Uni Freshers 2016 (second thread)

[soapybox]

A new thread!

well it is good to be reminded about next year's accommodation. I might have to raise the issue with dd

Yikes - Ds has only been in his accommodation 4.5 weeks. I have heard of friends' DCs having to start sorting out a new place to live before Xmas time for the following September.

I think DS would like to stay on campus tbh.

Ds is home overnight and looked horrified and bemused when I mentioned next year's accommodation. Apparently some students on DSA are able to apply for campus accommodation so he may investigate if that might include him. He didn't stop eating yesterday evening and is looking forward to using a shower he can turn round in or a bath!

DS has certainly mentioned it has been a topic of conversation- think he's planning on chumming up with a couple of school friends

When DS did the offer holder day I went to the parents' talk. Second year off campus accommodation was mentioned and they said there is a glut of rental properties in the area so no rush there. I'm glad I heard that because it seems to be the complete opposite where DS1 is.
DS thinks five of his flat of six will look for somewhere together for next year.

One mistake DS1 made was to leave it all to someone else in the first year. While it meant he did not have the stress of planning and organising he ended up in a house of six where he only really knew the one who was his friend and didn't have much in common with the others.

Have any of your DC's mentioned the Xmas holidays yet? My DD is coming home 15th December until 14th January, I'm sure come 26th December she'll be dying to go back to uni for peace and quiet!

Ds is due back home from10th Dec until 8th Jan. He's got various pieces of coursework due in January, so it won't be a holiday.

This is such a reassuring and interesting thread thanks. So good to hear the experience of others in this boat.

And aren't they doing well!? Cooking, baking, making friends organising, doctors visits, laundry... and without us!

Hallelujah!

DS amazed me by asking did I want to proofread his first big essay. This is a son who 2 years ago said he'd never talk to me again once he'd got to uni.

DD is incredibly happy. Doing what she loves. 32 new friends.

And both are working hard. It's fabulous and gratifying

And sad too; there is such a loss for parents, Loss of that close family connection of shared lives.

DD has come home for a few days. It's so good to have her home. She's been gone since the second week of September so it seems ages since we last saw her. She has asked for lots of veg for tea tomorrw night. Obviously the new found cookery skills don't extend as far as five a day!

Yes DS has almost exactly a month off but there are exams in Jan so there will be some work done

Very helpful to hear people's comments about next year's accommodation. Thank you.
Ds has booked his train home at the end of term. He and I are Harry Potter fans and I was extremely lucky and got us tickets for HP and the Cursed Child for a few days later which I am sooo looking forward to.

DD1 has 3 weeks off at Christmas and DD2 has 4 weeks but they do have January exams to work for. DD1 had arranged to go away for a few days already.
DD2's university advises leaving house hunting until after the January exams but DD1's university has the housing fair at the end of this month.

We went to see ds at the weekend. He seems to be coping on the whole though some things are obviously difficult. He is enjoying the course and as far as I can tell keeping up with the work.
His mentoring funding is eventually sorted out so should be starting this week or next. I have been providing pretty full on long distance support so I hope this can lessen once the mentoring is in place.
I am hoping that he will be able to stay on campus next year as he is only just coping there and I think would go to pieces in a student flat. I am not sure when he needs to apply for that. Another thing to nag him about.

DS has said he's hoping to get an enormous let to fit his entire kitchen group in. He seems to think this will be easy!

Glad to hear your DS is coping, NoHaudin. Tell us, though, did his washing ever turn up?

DD2 had a housing fair today . She's more or less sorted out her group for next year, just the awkward difficulty of telling one person who may be thinking they'd be included that they're not - DD1 was the "not included" person from her first year flat, so she knows how it feels from the other side . I've said, best to get it over and done with, as DD1 reckons that was the worst bit, the not knowing they'd been sorting it out for weeks behind her back, but letting her think she was included.

Horrible all ways round really, and more so if you're a people pleaser like DD

It seems bizarre that they are already thinking about next year's accommodation when they have only been there just a few weeks!

My DD is lucky because she can live in for the whole of her 4 years, although I think she fancies living out next year as the uni accommodation has no kitchen facilities and they are tied to in house dining (they have to pay for this, whether they eat it or not, so she doesn't like to eat out as she feels it is wasting her money, iyswim). She is a veggie, and feels that the uni dining doesn't offer a very varied menu (she reckons what they had at school was better) so is very attracted to being able to cook her own meals in her own kitchen!

No Ellen it has disappeared off the face of the earth. One of my other nags is getting him to sort out an insurance claim as it has cost almost £200 to replace everything.

I'm really sorry to hear that NoHaaudin.

So sorry to hear the bad news on this thread since last time I was on here, my thoughts go to mygrandkids, what awful news-please look after yourself and your family.

Dd continues to enjoy uni life- has handed work in and is pleased with her results that she has had back.

She's coming home tomorrow for a week which I'm glad about as I'm a little worried about her- she is constantly feeling poorly with headaches as well as the usual colds and coughs that are around in the people heavy environment that she's in. Will keep an eye on her and maybe get her to see our GP if they don't improve when she's here.

Blimey, NoHaudin sounds like it was theft rather than a random mistake, then. I have warned DS1 about keeping an eye on his washing and his wallet but he still rather naively thinks that no student would steal from another one, that everyone is 'lovely' etc. Sigh...

It must have been a student as the campus is fairly isolated and I can't imagine anyone randomly walking into the laundry and taking stuff. At first I thought it was a dozy student who didn't realise it wasn't his/her stuff but they must have needed clean clothes from the pile by this time. So either they decided that ds's stuff was worth keeping or they are too embarrassed or lazy to return it.