Starting university for the first time is a daunting process for everyone, but can also be one of the most rewarding and enjoyable experiences of a person's life. What makes or breaks the uni experience for most people is approaching it the right way.
In your educational journey up until now, you’ve more likely than not been able to depend on the help of teachers and peers to stay on top of work and if you’ve lived at home, chances are, you haven’t particularly had to worry about feeding, clothing and even entertaining yourself, allowing you to put all of your focus into recreation and academic success.
This article will aim to give you some advice and prepare you for the challenges ahead, while making sure you’ve checked all of the preparatory boxes and admin that need to be done before moving into your new accommodation and getting on with your studies.
Without further ado, let's get right into Superprofs ‘Starting University Checklist’.
Student Finances and University Accommodation
Make sure you have all the paperwork and administrative tasks done, including student finance, accepting your offer and aacomodation.
Before even setting foot on campus or attending any lectures or clubs, it’s important to get certain paperwork and administrative tasks out of the way. We’re assuming that at this point, you’ve already made your university applications successfully and have accepted a conditional/unconditional offer, but if you haven’t, then that is the first step in the journey towards studying at university.
Student Finance
Perhaps one of the most critical things when it comes to preparing for uni is making sure you’ve secured the financial resources to see it through. Fortunately for you if you’re a UK citizen, the government is prepared to step in to help make it happen, especially if you wouldn’t have the means otherwise.
Depending on where you’ll end up studying i.e. England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland, the process will be slightly different, but similar enough that we can explain it all in one summary.
When you’re ready to apply, make sure you have your course information at hand, (course number and name of the institution), along with legal identification such as a passport and the information for the bank account with which you want to receive your loan and/or grant if applicable.
To find the right place to apply, type in ‘Student Finance [Region]’. This search should show you the correct website as the top result, but be careful, since ads can often force their way to the top of the search results depending on your browser.
Below are the correct sites depending on which region you’ll study in:
England: Student Finance England
Scotland: Student Awards Agency Scotland
Wales: Student Finance Wales
Northern Ireland: Student Finance Northern Ireland
University Accommodation
In addition to tuition fees and money to pay for various expenses, while studying in university, you’ll need somewhere to stay. Most students end up staying in halls of residence and there are few different kinds that vary depending on budget and needs.
To start with, we’ll define the two main categories of student accommodation for the first years. The two main kinds are university halls and private halls.
University Halls
University halls are residences provided by the universities to students and often have the benefit of being more affordable and closer to campus than their private counterparts.
In university halls, you can expect to have a room to yourself, while sharing a kitchen and living space with 4-8 other students on average.
The individual units and rooms are often assigned at random, to ensure fairness for students, but additional needs are taken into account, so if you have any extra requirements, it’s a good idea to get in touch with your university and let them know so that you can get the room you need.
Private Halls
Not so different from uni halls, private halls are accommodations which are provided by a third party commercial enterprise.
What this means is that while you can expect similar amenities to uni halls at the same price, the room for personalisation becomes flexible based on the research you’re prepared to do, along with your budget.
Another interesting thing to note is that since the private residences aren’t affiliated directly with the university, you might end up staying with students who don’t go to the same university as you.
Moving in: What should you bring for your first year of uni?
When the time comes to move into your new accommodation, it can be tricky to know exactly what you should bring with you. First things first, the domestic items will be the same for most students, but the specialised equipment you need will differ from course to course.
💻 Course equipment
What you will need for class
🗂️ Admin Essentials
Paper work, like student ID.
📞 Domestic essentials
Things you will need for daily life
Did you know?
Many universities release a list of suggested equipment near the start of term, so definitely keep an eye on your email inbox to get the information specific to your course!
Equipment is especially important if you study a creative subject, like art or design. That said, in this day and age, all students are recommended to make use of the following items while studying.
- Laptop (ideally with good storage and connectivity features)
- Basic stationary (black ballpoint pens, pencils, notepad, highlighters, post its)
- Backpack (sturdy waterproof backpacks are a worthwhile investment, especially in the UK)
- Smartphone (staying connected is more important than ever in modern university life)
Administrative Essentials
Living in a new environment will mean needing to do a lot of admin work, including registering at a new GP, perhaps a new gym and collecting your student ID card.
