Becoming responsible and leaving the fresh life.

Along with many of you across the globe, it is time for me to start my second year of University. I don't think I am alone in being absolutely blooming scared about this fact, am I? Leaving my 'fresher' self at the back door of Halls was quite a sad thing a few months back. As a fresher, I had very little pressure in terms of Uni work and juggling that with a job, sleep and a social life; however I think that is all about to change....

I am now living off-campus in a house with five of my friends and that itself is stressful enough! Looking at the sad pile of washing up and having to put the toilet seat down multiple times a day is something that you forget about when deciding to live with smelly boys. However, it is also pretty cool that you can live in a house with your friends and enjoy some awesome times together as a little family!

This year I am a 'hall rep' which means that I have been looking after the new freshers who live in my old hall. We take them out for the fresher events and make sure they all get their taxis without problems, and then get drunk (responsibly) with them! It is a brilliant way to meet new people and also just another way to clutch at every string there is to pretend to be a carefree fresher again (lol). Below is a picture of us at the halls battle- which WE WON!

In Britain, (depending on your course) during first year you can pass the year with only 40%. Thankfully I achieved a better grade than that, but unfortunately, I do not have that 40% fall-back this year, so I am actually going to have to some work. Oh dear. Less partying for Olivia this year then! Does anybody else join me in feeling this way? I mean, they could have warned us about having to study as well as messing around!

Alright, all jokes aside, I do actually want to knuckle down this year and continue smashing the odd essay and exam that are thrown at me. It's going to be a struggle to fit in everything else that I want to do but I shall try and see! Some new things that I am going to try my hand at this year include joining the Samba band, the Italian society and ladies Football club at uni! They should be a great way to de-stress and make some new friends. Are you going to join any clubs or societies this year?

I'd love to hear any of your stories about moving to uni/studying or fitting in your elements of life in general so leave a comment! :)

A presto!

Olivia x

University life: studying, partying, making memories.

Each year, hundreds of thousands of bright eyed students flock to University in order to start their degrees, have a load of fun and make some great friends. Last September, that person was me leaving my teary- eyed mother as she handed me over to my new, excited flatmates as we began our university lives.... with a trusty pint of snakebite!

When choosing my accommodation for University I had a lot of choice about where to stay and how much money I wanted to spend on it. I think that most people, like me, automatically wanted  to live in Halls with their own en-suite bathroom, however these are usually the most expensive ones. After weighing up all the options, I decided to choose accommodation that I never thought I would go for, however I am so happy with my choice now. My flat housed 26 people and 7 bathrooms which I was dubious about at first but very early on it proved to be absolutely fine! 

The great thing, (and also the downfall) about this accommodation was that I was catered for, which meant that I had all of my meals cooked for me. This is very handy when you have lots of work to do, you are really hungover, or if you simply can't be bothered! It can also be very bad if you are trying to watch what you eat, or just if you want a bit more variety in your food choices. Overall, I would highly recommend accommodation like this because it really brings you and your flatmates together. Most of my flatmates and I ate dinner together every day which was lovely, even if they did sing happy birthday to me every day for the whole of first year as a joke!

Freshers week/fortnight provides a great few days of partying for all freshers. It is a brilliant way to meet new people and bond with your flatmates. I have found that many of the friends that I made during freshers were my friends for the rest of the year and hopefully in the future too. Everyone is more forgiving and open during freshers so do not be afraid to really open yourself up to new people during this time.

After freshers you have to do a little bit of studying though. How unfortunate! Remember the real reason you are at University, but at the same time as long as it isn't getting in the way of your studies, go and have some fun! First year was created for this reason- so that crazy young people can get it out of their system- and seriously, it works! I think that without first year and its perk of not counting towards your final degree grade, so many more people would be in big trouble. Or is that just me? Damn those £1 Jagerbombs....

I have just completed my first year and even though I am happy with my good grade, I would advise others not to bust a gut in first year and to have a good balance between work and play because I can already feel the pressure of the coming years mounting! The grade you achieve during first year does not contribute to your overall grade, so go and have fun and make up for those nights in second and third year that you can't make out!

Some of my flatmates and I playing dress-up

Good luck to all you freshers for the upcoming term! I hope I have been of some help.

Disclaimer: above is all my views and I am not to blame if you party too hard.

A presto!

Olivia x