How to make friends at University.

Meeting new people

Making friends at University seems like a daunting task, especially when the majority will be unfamiliar with everybody else studying here. If you do know friends coming to the same University, then definitely rely on them, but also try and make new friends too.

Freshers’ Week

Every University will have a Freshers’ Week, with activities designed to get you socialising. I recommend making a group chat with your flat or course mates and inviting the group of people out to various events over the first two weeks. This is a great way of getting to know people. If you’re planning on studying in Northampton, then the Waterside Bar runs the bingo, quizzes and karaoke throughout the entire year, so consider making your nights out a weekly thing!

Getting to know your flatmates

Not everyone plans to live in student accommodation, so perhaps this doesn’t apply to you. However, if it does, I recommend bringing several different board/card games to University with you to play with others in your flat. These could be icebreakers to get to know one another, or simple and fun games like ‘Monopoly.’

Getting to know your course mates

Don’t be afraid to be that person who asks classic questions like “what’s your name” or “what are your interests?” Whilst it feels awkward and cliché, everybody at University is in the same situation and secretly, people will be grateful that you started the conversation so they didn’t have to. These simple conversations could lead to you discovering some shared interests and finding a great new friend.

There are so many different people at University that if you put yourself out there and socialise, you’re bound to find a decent group of friends to support you in your studies.

Attend one of our student events and meet new people!

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Joe Glover

Joe is a first-year Popular Music student. He loves writing and performing alternative rock music, and creating scores for film.