Annnddd they're off! Uni Starters 2023 Thread.

[Titsywoo]

Hi all,

I thought I'd start a different thread as the Alevels and beyond one is more geared to remarks and clearing at this point so didn't want to start derailing that with chat off packing and freshers week.

How is everyone getting on with helping their DC prepare and the idea that soon they will be moving away?

My DD is off to Cardiff to read psychology so will be about 3.5 hours drive away. I'm both nervous and excited for her right now! Packing is going well - pretty much all stuff has been bought and the induction pan set should arrive today. There is a large pile on the landing which keeps growing as we think of extra bits.

Due to a very lucky spot by me when scrolling Tiktok DD has found and been added to the Cardiff Psychology year 1 snapchat group. From that she got chatting to some others who aren't massively into drinking or clubbing and they have another chat for people who want to do other things than clubbing. They are organising meeting for some of the SU 'Give it a go' events such as an escape room and Ikea trip! Dd has also persuaded a couple of people to join the Hookers society with her (for crocheting! 😄).

Dd had a terrible time with bullying and social isolation from year 5 till the end of sixth form so I am praying this is the new start where she finally finds her tribe 🤞🙏

Looking forward to hearing how everyone's DC is getting on and how the first few weeks are for them. Not long to go now! DD leaves in 20 days 😬

Dd is still doing well. She's full of a cold but carrying on as normal... she's dosed herself up. She doesn't have a reading week does everyone else have them?
She's joined the law society and boxing. She's going to try ju-jitsu and Muai Thai too. She started to do ju-jitsu when she was 5 and is a black belt and junior coach but stopped in covid and never picked it back up which was a shame as she was really very good at it.

Dd thinks she will see her boyfriend next weekend. I was really worried they were going to be backwards and forwards every weekend and they weren't going to get the full uni experience but fingers crossed they are being quite sensible.

Nope my dd arrived last weekend and was ill by Wednesday. It's been a few crap days for her really but fingers crossed she's on the mend now. Her whole flat are ill apparently.

That's good news! She's young and they can usually shrug anything off quicker than us...ahem....oldies 😆 Good luck to your daughter. I hope she settles in well and you feel a little easier when she's there. This time last week we were on the way with my daughter. Can't believe in all honesty how quick this last week has gone!

She doesn't have a reading week does everyone else have them?

I was wondering this too as dd hasn't mentioned one. She's doing a creative course, maybe it's only for more academic subjects?

DS doesn’t either. He is doing a science based one.

Dropped DD off yesterday and stayed the afternoon to help sort her room - her notice board was pretty scribbled on so she bought some wrapping paper to cover it and then we hung her LED lights round it so it looks great now. A few tears when we left but she'd made plans to go to another girls block to watch a movie so she had something to do. They all ended up down the beach instead and she came back a bit social-ed out so FaceTimed us. Only her and a 4th year in her flat last night (v unfriendly 4th yearer too) but the rest are due today so fingers crossed they are more friendly.

Sorry to hear of the "freshers flu" starting already. DD has a tickly throat and it's only day 2 here.

@MargaretThursday DD has two pairs of dance shoes and she's not even doing the course haha. She has a taster dance session next week at BOC and apparently bought a ticket for a party there for tonight and tomorrow too. It's a 45min bus journey and she hopes she'll be okay for her 9am induction tomorrow.

I miss her so much already and haven't dared go in her room yet.

Dd is doing law so I thought she probably would have one as there's a ridiculous amount of reading but obviously not. Be had about 12 messages with pictures of various items of laundry asking is this a light or dark? And moaning about the cost of washing clothes and how long it takes.
Yes Dd welcome to my world 😆

I've had

Just dropped DS1 at Southampton. Weird feeling driving back up the M3 and leaving him wandering around meeting up with school mate in different halls. His room is very nice and lots of storage but tiny compared to his bedroom and I think he was initially a bit freaked out. Oh well, off they go now and enjoy, hopefully. Theres a freshers party tonight which I've reminded him about a million times, hopefully he will go and start meeting people outside the one kid he knows from school, who is also on his course by coincidence.

I don't feel as emotional as I thought I might, mainly relieved the day is finally .here and he's moved in (and all his crap is out of my hall 😂)

One week in and I'm having pangs after speaking to dd on the phone and finding that she sounded quite flat and hoarse, despite insisting she's fine and having fun.

Some sort of techno fail on a form she filled in before term started meant that she was incorrectly allocated two of her option subjects - has managed to set one right but the other apparently she's stuck with.

DD now has a full complement of flat mates. 3 of whom went to sixth form together! All seem fine at the moment ;-)

DS came back from Sheffield for a night for a family birthday. It was so good to see him, although he's only been at uni for a week. He has been out socialising/clubbing every night this week with his halls flatmates and he's exhausted! He's also a little homesick, and needs a break from all the pubs and clubs he says.
His course starts properly tomorrow, which he's excited about. It's a bit jarring to hear he's homesick, but hopefully once he gets into a routine, he'll be okay. He still loves Sheffield and his halls though, so that's good.

this thread has been really helpful - at least I can tell him that lots of other students are struggling with Freshers week and missing home, so he knows it's to be expected and is normal.

