Freshers: Moving in day!

Hello my lovelies!

So I've already talked you through everything that happens the over the summer before you go to Uni, but what about what happens when you actually get here? Well, it's about time I let you all in on the fun and festivities of your fist day, freshers week and the rest of your first year.

It's the day you move in to your new home, there's still at least a week before your actual lectures start and you have several days of fun and frolicking ahead... but you're nervous. And why wouldn't you be? You're moving somewhere all alone where you may not know anybody or even the area! You're going to have to fend for yourself in the big wide world and that's scary. But don't you worry, it's not all as horrifying as it sounds if you do everything right. 

On your 'moving in' day, you will most likely have to go and register your arrival somewhere and pick up your keys/cards for your accommodation the moment you get there. I suggest that even though you may know where you're living, don't go there first. Go fetch the keys and pick up your week's schedule before you drive over to the halls or house. 

It's a good idea to have your family with you, not only for that lovely send off but also to help you lug about all your things and help you with the unpacking (which is actually a huge task though it doesn't seem it at the time!) so don't take the offer of your parents/siblings/other family members coming along for granted. 

Next stop is your new abode! It's scary to think that you'll be living with strangers but don't worry, if you're friendly and welcoming then they will be too. Once you get to your room the first thing to do is find a way to pin the door open. It's a good idea to bring a door stop to uni anyway, but it's super handy on this first day when you'll be coming in and out of the room with cases and boxes etc. Not only does it reduce the amount of effort carrying your stuff, but it means the other people moving in can say hello with little disturbance.

Let people help you unpack. Your parents and siblings will be able to arrange your wardrobe, shelves and cupboards in a lot less time than just yourself, plus then your family can take away any extra boxes and bags that you just don't need. 

I live in one of these at the University of Chester, they're so cute!

Once you've fully unpacked your room, you may want to go crazy and fully decorate it straight away. Don't. You have the whole of freshers week to make your room homely. Instead, go and make friends with your new housemates, pop your head in and just introduce yourself. You may have briefly chatted with some of them on facebook before your arrival, but now you can put a real face to the name.

You may have to go to some scheduled meetings on your first day, make sure that you definitely go to them. These sessions will help you understand everything that's going on during freshers week and much much more so don't skip out. These meetings often contain a short welcome, a brief introduction to your student executive team and lots of powerpoint slides (you'll see a whole lotta them at Uni!) but they are definitely worth attending because you'll also find out about the evening activities and when your freshers fair and society fair are.

Finish your hectic first day with a house take-out or meal. Once all of the families have gone, get everyone together in a communal space, be it kitchen, lounge or corridor and have a chat. Really get to know each other because these are the people you'll be living with for the entire year and some of them may become your best friends. It's always nice to get some food in as a group, eat together and learn a bit more about what everyone's doing. 

Some questions you may hear a lot during your first few weeks:

1. What's your name?

2. Where are you from?

3. What course are you doing?

Seriously... you'll be fed up of repeating yourself by week 4, but with those three questions you can't go wrong! Use them as a basic intro with your new housemates before you get in to any more detail.

That's pretty much it for 'Moving In' day, if you have any additions or comments to make then leave them below for everyone to see and I shall be bringing you news of 'Freshers week - Daytime events' in the next post.

Love you all!

T xxx