Saturday 25 June 2016

A fresher's guide to surviving First Year

Hey!

I have officially finished first year! What a surreal, exciting and scary feeling. I really can't believe that it's over already. Tomorrow I move out of Endcliffe and back home for a loooong (hopefully hot) summer. *Sings Girls Aloud*

So, like I did after my first semester, I thought I would sum everything up for you. Like a kind of 'what I wish I had known before I went to Uni' thing. Here goes...

1. Don't pack too much
Okay, I'll put my hands up and say that I am massively guilty for this. Off I went to Uni with 2 cars packed with many things that I would never, ever use. Including; a bike, a tank of plastic jellyfish, high school musical top trumps, and a glass painting kit. I don't know what I thought I would be doing at Uni but it certainly did not involve any of those items. I did however, turn up to Uni with no plates or cutlery because I had left them at home. Overall, make sure you've got everything you need and pack the other little things after. 


A living nightmare
2. Be prepared for the craziness of Fresher's
....and be prepared for some awkward silences. After building up to the big day for weeks, suddenly you're in a room with 9 people you've never met, having to make small talk and COOK FOR YOURSELF. It's really overwhelming, and not until you're sat on your own in your room surrounded by thousands of bags, do you think 'So this is actually happening'. But a few hours in to Uni life I had already bonded with my flatmate Lauren over feeling homesick and loving One Direction. And if we can do it, anyone can. You will spend the rest of the week going on nights out and sleeping through the day because you're so tired, but that's the fun of it.



First night of Freshers...
First night out with my coursemates!
3.  You won't get on with everyone
In a flat of 10, you're not going to be besties with everyone. I came to Uni expecting that everyone would be clean, and when that doesn't exactly happen it is a bit of a shock. From mouldy bowls of cereal to disgusting bin bags, sharing a kitchen with so many others isn't exactly easy all the time. But Uni also teaches you to stick up for yourself and be honest with things that you're not happy with. At one point of particular disgustingness I found myself dreading coming back to the flat some days and wondering if Uni was meant for me. But everyone has doubts and as long as you surround yourself with good friends you'll be fine and dandy. (Also, don't be the messiest in your flat. People will hate you). Nevertheless, you will get on with way more people than you disliked so don't worry about it too much.


5/10 flatmates on the last day!
4. You won't get any sleep for 8 months straight
This has been the case for me, anyway. As I have made friends with some extreme night owls, I now find myself thinking 'Ah, 1am, an early night!'. This is dangerous territory for someone who has 9am's every day, but you'll power through with a lot of motivation, naps and mugs of tea.


The legendary Corp
5. Cook with someone else
Before I came to Uni I couldn't make beans on toast without setting things on fire and causing immense stress. But my flatmate and I have made loads of yummy new dishes that we had never tried before since getting to Uni. You can easily find easy recipes on Facebook which you can have a go at together. It doesn't always work out (my sausages and mash was described as looking like 'dog food' and my mac and cheese looked like sick), but you'll become so much better at cooking if you have a go.


One of our personal faves..

6. Take every opportunity you can
Yeah yeah, I've heard it all before, you're thinking. AND I put this in my last 'how to survive...' post which is even more boring. But I want to emphasise how many cool things you can try at Uni. I've had a weekly news bulletin on the Student Radio, met some amazing people from all over the country (and the world), written articles for The Tab (one of which got 23,000 views yay), started to play netball again, picked up Spanish again (however traumatic it may have been), visited to Madrid with a society (and loved it so much that I decided I want to study there next year). There is SO much you can do.


In Madrid with the gang
7. Enjoy it!!!
I'm sat here on the last night of Uni thinking about how ridiculously fast first year has gone. I've had some absolutely top-notch nights out, learnt a lot (maybe), fallen in love with Sheffield and most importantly met some wonderful, life-long friends.




Tall probs :(
I hope you have enjoyed this post!

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Anna x