Starting university in Melbourne in 2020 was tough, and beginning a new life at a residential college wasn’t easy either. Many students needed to decide whether to remain locked down (or ‘locked in’) on campus or return home and forfeit the chance to mingle with their college community.
Abby Griffith-Barrow had just moved to Trinity College at the University of Melbourne when the COVID-19 pandemic struck, and, given she’s an only child and her family home is removed from the city centre of Ballarat, she decided to stay on campus. ‘I felt like I’d still have a community if I stayed,’ she says.
Abby was happy with her decision and enjoyed the amount of activity at college. 'There's always something going on, and I've been able to meet so many more people and engage in so many more things than I thought I'd be able to,’ she says.
Abby says that the experience somewhat reminds her of school, in the sense that there is always something happening and that there are many different activities and sports to get involved with.
‘If you're good at sport, you can pursue that, otherwise you can join the upcoming musical or whatever else is going on,’ she explains. ‘But at the same time, it's not like school because you’re independent, so you can do your own thing too.’
It was a careers counsellor at Ballarat Grammar that introduced Abby to the idea of college, and Abby is thankful for the advice, as she feels like college is the perfect stepping stone from school to university.
‘I feel like, in school, you have friends and a great community, but a lot of that gets lost when you graduate because people go off and do their own thing. I found it really beneficial going into a place where there was going to be another community that I could join, and when researching colleges, I looked at all the different activities you can get involved in and it just sounded perfect.’
Abby looked into a number of residential colleges in Melbourne and discovered that Trinity College had a good scholarship program, which is what eventually made her college dreams a reality, and that Trinity seemed to be just the right size (380 students).
‘I didn't want to go to a small college because I wanted to meet lots of different people from lots of backgrounds, but then I also didn't want to go to a really large college where I wouldn't get the chance to meet or know everyone. I feel like Trinity has the right amount of people.’
Abby was right in that everyone at Trinity became a familiar face, and she found the community to be open and friendly. ‘If you're willing to get involved and give something of yourself, then you're definitely going to feel welcomed. You don't necessarily have to be super extroverted either to feel a part of the community. I know a lot of people who are introverted and it works for them too. Whatever kind of person you are, you're going to find people who you have something in common with.’
Abby found people she could connect with by getting involved in football (both the Trinity College and University of Melbourne teams), community service projects, the Trinity recreation and alpine club, the wine cellar, the music society, and the chamber music program.
Music is particularly important to Abby (she’s an amazing harpist), and she’s found that after switching from a Bachelor of Music to a Bachelor of Arts with a Diploma of Music (which she feels will give her more options in future), that Trinity College allows her to fuel her musical passion while she works out what career she wants to pursue.
‘Especially for a first-year student going to university, it’s common to feel unsure about what's ahead. Trinity just made it so much clearer. Even in the first few days, I came to understand what to expect at uni, who I was going to be around for the next three years, and how my study decisions would shape my degree and my future.’
‘If you’re finishing school this year, I think it's really worthwhile thinking about a college as your accommodation option and looking into scholarships if you need that support, because, really, there’s everything here that you need.’
