Making the most out of Freshers’ Week

You’ve opened your A-level results and received your place to study at university. Now all that hard work is done, you get to look forward to Freshers’ Week. For those of you who aren’t sure what I mean, Freshers’ Week is a week for new university students to adjust, make friends and get to know their surroundings before starting lectures. Moving to a new city, and settling in at university with new people can be very nerve-wracking, so here are some tips on making the most out of Freshers’ Week.

Get to know your housemates

If you are living in student accommodation, you’ll want to connect with your housemates before you move in. A lot of universities have Facebook pages set up for new students to find their housemates and Lincoln also has the Friends for Life service.

When you first move in, keep your door open as you unpack so that your new housemates can drop in and have a chat. Another thing you can do is check out the line-up for Freshers’ Week, and ask your housemates if they want to go to any of the events. This will give you an opportunity to bond and get to know one another. If you’re in on of the student accommodation blocks, you can also introduce yourselves to your neighbours, which will be a lot less scary if you do it as a flat. There are a lot of parties during Freshers’ Week so ask around to find out if anyone is hosting one and join in to make new friends or even host your own.

Go to any course activities

Most courses will release a timetable specifically for Freshers’ Week. This often includes a welcome talk, where you will get to meet your tutors and they will explain the course in further detail. There are also activities where you will get to meet other people on your course. It is important for you to go to these activities as you will get a feel for the course in addition to making friends that will be with you through all your years at university. Also, a lot of courses have Facebook pages where you can find people on your course before you start.

Attend the Fresher’s Fayre

The University of Lincoln hosts a variety of fairs during Freshers’ Week to cater for societies, sports and general information. Go along with your new housemates or course-mates to see if there is anything for you. Societies and sports clubs usually have taster sessions that you can attend for free so why not try something new, if its not for you then at least you can say you tried, so make sure you go to as many as possible and decide whether there are any that you would like to join. It’s a good opportunity to find out about Lincoln and what events are on, such as student club nights or other activities going on around Lincoln.

Don’t worry

Everyone will be in the same boat so try not to worry too much about living with new people, making friends or studying. If you ever have any problems, there are so many people within the university that you can talk to. You are never alone. University is a time for self-exploration and figuring out what you want to do with the rest of your life, so enjoy this time, work hard and look after yourself.