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 Freshers Guide - Student Life
The weeks leading up to starting university can be something of a scramble, trying to sort out accommodation, deal with finances and prepare for moving away from home. We hope that our website will help smooth the transition from home to Uni. If you haven’t already done so check out our guide to shopping essentials – which provides a useful insight into (and a list of) everything you’ll need at University.
Here are a few other tips for freshers:
- Your University will almost certainly give you an email address, so make sure you register with our messaging hub so you can keep touch with your family.
- Unless you have Satnav buy yourself a map of your university town. You will find maps of the campus distributed free at freshers’ week.
- Get a set of passport-sized photos taken, as you'll need these for your NUS and library card.
- Sort out your bank account and make sure you have some money to tide you over until your loan arrives. For more information on bank accounts see student finance.
- Make a list of everything you might need to take with you. See tick list of essentials.
- Set up Student Insurance to cover your valuables while you're at university. Unfortunately the University campus is an easy target for thieves.
- Buy a TV license if you intend to take a TV with you.
- Don't forget to let everyone know of your change of address.
Freshers Week
 SO you’ve got your ‘A’ levels sorted and now you’re ready for Uni. How do you feel? Excited, nervous, apprehensive….probably a mixture of all three. Well starting Uni is a challenge for everyone but remember all new students are in the same boat and actually finding your feet and finding friends is pretty easy!
There’s so much to occupy you in the first week or two that you haven’t time to worry. Just ride with the tide and follow someone else! You may end up going around in a big circle but hey, its Freshers weeks…so who cares?!
Freshers’ week is designed to get you integrated into life at University as quickly as possible. It’s a bit of a whirlwind but its fun. You’ll be introduced to the social side of life big time. Freshers’ week is more about partying and getting to know the ropes than it is about working. Alcohol does play a part but don’t feel it is compulsory! If you do drink take it easy!
Freshers' week is organised by the student union and involves the chance to join the many clubs and societies within the university. It also usually offers a range of events from concerts to a formal ball.
You can find out about the events planned, through the local NUS website which is usually linked to the University website. There'll also be posters plastered all around the campus announcing events and anyway, everyone on campus gets to know what’s going on via the jungle drums! You will soon learn that news spreads fast on campus!
When you enrol you will be given a Freshers’ week ID card. Make sure you keep this with you at all times and don’t lose it! Without it you won't get into events however hard you plead. The central event of Freshers' week is the Freshers’ Fair. This is a gathering of the clubs and societies of the university normally held in the main hall or student union building. The fair gives you the chance to meet and join clubs from skydiving to football and from politics to drama.
If you have any interesting stories or pictures we’d love to hear from you. Click here to get in touch |
