[Grammar] Present simple vs Present Continuous

[elenah]

Hello everyone,
Could you tell me what is better to use Present Simple or Present continuous?
I'm studying at a University.
OR
I study at a University.
'Present Simple use used for things that happen repeatedly.'
'Present Continuous is used for things that happening now or around now.'
Could you please tell me which one is right and which one is wrong? And why?

Thank you very much in advance.

 

[GoesStation]

They are both right (though "university" should not be capitalized unless you give the name of the university). The context in which you're going to use the sentence determines which tense to use.

 

[jutfrank]

We wouldn't use an article before university, unless there was a special reason to do so.

I'm studying at university.

 

[GoesStation]

We wouldn't use an article before university, unless there was a special reason to do so.

We do use the indefinite article there in American English.

 

[emsr2d2]

We wouldn't use an article before university, unless there was a special reason to do so.

I'm studying at university.

In fact, we don't even need "studying". We understand "I'm at university" to mean the same thing.

 

[andrewg927]

We understand "I'm at university" to mean the same thing.

Not quite so. To me "I'm at university" means I'm physically at the university at the moment.

 

[Raymott]

Not quite so. To me "I'm at university" means I'm psychically at the university at the moment.

Physically?

 

[emsr2d2]

Not quite so. To me "I'm at university" means I'm physically at the university at the moment.

Not in BrE.

Q. Where are you right now?
A1. I'm at the university.
A2. I'm at university.

The first response would be taken as simply giving the person's physical location. The second would suggest they are currently in a lecture or a class or, at the very least, they are on the campus of the university at which they are a student.

Q. Where do you work?
A. I don't. I'm at university.

In that answer, it would be taken to mean "I'm currently a university student".

 

[GoesStation]

We don't generally use the term at university at all in American English.

 

[andrewg927]

In AE, I would use "I'm in college" to mean I'm a college student.

 

[andrewg927]

College and university are sometimes interchangeable in AE. So "I'm a college student" most likely means I'm pursuing a bachelor's degree. Advanced degrees like a master's or PhD, we don't use college, we say something like "I'm a PhD student".