As a new academic year fast approaches, many of you will be venturing off to Uni for the first time. That can mean only one thing… Fresher’s Week!! Freshers fair! Freshers events! Meeting new people and exploring a new city. Whether you’re excited, nervous, or both, here we’ve put together our tips and advice to help you through.

Moving in and Meeting New People during freshers week

Expect to be pretty busy during your first week of freshers. There’ll be lots to do, new people to meet and plenty of late nights thrown in for fun. Head over to your accommodation a few days early if you can so you have time to unpack and settle into your new digs.

Leaving your door open while you unpack your stuff is a welcoming gesture and people are more likely to stop by and say hello.
As soon as you have met one person, go around with them and knock on everyone else’s door in your block. Hopefully you will be less nervous in a pair and then you c
an meet quite a few people by going around together.
Try to get unpacked and your bed made up as soon as possible. You’ll appreciate less clutter and a comfy place to rest after meeting everyone new.
Make your room more homely by putting up some posters on the walls, photographs of family/friends or even soft furnishings that make you feel ‘at home’.
Don’t be afraid to start up random conversations with people you just happen to be standing next to while waiting for something – that is how you make your new friends. Chances are, they’re just as nervous as you and will welcome the chance to have a conversation without having to start it themselves!
Play your music just loud enough to be heard outside your room – a shared appreciation of the same bands can be a great ice-breaker. Do respect any requests to keep it down though and maybe keep this tactic restricted to daytime only so as not to cause any noise nuisance.
Smiling a lot will make you seem more approachable (or crazy)! We’ll let you decide this one.
Don’t worry if everyone isn’t as friendly as you are – it’s likely you won’t get on with everyone you live with and that’s fine. You’re bound to make lots of friends outside of halls so you don’t have to feel like a social outcast!
Try to go to as many social events as possible. It may be a little tiring and you’re unlikely to remember everyone later, but the more people you meet, the more familiar faces you’ll recognise and can chat with later on.
Don’t stop talking to random people after freshers’ week. This is a great skill that will serve you well throughout University and life afterwards too. The bonus is that the pressure of making friends will subside as people settle into their own experience of Uni life. As they become more relaxed, people will undoubted become more approachable.

Finding Out More About Your University

Many universities publish Freshers’ Week schedules on their websites or on the Students’ Union website. Finding out what’s happening in advance might give you a heads up on what you’ll need for partying the night away!
If you’re lucky enough to be moving to Leeds, check out the sites below for your respective Uni and get planning:
Leeds Beckett University
University of Leeds

Freshers week Socialising

Make sure you take some cash with you when you first go to the bar – there may not be a cash point nearby and venturing off to find one on your own is not the greatest idea, especially if alcohol is involved.
Save a few taxi company numbers to your mobile ready for the end of the night or in case you have no other way of getting back to campus. Never accept a lift from an unlicensed taxi.
Going out is always a daunting experience for a fresher: it’s the first time you’ll be going out with different people and meeting more new ones. Hopefully you’ll feel more comfortable once you’ve been out to the bar a few times and have some familiar faces to head out with.
Students in their 2nd and 3rd years will be able to help point you in the right direction of the best places to hang out. They are usually the people selling tickets for the evening events.
You will be able to find out about events at your Student Union or you may be able to sign up for email alerts about what’s happening around the university.
Get your tickets early for popular events as they will sell out quickly and you don’t want to be disappointed!
For the girls – it’s a good idea to take a pair flat shoes with you whenever you go out. If your high heels start killing your feet (or you are too drunk to walk properly in them!), you will be glad of them.

Budgeting for freshers… and the rest of the semester

Don’t sign up for everything at the Freshers’ Fair if they want you to pay up straight away. Put your name down, but think about it first before making any payment.
Draw up a budget for Freshers’ week and stick to it! A lot of new students spend too much on alcohol which means they don’t have much cash left over for other activities or for further on in the year. As ‘sensible’ as it sounds, planning ahead will help you in the long term.
Put on an extra layer of clothes or two during cold days and nights, so you don’t need to crank the heating up too high. A hot water bottle is a worthy investment!

Food

Club together with your roommates so you can buy in staple food such as rice, pasta and noodles in bulk or large quantities at least.
It’s also worth buying a selection of store cupboard essentials like salt, pepper, herbs, spices, cuppa soups, and other dried foods you use on a regular basis.
Try to keep some tins of beans, tomatoes, soup and similar foods in case you run out of everything else.
Eating together as a group can be useful too. For example, if you have a curry or pizza evening, and take turns with your roommates to host it. This means you can rely on at least one of your friends providing dinner at some point during the week!
During the winter months, you can take it in turns to spend the evening in each others rooms so that you’re not heating rooms for just one or two people. You can take turns to have a TV or movie evening in. Even if it’s only once or twice a week and you keep a rota for it, the savings on food and fuel could be quite big.
Cook more than you need and freeze some for another day – this saves on the fuel you use for cooking.
If your home is quite close to university and you’re worried about cooking, running out of food or just missing Mum’s famous spag bol you could always take advantage of Mum’s generous food portions and freeze them back at Uni. You can then defrost it when you feel you need a decent, wholesome meal!
Doing your grocery shopping online will help you save both time and money. You are more likely to just buy what you need and are subsequently less likely to buy every item or special offer that catches your eye. The delivery cost is usually quite reasonable and you can order with another roommate if you are concerned about the cost. You’ll be surprised at the amount of money you will save.
Shopping online also means you don’t have to cart heavy shopping bags back from the supermarket!

Staying safe

Always let people know where you are going and who with.
Ask a friend call you at a certain time to check you’re all right if you are out alone or with someone you don’t know very well.
Put at least one person on speed dial in case of emergencies.
Never, ever leave your drinks unattended at any time.
Register with a GP and dentist as soon as you can.

Don’t forget…

Wear a pair of comfy shoes for the registration meetings, as it’s likely you will be queuing for quite a while.
Remember to take things like pens and your diary with you to registration, as well as the Freshers’ Fair: it’ll help you to keep track of what you’ve signed up for and you’ll be able to jot down email addresses, websites and any other useful information.
Be prepared to queue all day in order give a piece of paper to someone and then get your photo taken!
Always make sure you carry the correct paperwork and identification to all the registration events and always make sure you are in the right queue!!

Freshers week – Survival tips