University life for 'freshers' (2019/20) - first year campus life suspended, sitting out/surviving the pandemic and staying on top of studying [Edited by MNHQ at OP's request]

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@Decorhate I think some universities are and others haven't updated their advice. I was just told by other family members that "I'm living on another planet" because I suggested that universities would want rooms emptied by the official end of this academic year (which is looming).

Nottingham are sending out time slots to empty rooms on campus

Going to DD’s Uni on Sunday to get last few bits - had to book an arrival window and strict instructions to get in and out as quickly as possible

Durham is by 10/7 or over £200 to store. Luckily we cleared out at end of term on 21/3.

Yes DS got that email @Benjispruce. Hopefully can move stuff out of college straight into houseshare at the beginning of July - DH should be able to take him up.

@Decorhate - do you mean 'allowed' from a government, or a university point of view?

It's always been allowed under government rules to travel to move house, but now people are allowed to drive further anyway it shouldn't be a problem.
If you mean 'are we allowed on campus by the uni' - you'll have to check that directly.
We're going to collect my son's belongings from his (private rental) student flat next weekend.

@BigTillymint DD’s house share doesn’t start until 15/7 so we’re glad we got everything at end of term.

So now Dominic Cummings says it was ok to break lockdown because he needed childcare. What a joke!

Apparently he used to own Klute, a nightclub in Durham that sounds dire but popular from DD’s accounts.

Morning everyone! I have been following the conversation with interest. Exams all done here for DD - I think the aim is to pass and anything more is a bonus. There is a lot of info that has come out now about how she coped (or didn't) last term but I have to say the support from the college was amazing and still is.
She is still hoping to move into her house. Thank you for the info about 10th July for collection of possessions @Benjispruce and @bigTillyMint. I'll put that in the diary. I maybe have my head in the sand but I do so hope that they get to start in October with some semblance of a sociable university life. Never mind lectures which are only a small part of it, I hope the societies can start up in some form or another. I'm convinced more people have had coronavirus that know especially young people, and at some point we all have to start socialising. We can't stay locked down and away from each other for the next 12-18months. This virus is here and will be around for a very long time and I don't think lock down was to stop everyone from getting it, more to stop lots of people getting it at the same time and overwhelming the NHS and protect our elderly and vulnerable.
Just my Saturday ramblings! I'm missing meeting up with my friends for a drink and a natter so our young people must be feeling this far more acutely.

We went to collect DS's belongings without requesting permission, as I wanted him to have his computer so that he could at least play games with friends online. This was about a month ago, and we saw nobody.

Now we just wait and see what will happen. DD will return to her uni city probably in August as she has a private rental with a friend, but unless there is access to the library and minimum disruption to her usual lectures, seminars etc she will be asking for a deferral. It is her final year so I am quite worried for her. DS will go back if he can but won't do well with online tuition.

Just popping in to say hello. I haven't posted recently as I haven't anything useful to contribute. DD did an online exam on Thursday and is now finished for the year. Her first semester marks are excellent, so she only needs to pass to keep them.

She is struggling with her chronic fatigue again, but finding plenty to occupy herself. We did "Not Eurovision" last Saturday and really enjoyed it. Our favourite was Iceland's song by a long way.

She gets together with her uni friends on Zoom now and again and does quizzes, and has started seeing her best friend again who lives just down the road (socially distancing of course).

She had a bit of a drama about room allocation in the house that she will be in for year 2, and has ended up in the smallest room in spite of having the most stuff. She is in receipt of various pieces of equipment that she gets from receiving DSA, so she has an ergonomic chair, a printer and a laptop riser. The lad who lives in Newcastle anyway (where they are at university) and has hardly any beongings has bagged the largest room and won't swap with her so she has to shoehorn all her stuff into a shoebox of a room

One of her friends has told DD that she can keep anything she can't fit into her shoebox room in her friend's room. The friend has one of the en suite rooms, but this was agreed prior to sorting out the rooms, so there is no bad feeling there.

@mum2meim sorry to hear your DD wasn't enjoying her uni experience. How is she feeling about her second year?

@simbobs you were probably wise about just going to collect your DS's kit. We have still to do so...

@Ginfordinner that's really unfair. They should have drawn straws for the rooms. I hope your DD is paying less for having the smallest room? DS is in his house share (but he opted to have it).

@simbobs she loved uni and was happiest there than when she came home for a weekend but she has had depression on and off due to issues at secondary school and some of that came back in term 2. She continued with all her societies and friends, but the anxiety and low mood meant that she missed most lectures, went to hardly any tutorials and completed almost no homework! She was just improving when they had to come home. She really can't wait to get back for second year.
@Ginfordinner that sounds like a really unfair allocation. I'd agree drawing straws would have been the best option. No idea how my DD and her house mates are going to sort rooms out but she's living with 5 boys and they think it's hilarious that I suggested she shouldn't have the ground floor room in case a murderer or rapist came in though the window! They have told me it's Durham not Manchester!

They did draw straws, but I think it might have been "fixed" because the girl that did it was one who didn't already have a room allocation. When they went to look at the house the others said that they would make sure that DD got a room big enough, but the ones who could swap won't. When DD moves in and some of her stuff stays in the communal living areas I won't be afraid to point out why.

@ginfordinner have Newcastle let them know anything about next year? DD had some kind of email but she didn't fully share what it said and from what she did tell me I felt that some of it was open to interpretation.

@Benjispruce klute is dire apparently - very crowded and sticky floors - Covid virus heaven if it wasn’t for the fact the majority of youngsters are barely affected by it . I drove up and collected my kids belongings like the bad girl I am a while ago - saw no one but there were some delightful bunnies on campus .

No news from newcastle. DD does a science course that requires lab work. She has done some lab assessments online where they have provided data, but she says it isn't the same as carrying out the work yourself.

DS says his mate will probably drive up to Durham and can pick him up on the way. They will be house sharing so can move DSs stuff in from college - fingers crossed!

However DS now needs a double quilt and bedding got his house share

Oh @bengalcat if Dominic Cummings can do it with a sick with covid wife, you can go and get your DC’s belongings! Hope you Durhamites have signed the petition to sack him. So sick of Tory boys and their double standards.

Finally got an email from Bath yesterday about moving belongings out. We’ve had to book a specific day next week. Will be strange to be heading off somewhere after all these weeks.

Totally agree with you @Benjispruce. I had a colleague who went down with coronavirus and so did her husband at the same time. She has 2 small children and no local family. She didn't travel all the way south to get childcare! One rule for the Tory boys and another for the rest of us

London to Durham by car surely involves a wee or petrol stop. What an idiot. If he had a broken down or was ill and crashed it puts people at risk too.

Finally got an email from Bath yesterday about moving belongings out.

DD got a message from her Unite halls management in Birmingham on Friday, asking for belongings to be collected by June 5th. She booked a slot for the coming Wednesday, based on my availability to drive her there, but also cunningly choosing one of two days when DH also could. He seems to be planning to go and I am not going to argue, since I don't fancy the round trip in one day and it will also make me sad not to be able to stay and visit my favourite haunts around the university (which, of course, are not open anyway).

If any mention has been made of room cleaning, she hasn't mentioned, but I would rather that she gets in and out promptly and stumps up any extra charge which may / will be made. I suspect she would, too (at least the not trying to do a full clean whilst she's there bit, anyway).

I drove London to Durham without a wee stop and came back the same day filling up just south of Leicester . The M1 was empty though .