Starting university is one of life’s big stepping stones.

You are about to embark on a new and exciting chapter in your life and in my opinion this is something to prepare for in order to enjoy every moment of it! Going to Bournemouth University is the opportunity of a lifetime, and staff, other students and are all here to help you through the first steps of your grand adventure.

Before You Get To University

Make sure you’ve secured accommodation:

• Without securing accommodation, you will have a slight problem as you won’t have anywhere to live! But the fact that BU has an Accommodation Guarantee for it’s students means even if your waiting on your results before you can book, you know you’ve still got a room with your name on it! I was fortunate enough to secure my first choice accommodation before I had even gone to my college and received my A-Level results.

Purchase the essentials for your new home:

• Anything that you need to buy for your new accommodation can be bought before you go there. Items that you want for your room, for your studies, your kitchen supplies…the list goes on! Organise a checklist for the things that you need to buy. Don’t worry about items that you’d share with your housemates, such as a hoover or a toaster, as these can be purchased together at a later time.

Join Bournemouth University Welcome Groups on Facebook

• In order to meet your future housemates, course mates and friends, it may be useful to join some welcome groups on Facebook. These pages inform you of events surrounding freshers and enquiries about who is living where or what course they are studying. I discovered who I was living with for the next year due to these pages. It really helped to get first impressions of those people.

After You Get To University

Socialise:

• At first, you may find it hard to socialise with people that you’ve gone from never meeting before to living with them for the next year. Moving to university is a massive challenge. However, the quicker you start socialising the easier it is to settle into your new accommodation and your new home at Bournemouth University.

Go to The Freshers Fair

• The Freshers Fair is the prime opportunity to unleash yourself across the University. This is the opportunity to join clubs and societies, as well as discover places around Bournemouth. Plus, it is the opportunity to get as many freebies and discounts as you can think of.

Explore the Campus

• Once you’ve got your timetable and have the opportunity to go to your course and faculty induction sessions, having a bit of time to explore the campus is fantastic. Knowing where your lecture rooms are, having a look around SUBU and the buildings in general will give you a general feel of the university atmosphere and a strong sense of the independence that you get as a university student.

A Few Weeks Later

Explore Bournemouth:

• Bournemouth is full of different things to do. With the beaches on your doorstep, an Odeon Cinema in the centre of town and an oceanarium next to the sea, to name a few, there are plenty of opportunities for you to discover in Bournemouth.

Healthcare:

• It is a good idea to make sure that you are registered at a local GP. You never know when you might need to visit. There is a GP on Talbot Campus, so it is recommended that you register yourself as soon as possible.