You’ve been squashed up against the car window by bedding and bin bags full of clothes, with a set of pans on your knee for what seemed like forever, stood in a never moving queue to reception and eventually managed to lug your entire life up what would have to be the 4th floor in the only building in the city without a lift. Your dad has slipped you a couple notes with a jokey, yet stern warning about not using it all for beer while your mum slotted all of your pre-name tagged food into the fridge and made sure there was a toilet roll and hand towel in the bathroom. And you find yourself sat on the plastic wrapped mattress staring around at a room you’re not sure you like the aura of and have no idea what to do with yourself apart from NOT dramatically running after your parents and banging on the car windscreen declaring you aren’t ready for this!
Maybe that’s not everybody’s opening act of their uni experience (nor was it mine...). But you will find yourself in a foreign room surrounded by boxes/bags/crates and before you do anything there are a few important things that Pads for Students suggest you may want to do...
Inventories
STOP RIGHT THERE! You and/or your parents may have just put down a hefty deposit and although August seems a long way away now, you’ll be wanting (possibly needing) it back-all of it. Most halls provide a pre-made inventory list as part of their welcome pack. Don’t shove it in a drawer and ignore it until the morning they require it back-they stress the need for you to fill it out ASAP for your benefit as well as theirs. Make note of EVERYTHING; from a small Blue-tac mark at the bottom of the wall to a screw missing in the bathroom mirror.
Take. Pictures.
-and make sure they’re time stamped. No one can argue with you over a dented radiator if you’ve got a photo of it from when you moved in to prove it.
Once that's been sorted you can get to work, settling in and kicking back.
Wedge that door open
"Were you raised in a barn?!" More than likely, not. But go against what you’ve been brought up to do and wedge that door open with whatever you can find if you’ve forgotten a proper one. A speaker sub woofer worked well for us. It’s not only going to let the air circulate to get that weird smell out and keep you cool as you try to unpack in what will surely be a second heatwave in the middle of September, but will also provide a way of people to come to you.
If you’re in there with your door shut then your flatmates will either assume you’re not in there or don’t want people to know you are. Playing music (not too loudly) will also get their attention, if you’re feeling brave enough to let it play out on shuffle. An awkward situation could arise if you find yourself trapped in a duvet cover while a less than “cool” song comes on. Don’t let this stop you from going round and striking up conversations as well, this is just a method of making it easier for others to do so with you.
*Warning: Most doors in Student Accommodation are fire ones therefore are supposed to close by themselves. Only have yours open when you are in and out of the room and still in the flat.
Unpacking
Our advice is to not even think of getting everything unpacked. If you’re anything like us then this could take hours depending on how much you’ve brought. We’ve summed it up in a prioritised list:
- Food - This is important only for the fact that you may have chilled/frozen things. Your mother sent you off with these for a reason, don’t let yourself starve because you’ve forgotten to freeze the chips and the next morning’s brew won’t be half as settling if the milk has started to turn sour. *A great tip from my mum was to leave the tin of chocolates she’d brought open out on the counter (despite the urge to keep them next my bed) brownie points WILL be gained from your flatmates as dorky as you may feel.
- Bedding - Other than cheesy-chips, the first thing you’ll want when you get in from the first night is somewhere to sleep. Yes, it may not be as comfy as your precious one at home but it will be a lot less if you’ve not got your own bedding on it.
- Homeliness - Nope, you’re not escaping. The room you’re in may seem...odd, but once you put up a few photos of your friends, family and lost but not forgotten pets you’ll start to feel slightly less isolated from everything you once knew.
Once they’re done feel free to arrange your wardrobe, sort out a filing system and rig up your computer (these things can be put off for weeks, trust us).
Before you begin your initiation
As necessary as it is to us humans, you may forget or simply not feel the urge to eat. But if you’re going to be pounding the drinks then we heavily advise you to get something down you. That burger at 3am will soak up some of the alcohol but without so much as a sandwich before hand, you won’t make it past 8pm.
A good 4 hours have gone by, you’re settled in, gotten yourself ready and are excited to socialise with your new found friends. This time may have flown by for you but for your parents a million and one things have happened to you. So get in touch. A quick call letting them know that you’re fine and assuring them that you won’t blow your weekly budget that night, or end up in a gutter (even if you may or may not be lying through your teeth) will set their minds at ease. Remember, this process is very likely to be harder for them than it is for you, give them some ease of mind.
*Another tip, try to make the call before you’ve started drinking. Before you know it you’re three glasses down, you're slurring about how well you're doing on your own and their first instinct will be to drive straight back and collect you.
Above anything else, relax and relish in the first day of the rest of your life. As cheesy as that sounds, Freshers can be the best week of it. And while you’re having fun, keep aware of the fact that you’re in a new environment with new people. The first day is always going to be hard but know that everyone else is in the same boat, so don’t let it sink by being a recluse.