Nice chat to DS this afternoon, seems to be absolutely fine but sounded knackered. Nice flatmates, nice flat next door too who they are also socialising with, good coursemates from what he has seen so far. All fine. Asked if he had done circuit laundry yet and he said he wasn’t even going to try but was off to a laundrette he had spotted 30m along the road! He’s hoping a service wash might be cheaper or the same than the circuit laundry rates in his private halls.

over a week since dropping DD at York. Out most nights til early hours but has said they’re all staying in tonight ready for lectures in the morning. She seems pretty good, signed up for societies etc. I’m the one with freshers flu! Feel absolutely shocking!

Left happy dd2 in her room, ready to go off to her first talk (about accommodation apparently, although I did tell her it would probably turn into a welfare one!). It's an okay size, with lots of storage, so plenty of space, even for 16 pairs of shoes!
The kitchen's quite small, and only one shelf in the fridge, but they are mostly catered, so probably it'll be fine. Dd2 only really needed space for milk/butter and yoghurt (for breakfast) and she has bought bacon and eggs for now in case she needs to feed herself, although I suspect the effort of cooking it for herself will probably mean it doesn't all get used.

We'd helped her with a bit of the unpacking (well the bits we needed the cases to take home!), took her to get some shopping and had lunch (will that be her last non-junk meal till she comes home??). She's met one of her flatmates, and hopefully the others will be in soon.

I'm hoping I'll get occasional messages from her. Dd1 always did a zoom call on Sundays, and dd2 tells me she's going to be far too busy to do that! It'll be nice if she is in some ways, although hopefully we'll get some information from her.

Now I need to tidy her room as she's coming back in about a month's time with a friend to go to an event!

DD1 seems very settled - other have arrived though block still isn't full so is very quiet.

She sounds happy signed up to GP - she's been out met a fair few people including few on her course been to campus and into city with others - couldn't really ask for better.

She said she may not do many of the fresher week events this next week though she will do the departments bits - up to her she dislikes noise and crowds and seems to have met quiet a few people already.

Im enjoying reading this thread. I’m reliably informed by my two veteran students that it is a thing to “wobble on a Wednesday” so to just touch base with home, maybe have a night off the booze and the socialising. Think that’s why my DD FaceTimed that day. Hoping everyone is ok - the sooner lectures start and there is a routine the better.

@Delphigirl Wise choice to avoid Circuit, I don't think DS has got another option close enough, but would definitely recommend if there was.

A ray of light here - the Residential Mentor has been round to go through the 'house rules'. This was a mandatory meeting so you can imagine who wasn't present. I asked if anyone - or indeed everyone - had grassed up Flat Wanker in his absence but they didn't. Anyway, she is happy to read the riot act if people don't follow the rules, and she lives right outside their flat, so I'm hopeful FW will be getting his marching orders fairly soon if he doesn't shape up.

My ds hasn't done any freshers stuff. He's very very chatty though and is happily meeting people. Nearly all his flat are international students and so he's introducing them to the important bits of London. Like how to get to Lidl.

First care package ready to be posted up to DD tomorrow. :)

Birthday present and cards, some t shirts that were left in the suitcase when I brought it back home, and a few bits of post.

DD has a busy induction week ahead - one session for each of her units she is studying.

DD moved in yesterday, but it's a long way from home, so we stayed overnight and had 5 mins of goodbyes this morning. She's already met loads of people, and there are so many events organised, so she'll be keeping busy before lectures start in a week's time. She called us on the drive home as she couldn't login to her laptop, and filled us in on all her new friends. I will keep an eye on the 'Wednesday Wobble', useful to know! After my first term at Uni, I was pretty set that I wasn't going back after Christmas, my mum said she was the same when she went, so at least we've got that experience if she has a wobble at the end of term (my mum and I both successfully completed our Uni experiences! We went back after Xmas 😂).

A few tears in the car as we drove away, but I was ok. Then 'Songbird' by Fleetwood Mac came on, and the words 'I love you, I love you, I love you. Like never before' gave me some leaky eyes 😭.

Onwards and upwards everyone!

DD is back home for a few days. She has had a really good start with Freshers, meeting new people on her course and university. Her flatmates have also been great, making meals and chatting. Last night went out with uni friends and there was an incident involving a boy. DD has not gone into great details and but said her friends were quick to support and stay with her. She hasn't slept and I went to pick her up. Now home and she has gone straight to sleep. I will check in later but at a loss. Why do some people not behave and respect others! No lectures on Monday so she said that she will go early Tuesday. I just hope that she is ok.
On a positive it was great to see her and have hugs. We went out for a Sunday roast and walk around the city. She was excited to show me around and we had a great time chatting and singing in the car.

Ds is still here! We'll be taking him on Friday, with an entry day of Saturday. But, he does already have his timetable. What are other timetables like? Ds has some very heavy days. 2 days a week he has timetabled lectures etc straight through from 9am until 6pm, back to back with no time even for lunch! On one day he finishes at 9:30pm! No late morning starts. Oof! He's not bothering and I think it will actually suit him quite well, but it does seem full on. His arrival day is Saturday and lectures start on Monday, so 'welcome week' is just sort of slotted in around work.

Can't believe the difference in start dates. DD about to go into week 3 already, it's going so fast.

She's a long way away so we won't see her until Christmas.

Luckily I'm a teacher so it's full steam ahead for this very long term! I'll be too busy to miss her!

@FriendlyLaundryMonster DD still at home too, goes up on Wednesday. Her timetable for lectures seems to be mornings only and 4 hours on a Friday (plus a few others during the week). Don’t know yet the supervisions timings or smaller group timetable and wondering if that is due to the strikes at her Uni in this regard or she will find out later.

Your DS sounds like he has a full on schedule!