University 2020-2021 Part 11: Final Furlong For First year Freshers..........Then Freedom Follows

[sammyjoanne]

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/higher_education/4058013-University-2020-10-Empty-nests-warm-vests-and-covid-tests-uni-parents-2020?pg=20

This is a follow on from the previous part 10 thread.
Named because its heading into the summer term.
''Freedom follows'' as in end of year for summer break, (hopefully end of covid restrictions too)

That all sounds very positive @sammyjoanne.

I think dd will move into her house on a similar date... One of the housemates has already moved in but said she was quite lonely because no one else has moved in yet (she's invited her bf to stay until someone else moves in).

We are off on a cruise (hopefully for 6 nights).. Thankfully dd still happy to holiday with me :-).

Still can't believe they are going into Yr 2!

@Daisysway sounds lovely a cruise, I hope you all have a lovely time :) Just getting away, just feels a little bit of normal again since these past 18 months.

Yeah the same I cant believe they are going into year 2. Not sure about everyone else, but for me, it feels different again. After the security of living in halls and being in the uni campus bubble; living in landlord owned property and in the middle of a busy city its like the next level of independence.

Dd moved into her flat over the weekend and is awaiting the arrival of other housemates this week. Edinburgh is trialling a saliva covid test instead of lft and has a vaccination walk-in at the station. With the introduction of a Scottish vaccine passport hopefully take up will now be higher.

DD back in halls last week after spending summer working. Her summer property was horrible but cheap for Edinburgh. Full of mould and filthy when they moved in (covid prevented the landlord cleaning so he claimed!). In the 3 months the kitchen ceiling fell down, the toilet broke and it took the landlord a fortnight to fix and the front door lock broke locking them all in the flat. It has been a bit of an eye opener. Hope others private rentals are better.

DD joined the TestEd saliva sampling scheme so hoping that it helps prevent some outbreaks. I think her halls will have a popup vaccine centre opening on the 13th.

@LIZS that's nice your daughter has moved in and housemates joining her soon. Hopefully should have some nice weather for a couple of days to enjoy the city :)
@ClerkMaxwell oh wow what an awful accommodation. I agree I hope others have good private accommodation.

@ClerkMaxwell that sounds grim. Dd flat is basement level but was clean, fresh carpet and well equipped for their arrival.

@specialted hope DS enjoyed Leeds festival
@geogteach did DS get there ok to Morocco?
@ShaunaTheSheep how was silverstone, I bet that was a fun day, and hope he enjoyed leeds too. @Empra123 hope your DD twins are ok :)
DD's 20 today. She literally just got out of bed at 1pm. Thinking of having a BBQ.

We are coming to the end of this first year freshers thread now, as they are no longer freshers any more . Will have to start a new one, so if anyone has any ideas for titles?

Thanks for asking. He arrived in Morocco last Thursday and has been staying in a hotel. Yesterday he started uni and moved into halls for the next month til he finds his feet. He has now met 10 people from his course - he hadn't met anyone in Leeds last year !

I don't say much here, but I do enjoying hearing how others are doing.

Taking DD back to Edinburgh tomorrow. Looking forward to the trip (5-6 hour drive). She has mostly packed (progress on last year). Flat is well-equipped but lacking much kitchen storage so they've been very good at paring down what extra is needed. Wooden floors throughout looks much nicer than most of the dodgy carpets we'd seen, a living room, and views over the Meadows. All at £480pp. Hope it's as good as it seems! They held out and only took it last week (there was a lot of pressure from agencies for beginning of July or August lets.

Oh and she has got her first choice options for both semesters, was quite glad about that. All lectures appear to be online, so big classes, and no timetable for tutorials yet. As one of her options is a language she should have more tutorial time for that, if I understand correctly.

And she's been arranged to go along to a club for her hobby next week (not Uni) so that will be a change having some interaction with actual humans for rather than zooming back to her old club and hiring a church hall (was very cheap) for practice.

Just need to get her to sort out insurance today and persuade her to contact a driving instructor... gently gently.

Happy birthday to your DD @sammyjoanne my DD was 20 on Sunday.

Glad to hear that your son has met some people in Morocco @geogteach

Well done to your DD for finding a flat with a Meadows view for £480 pp, @YLANGYLANGYLANGYLANG. I think DDs friends signed up too early (late May). The good flats were probably still occupied. Plus I think they didn't view just went on photos which I swear must have been at least 10 years old.

