My first year experience

Katie Boyer

Psychology BSc(Hons)

Hi everyone! My name is Katie and I’ve just finished my first year studying Psychology at the University of Huddersfield.

Starting university is such an exciting experience, however, I know that it can also be very nerve-wracking too. I hope that sharing my first-year experience helps you feel more at ease about starting university and gives you a clearer idea of what to expect.

Before starting university, I mainly felt excited to begin my course, join societies, meet new people and see what it was like living in student accommodation. However, I did also feel a little bit scared as it was a lot of change happening all at once.

It was also pretty difficult as all of my friends were going to different universities, and I was the first to leave. Despite this, though, there were plenty of things I was looking forward to.

Moving in and making friends

I moved into my accommodation a week before my course started, which was really good as I was able to settle in to my room, meet my flatmates and adjust to living away from my family before I actually started uni.

The interior of a student bedroom at a student apartments building. — My room at uni.

I did reach out to few people in the ‘freshers group chat’ who had also moved into their accommodation throughout the week, and we did things like going on walks, going to coffee shops together and just generally getting to know each other, which was really enjoyable. This definitely helped me to settle in better as I knew that there were so many people feeling the same way that I was, and they were all really friendly too.

Easing into study

The campus had a really nice and welcoming atmosphere on the first week of university. Stood around campus, there were tutors and academic reps helping direct new students to the right building, which I definitely found very helpful.

There were lots of posters around advertising the Welcome Week activities, and lots of stalls giving away things too.

Throughout the week, I had introduction lectures, where we got to meet some of our lecturers and we were told about some of the support services at the University that we had access to. All of the staff members were really nice and welcoming, and made sure to answer any questions that the students had.

I met lots of new people and made friends with some other girls on my course too. I was really glad that the first week was pretty chilled in terms of my course, as I imagine it would’ve been difficult to manage all of the Freshers (Welcome Week) events going on, as well as jumping straight into content within lectures and seminars.

An open outoor area surrounded by modern university campus buildings — Student Plaza on the Queensgate campus.

Welcome Week

There were lots of different activities and events going on during this first week, so I did try to go to as many as I could. I would advise all freshers do this in September as it allows you to meet other people with similar interests.

I went to the Welcome Fair to look around all of the stalls and see the societies. It was held in the Sports Hall, and it was so good. here were so many stalls handing out freebies, and advertising things both in uni, and around Huddersfield town itself.

I knew that I wanted to join women’s football, so when we reached the societies section within the fair, I made sure to ask the committee members for a leaflet and some information about the trials. I would definitely advise anyone interested in joining a society to visit the stalls that they have in the fair, as it’s the easiest way to sign up.

Besides the fair, there were lots of other activities going on, such as a welcome night, crafting activities, sports sessions, and of course, HudCrawl. One of the best things I signed up to was the goat yoga. The goats were so cute and the ladies instructing the class were so nice, it was really good and something I’d never even considered doing before I saw it advertised.

Small goats wearing shoes in a yoga studio, surrounded by gym mats — The goat yoga session during Welcome Week.

Getting support

In terms of my course, one thing I did struggle with in the beginning was writing academic coursework, as previously I’d only ever done exam style assessments. So I visited the academic skills team and they helped me so much, and gave me really useful advice.

Other than that, however, I do personally find the workload at uni much more manageable than I found my A-Levels, which I’m really glad about. I like how the course is structured in a way that you sort of guide your own learning, as it makes things much more flexible to your personal lifestyle.

More fun, less spending

Another really good thing about studying in Huddersfield is the cost of living. One of the main reasons for this is because the accommodation is really cheap compared to most other universities.

There are also lots of cafes, and things to do around the town centre which are also really affordable. Along with this, there are often pop-up stalls in the Students’ Union, which sell both second-hand clothes, and brand new clothes for less than retail price.

My accommodation is also really close to a Lidl, which is ideal as it helps to keep the cost of my food shop low. I definitely think Huddersfield is a really budget friendly place to study, where you can still do lots of fun things without spending a lot.

Several rails of clothing in a building — A pop-up fashion stand in Student Central.

Growing into student life

Reflecting on my first year, I do think that I have changed as a person. I think that I’m much more confident doing things by myself now, compared to when I started university, which makes sense because one huge difference between college and university is the level of independence.

I also think that being at university has helped me to understand myself more, and prioritise doing things I enjoy, even if that means saying no to other plans that I have been invited to. This is something I think a lot of people experience within their first year at university, and it is a really positive thing.

Overall, I have really enjoyed my first year at uni. I have made friends with people I feel like I have known my entire life, I’ve really enjoyed playing football and representing the University, and I have had a really good time learning about a subject I am entirely interested in.

If I had one piece of advice for anyone going to university in September, I would say to push yourself out of your comfort zone, and try things that you aren’t entirely familiar with.

Which University?

Read more articles from current students at Huddersfield describing how they chose their course and why.