First-year problems

There’s one thing that all students at the University of Sheffield can say we have in common, we were all Freshers once. And though our individual experiences of that period can differ greatly, there were still many that we all went through. So, for the Fresher Class of 2022, here’s a helpful guide of some of the problems you may encounter and how to solve them.

1. Making Friends

This is probably the number one cause of anxiety for most people when coming to uni. The best piece of advice I can give here is to just use as many opportunities as you can to meet new people.

• Go to societies – They are the best place to meet people with your interests and hobbies. 
• Going to social events with your course. As well as this, even just chatting to people next to you in lectures and/or walking back from lectures with coursemates is a good way of meeting new people.
• Introduce yourself to your neighbours and others in your apartment block.
• You don’t have to meet your best friend in the first week, but if you have met a healthy pool of people then you’ll naturally end up gravitating towards a core friendship group during your time in first year.

2. Money

We all wish it could grow on trees, but Uni can be expensive if you don’t budget properly. 

• For the first couple weeks give yourself a target on how much you want to spend on food and nights out. 
• Once you’ve worked out what you can afford along with other costs like laundry, set yourself a budget that you can stick to.
• Leave some money set aside for some spontaneity as well, this allows you to balance both money and making memories.
• Check out what grants or bursaries you might be entitled to, consider a part time job as well, even just one shift a week can go a long way towards your budget.

3. Food

For many it’s going to be the first-time food shopping and cooking so here are some tips: 

• Make meals last two days – simply upping the portion sizes can lower the cost of a meal. Try toand make it last for two main meals or for one and tomorrow’s lunch – this also saves loads of time when you can’t be bothered to cook.
• Use a mix of recipes and go-to meals – most of us will have a couple of recipes we can do with our eyes closed but don’t just rely on thosethem, Gget some recipes, and cook some dishes things you haven’t done before. 
• Meal plan – if you plan for what you are going to cook that week, you’ll save more money than if you were buying meals day to day. It also saves you wasting food that’s gone over the expiry date. 

4. Cleaning

Student halls can be a mess and it’sits potluck whether you get tidy flatmates. If they aren’t very tidy then here’s the best way of keeping the flat in order.

• Set ground rules as a flat on how long you can leave dishes out and what you all think is an acceptable level of cleanliness (your Residence Life mentor should help with this).
• My advice would be to keep and use your own stuff for cooking and eating but to share stuff for general house cleaning.
• The main goal here is to make cleaning a collaborative effort that everyone does so if everyone pitches in on washing up liquid and kitchen cleaner, they are more likely to use and restock it.
• If you must pull someone up on cleaning, don’t do it in the group chat, just politely remind them or ask for a hand in cleaning up. 

5. Going on a Night Out

There can be all sorts of challenges attached to this one but let’s blame that on the alcohol.

• Make pre drinks enjoyable, it’s much cheaper than going out early and a great way to bond with people, just make sure you’ve got a good speaker and a playlist or person on the music that everyone can enjoy. 
• Don’t leave it too late. Tickets for clubs can be expensive, especially for Freshers Week, so make the most of it, the best time to get in is usually between 12-12:30.  The same is true for leaving as you may want to get food or a decent night’s sleep, it can also be much harder to find a taxi at 4am.
• Tell people where you are;, if you’re leaving with different people or at a different time let someone you trust know where and when you’re going to be back.
• Have a hangover cure. The internet will have a plethora of these so don’t let a great night ruin the next day, at the very least eat plenty of food before you start and drink enough water when you get back.

6. Freshers’ Flu

From personal experience the worst thing that happened during my first year, so prepare yourself in case you catch it.

• Register with the University Health Service, this is easy to do and can be done online in the Student Hub.
• Don’t go out every night during Freshers, your body needs some rest to keep you healthy, make sure you keep up a good diet.
• If you end up getting it then take paracetamol and plenty of water. 
• If it’s severe or persistent then make an appointment with the GP.

7. Study

After all of that we can sometimes forget that we will eventually have to go to lectures, here are some ways to make the most of your study time

• Go to the lectures. Some courses take attendance, others don’t but either way it’s better to see them in person then watch them back online. If, like me, you struggle to get out of bed in the mornings then the best advice is to plan something before or after the lecture, whether it’s the gym, the park, meeting up with friends, give yourself something additional to motivate you to get up.
• Find your study space – find the place where you can do the best work. I noticed that the essays I did in the IC were much better than the ones I did in my bedroom, find whatever works best for you and it will help improve your grade
• Don’t stress over study but remember it’s important. If you don’t try in First Year you won’t know what you can do well and what you may struggle with and that’s not something you want to suddenly realise in Second Year when it counts. Don’t feel like each test or essay is life or death, just use it for your own development in your study.

And that ultimately is what the First Year is about, development. It is about you learning how to solve problems not just in your study, but in life as you become a proper adult for the first time. And if you’ve managed to find this article and read all the way through then signs are already well on your way to making the most of your Freshman Year here at Sheffield.