DD also has her first choice in options this year and has been allowed to switch degrees. She too is hoping to make friends from her course this year.

@ClerkMaxwell @YlangYlangYlangYlang dd has started to get more info and her subject is having in person tutorials. They signed up at Easter for their flat but only just moved in.

Happy Birthday to your dd @sammyjoanne.

Happy birthday to your dd @sammyjoanne ! Yes ds had a fantastic time at Leeds festival with his uni friends. We are in nottingham this week visiting dd in between her hospital placements. Ds planning on going back to Lancaster on 25 sept. He is a freshers rep this year, hopefully it will be better than last year! Hope everyone's dc get back to uni ok

@geogteach thats sounds amazing hes met people in morocco. Sounds like hes having an amazing time :)
@YlangYlangYlangYlang sounds like she got a good deal . DD had to go on the opinion of her housemate back in early December as restrictions and only one can go. So we had to go on photos and was one mad rush as there's not made flats with 8 bedrooms. There's a few things that the previous tenants left (like airers) and it could do with a good wipe down of surfaces, bit of a polish and a hoover, but they can sort that when they move in. We ran out of time and had to hand the keys back. Did leave a load of cleaning things in the flat so they have no excuse lol. Happy birthday to your son @aibutohavethisusername. hope he did something good. DD didn't do much today as DH is on night shift, but off to chiquitos on friday so plenty of woo woo cocktails coming my way lol @LIZS fab news she's got some in person at uni. @ClerkMaxwell that's nice they are able to accommodate to switch degrees. :) Thanks @Daisysway and @specialted . My home town of Nottingham :) I take it she's either at Queens or City?. And your DS being a freshers rep that's great! Sounds like great fun :)

@sammyjoanne was my dd, I don’t have a ds

oops @aibutohavethisusername sorry my bad. did she have a nice day?

That’s ok. She had an OK day but was absolutely full of cold so didn’t do everything we had planned.

Aww not nice. Hope shes feeling better now :)

Does anyones DC have a 'second freshers week' planned? As last years was a pretty restricted one. I'm hearing reports from a couple of people I know whose DC are going to make their own up and do all the things like the freshers fair, and go out to the clubs and all of that. Not sure what DD is doing yet, she said shes making some arrangements.

Dd just looking at fresher events now.. Although there seems to be events for Coventry Uni one week and Warwick the next... I don't think dds crowd are bothered which events they go too.

DD organising freshers events at her halls as part of her uni job so will have a sort of freshers experience. She's loving it so far but only a few internationals have arrived. Today is the first day of the main arrivals.

Exeter DD goes back tomorrow. She's staying on campus as she is allowed to due to her autism. Since she's been at home since December it will seem strange not having her here.

York DD is home for another couple if weeks. She and her boyfriend found a lovely house in a quiet close. They didn't know at the time but it's a first time let so everything is brand new.

Am looking at the car Tetris pics on Facebook and they make me smile! That was us last year ! Amazing how a year on I've not really given the return to uni stuff a second thought. Ds has all his kitchen stuff in a heap in his bedroom, no doubt he'll want me to help him go though it with him in due course. He'll have much less space in his new house so he'll have to think carefully about what he wants. He's had a great summer doing an awful lot of socialising and little else, think actually having to go to lectures and do some work again will be a shock for him. And having to get a bus to go to campus rather than roll out of bed and have it on the doorstep! He's most looking forward to clubbing for the first time in Lancaster and playing football again. How he passed his first year I'll never know but he's always been a last minute sort of chap....

DS in absolute luxury as only 2 of them are back in an 8 bedroom house! I think it’s going to be a shock as the others drift back from next week.

One more week now before the open day at Lancaster with the youngest DD and drop off DD1 where she's spending 4 days at an air bnb in the city, and then she's allowed to move in on the 22nd. Plans to spend those 4 days with her physics mates , going to spoons, Glow, and spending time at their houses.
Then week after its going out with flatmates. Freshers fair she wants to attend and join Disney, Astrophysics and Archery group.

Glad we did the main move last week. Parking in the city (flats in a pedestrianised area) was quite tricky to get close. Its a couple of mins walk away with heavy boxes., and there's a lot of enforcement officers about giving tickets to people who were parked on the cobbled streets outside her home and a street round the corner.