Prepared for you by our nice work experience chap, Chris Mourant – about to start his second year at Warwick University.
Enrol – you must enrol on your course to officially become a student, and before your Student Loan payments can be released, so check the deadline for enrolment well in advance to ensure you don’t miss it (it’s often within a fortnight of your course starting, but make sure!). Then bring proof of enrolment in order to collect your University Card.
Apply for a University Card – University cards entitle you to NUS card benefits, such as student night entry prices at clubs and discounts in high street shops. They’re also important, though, for providing access to University facilities such as the library, the union, and the IT and sports services. You will most likely be given a card on arrival, but you’re also likely to keep the same card for the duration of your time at University.
Get passport photos - lots of them, and keep them handy, you might need them for ID cards, membership cards and so on. Get them taken before you arrive at uni and enter the sleepless cycle of cheery destruction that is Freshers' week: otherwise your hungover self will be staring back at you every time you use your cards.
Money Matters –
• Tuition fees are due in full at the start of the academic year. Apply to your Local Education Authority for a fee loan if you want to defer your fees for repayment after graduation.
• Set up a bank account so that the Student Loan Company (SLC) can pay your Student Loan directly into your account, and the LEA can do the same for grants and bursaries. Make sure you get an account with low interest on overdrafts.
• Make sure you’ve sorted accommodation costs. It’s more than likely you’ve applied for accommodation and been allocated your place, but don’t leave it at this before turning up – accommodation fees need to be paid by Direct Debit.
IT – try to register with IT Services before arrival to get a username, password, and email address. This way, you’ll have information sent to you regarding course details and social events. See whether your University offers deals on laptops. Also, if you’re doing a media related course, check which software programs or computers you’ll be using, such as Macs or Cubase, and if possible familiarise yourself with these before arrival.
Health – ensure you’ve had your MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) and meningitis vaccinations before getting to University, and that you bring with you the dates you had these. Remember to also bring your NHS number and doctor records, and then register with the health services at University so that if you suddenly get ill you can be treated quickly.
Books – check out the reading list for your course, then start as you mean to go on with book budgeting and hit the second hand bookshops and internet marketplaces. Remember to also check whether there will be book sales at your union in freshers’ week, as these will provide you with cheap deals specific to your course.
Start cooking! – you don’t need to do gourmet, but cook for the family once in a while to learn a few basic recipes, it will reassure you (and your mum!) that you won’t starve. Try pasta dishes and stir-fries – lifesavers! See our cooking section for more help.
Start talking to people who have been through it all. Speak to friends from the years above in the pub, to older brothers and sisters, family friends, or even your parents. Simple advice like leaving your door open on the first day or bringing something to the flat to share, like biscuits or alcohol, will make all the difference in helping you to feel confident that you’ll be able to settle in.
Sort out all the documentation and paperwork you’ll need to take with you to University. Your National Insurance Number, NHS number, the copy of your LEA financial support form, letters of acceptance and University registration, proof of age, your bank account details… sort all of these into a portable filing system. This will help keep everything organised and in one place, and will ensure everything doesn’t get lost in the clutter of the big move. Not needing to ring home to ask where your passport is, for example, is also a really good way of proving you can look after yourself. For the same reason, it’s also a good idea to buy a simple book with details of how to complete practical tasks like writing cheques.
Accommodation – start thinking about what your halls or flat offers then stock up with everything you’ll need. Self-catered accommodation will be the biggest hit to the bank balance; you’ll need stuff like a wok, a frying pan, saucepans, tea towels, chopping boards, cutlery, crockery, mugs and pint glasses. If you’re in catered, though, don’t disregard these things, you’ll also need things like bowls, cutlery and mugs if you’re going to miss breakfast every morning or have friends over for coffee or drinks, which, let's face it, is probably going to happen. Start to think how you’re going to fill and personalise your room. Get bed linen and posters (although there’ll be poster sales at your union within the first few weeks). You’ll also need really practical things like multiple towels, an alarm clock, a lamp, plug extensions, coat hangers, a printer, and white tac (saving you from getting charged for wrecking the walls with blue tac!).
Get on Facebook and join groups for freshers who’ll be going to your University. This way, meeting people in the first few days won’t be a completely new thing and you can make a head start by briefly getting to know faces and names of people on your course or in your halls. Also check out the lesser-known Univillage for the same reasons. But be warned, avoid becoming a ‘Facebook Stalker’, it’s not a good image.
Photos – print off photos of your fun-filled summer before University to brighten those drab, generic yellow accommodation walls.
Make a list of everything you’re going to take when you move so that when it comes to packing suitcases, boxes, and the car you can tick everything off, making it a lot less stressful and leaving you to worry about more important things like where you’ll go for your first night out!
A final random tip from the etc. tower: get a plant. Something like a spider plant is good, they’re tough little things that won’t die when you forget to water them for weeks. Plants keep the air in your room fresh, add some green to your life, and generally look nice. And you can talk to them. (Apparently.)
Good luck! Be friendly, keep your door open when you're in, and have a great time.
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