• Tuesday 20 July 2010
• posted by Sophie Hines
• Comments

Do's

Do try to get your unpacking done early so you can concentrate on meeting people and having fun. If you can't be bothered to unpack everything at once, at least make sure your bed is made so you have somewhere to crash when you finally get round to sleeping.

Cake - the route to anyone's heart?

Do leave your door open while you unpack so it's easy for people to come and talk to you. It's a good idea to have some kind of food (cake/chocolates/sweets) that you can offer people to show what a welcoming person you are!

Do get your top social skills into gear - smile, show interest in other people by asking questions and be open and friendly in your own responses.

Do go to plenty of social events. It's pretty tiring but Fresher's Week only happens once and you should make the most of all those opportunities to make friends and have a laugh.

Do be prepared for some pretty repetitive conversations - you'll lose count of the times you hear 'What A-levels did you do?', 'What course are you on?' and 'Which halls are you in?'

Do use the time to explore your new town or city - it won't be as easy once you have lectures to contend with.

Do make sure you have all the vitals for going out: your student card, taxi numbers for the area, cash as well as cards and flat shoes if you can't face staggering back in heels! We should also mention your phone but if you're a boy with a new iPhone (lucky you) we'd suggest leaving it at home. A broken gadget can make grown men cry and you don't want anyone seeing you blub in your first week.

Do drink fruit juice and eat some decent food to help you fend off fresher's flu. And avoid spending too much time around those already infected!

Don'ts

Don't be afraid to knock on people's doors and introduce yourself - they'll probably be pleased! Once there's two of you it'll be a lot less scary and you can go on a proper friend-making rampage. 

Don't judge a book by its cover. You'll meet all kinds of people in uni and just because someone doesn't initially look like your kinda person doesn't mean you should rule them out as a potential buddy.

Don't drunkenly jump into bed with one of your flatmates - a lot of people make this mistake and it can lead to a lot of awkwardness in the cold hard light of day! 

Don't expect to make a tonne of BFFs in your first week - friendship groups will change and settle as time goes on. For now it's all about getting to know lots of new people.

Don't forget all the paperwork and ID you need for registration events, you definitely won't want to face that queue again.

Don't do something horrendous that you'll spend the next 3 years regretting (falling blindly in love with the first person you meet, setting fire to your halls etc.) 

Don't get into the habit of going home all the time if you're homesick. It'll only make it harder to adapt and you'll miss opportunities to make friends and enjoy uni life.

Be selective at Fresher's Fair

Don't worry too much about budgeting during Fresher's Week - this is the time to have fun. Saying that, it's also important not to blow half your student loan before term's even started.

Don't sign up to absolutely everything at Fresher's Fair - think ahead about what you might like to do and stick to a few select activities.

Don't worry if your Fresher's Week doesn't turn out to be the best week of your life. You still have three years to go out, explore the city and make friends. And learn stuff of course.