To do all of these things, you’ll need to prove who you are, so make sure you don’t forget the following items.
- Photo Identification (Drivers License, Passport)
- Physical proof of enrolment (Correspondence from the university)
- Student finance correspondence
- National insurance number and documentation
- Accommodation contract
- Insurance documentation (foreign students)
Domestic Essentials
Everything we’ve mentioned so far is useless if you don’t have a few basic essentials that everybody should keep in their home. To the more independent among you, this might seem obvious. However, many students living alone for the first time are so caught up in the other challenges of their new lives that they forget to bring/buy some of these standard items.
Instead of listing every individual item, we’re going to categorise things.
- Bedding (Duvet cover, pillow cases, mattress protector, blankets etc.)
- Clothes hangers
- Laundry bin (or other kind of storage)
- Toiletries (deodorant, soap, toothbrush etc…)
- Hair and skincare products (Shower gel, shampoo and conditioner, cleansers, moisturisers)
- Towels (both kitchen towels and bathroom towels)
- Clothing (make sure you have appropriate clothing for different seasons and weather scenarios)
- Multiple pairs of shoes (trust us, one pair is not a risk you want to take)
- Plenty of underwear and socks (they always go missing)
- Cutlery and eating utensils (knives & forks are obvious, but chopsticks might come in handy too)
- Plates and Cups
- Cooking utensils (you don’t need a full chefs inventory, but think about having a good saucepan, frying pan, baking tray, maybe even a wok)
- Calendar (yes we know you’ve got a phone, but get one anyway)
- Diary/Phonebook (years of using a planner in secondary school should not be put to waste!)
There are plenty of things that we haven’t included on this list that many would argue are an essential part of a functioning living space, but our list is supposed to show the things that you can’t count on other people to purchase or bring with them.
Once you settle into your room, talk with your housemates and decide on a rota for chores and make sure to buy key items, like dish soap, sponges, toilet paper and kitchen towels etc etc…
Some of the best advice we can give is to keep your expectations low when it comes to responsibility and chores, most students will experience living with a bad housemate at least once in their uni life, but by being mentally prepared to be self-sufficient, you don’t run the risk of being let down.
If you’re shy and don’t know how to start the conversation with your new housemates, you can always make a good first impression by offering to lend a hand with unpacking, taking the first shift of the bins or the washing up, or even by getting everyone a house-warming gift.
Meeting people is part of your university experience and something to expect in freshers week.
Attend everything you can
The last topic we’ll touch on in this article is that of making the most of those easygoing first few weeks, where your lecturers, (hopefully), don’t assign you too much work and the content isn’t that complex.
This is the ideal time to try out as many new things as you can, join clubs, socialise, make friends etc… The simple rule to follow is that if you’ve got the time and the energy to do something, then do it!
Even if you join a society or club that you end up not having time for, it’s better to have given it a try than to regret never having tried at all. University life is all about learning to take opportunities and learn to be organised while also living in the moment.
Additionally, take the time to familiarise yourself with your new environment, take a walk around campus, explore the town/city centre, figure out where you’re going to do your groceries.
Afterword
So in summary, you'll want to keep yourself as organised as possible to avoid any unecessary headache. Sort out your student finance and accomodation well in advance of your start date. Try to double check everything you may need with you as to not leave any essentials behind. Attend as many lectures, clubs and events as you can. Doing these will make your entry to university a lot smoother.
Thank you for reading our university checklist and guide to getting started with uni life. If you want to learn more about the university experience, or broaden your horizons in a whole range of academic topics, make sure to check out our other articles right here on the Superprof blog. We also have a guide for Freshers week.
If you want to take your learning to the next level, why not check out Superprof’s premier service which gets you in touch with the highest rated educators in your area. With Superprof educators, the first lessons are usually free, so why not give it a try!
We hope to see you back soon!
Enjoyed this article? Leave a rating!
Loading...
