure with exactly the subjects your degree requires—no sneaky ‘Intro to Wine Studies’ electives to lighten the load. If you’re doing research, your freedom is an illusion. You think you can set your own schedule, but in reality, your supervisor controls your life, and if you haven’t sent them a progress update in a while, expect an email that starts with “Hope you’re well…” (Spoiler: They do not hope you are well).

2. Classmates: A Whole New Breed

Undergrad:

Your tutorial mates are mostly fresh-faced 18-year-olds who are either super keen or too hungover to function. Group projects are a nightmare because at least one person will ghost you, one will do way too much, and the rest will contribute a single sentence (probably wrong). Social life? Easy. You’ve got clubs, societies, and the classic “I saw you in my tute, wanna grab a coffee?” move.

Postgrad:

Your cohort now consists of three types of people:

• The Overachiever: Somehow doing a full-time Masters while working three jobs and sitting on five committees.
• The Mid-Life Crisis: A 40-year-old ex-banker who decided that now is the perfect time to become a historian.
• The Burnt-Out Former Undergrad: Just like you, but with significantly more eye bags and less patience for nonsense.

Oh, and group projects? They still suck. But now, instead of chasing some first-year who “forgot,” you’re dealing with full-grown adults who have actual jobs and families and still can’t reply to an email on time.

3. Lecturers Expect You to be an Adult (Terrifying, Right?)

Undergrad:

Lecturers hand-hold. They remind you of deadlines, provide clear instructions, and sometimes even give you sample essays. You get revision lectures, discussion forums, and actual guidance because they know half the class still doesn’t understand Harvard referencing.

Postgrad:

Instructions? What are those? You’re supposed to just know how to structure a research paper now. Feedback? If you’re lucky, you’ll get a vague comment like “needs more depth.” Your lecturers will expect you to already be self-sufficient, which is hilarious because you just spent three years relying on Quizlet and Google Scholar.

4. The Workload Goes from ‘Manageable’ to ‘What Have I Done?’

Undergrad:

Yes, you had assignments. Yes, you crammed for exams. But realistically, if you attended a few lectures, read some slides, and submitted something that wasn’t complete gibberish, you could scrape through with a decent mark. You could probably get away with reading only half the required material (if you had a good skim-reading technique).

Postgrad:

Forget skimming. Your reading list is now approximately 1,000 pages per week, and somehow, you’re expected to actually understand it all. Essays go from 2,000 words to 5,000+, and your tutors no longer care about your “effort”—they expect actual insight. The difference between a H2A and a H1? Probably 40 extra hours of suffering.

And if you’re doing a research degree? Welcome to imposter syndrome central. No matter how much work you do, you’ll always feel like you haven’t done enough.

5. Social Life: What Social Life?

Undergrad:

You had time for club meetings, bar hopping, intercollegiate sports, and elaborate schemes to sneak snacks into the Baillieu Library. There were uni parties, pub nights, and a million excuses to “network” (aka drink) with people in your field.

Postgrad:

Good luck. Between your coursework/research, job, and existential crises, socialising becomes a luxury. The only people you regularly see are your supervisor, barista, and the unfortunate souls who have to listen to you rant about your thesis. Your idea of a wild night out? A 10pm Woolies run.

6. Motivation: An Emotional Rollercoaster

Undergrad:

You might’ve procrastinated a lot, but there was always a light at the end of the tunnel—whether that was a summer break, a semester abroad, or just passing the damn subject so you never had to think about it again. You had dreams, energy, and the naïve belief that a degree = instant job.

Postgrad:

Your motivation swings wildly between “I’m going to revolutionise this field” and “If I drop out now, would anyone notice?” The weight of academia crushes your soul, and the job market looms over you like a dark cloud. You’ve gone from “I can’t wait to graduate” to “How do I make this degree last forever so I don’t have to face reality?”

7. Final Verdict?

If undergrad was a rollercoaster, postgrad is a high-stakes escape room where the clues are in another language, half your team is missing, and the exit is on fire.

But for all the suffering, postgrad can be incredibly rewarding. You become an expert in something (even if that “expertise” is built on caffeine and last-minute panic). You get to push boundaries, engage in deeper discussions, and—eventually—feel like all the pain was worth it.

Would we recommend it? Depends. If you like your sanity, maybe not. But if you’re already in too deep? Well, at least misery loves company.