Giang's tips to help settle in to your new home
Giang Ha
Marketing BA(Hons) - Placement Year
My name is Giang Ha and I am from Viet Nam (which is 10,027 km far from the UK). Currently, I am pursuing Bachelor’s degree in Marketing. My degree is three-year course with an additional year on placement.
Moving to your new home: Things to do to get ready for a new start.
Hello, I am back. In this blog, I am going to take you through some of my preparation steps that helped me when I moved from Viet Nam to England, and hopefully will help you settle into life here in Huddersfield. There are a lot of things that I could mention, but I’ve chosen the top 6 that I think might be useful for you to know.
So, let’s get started.
No.1. Get to know about the currency (money)
The first thing that I had to get familiar with was the British currency, which is British Pound Sterling (£). In England, people use both card, cash and contactless for payment. Please do not feel surprised when you first arrive as people still use coins for purchasing goods. The coins include pence (p), and pounds (£), in which pence has a lower value than pounds. In specific, pence include 1p, 2p, 5p, 10p, 20p, and 50p while the notes consist of £5, £10, £20, £50. 100p equals £1. And now comes the interesting part. When I first arrived, most of the cash I carried was £50 notes, and I ended up not being able to use them. The reasons were that the £50 note has the highest value of the notes and people rarely use it. So, I suggest you bring with you £20 notes when you arrive in order to use them for your taxi or train to your accommodation from the airport.
Another thing that I would like to mention is when you set up your bank account, there are different banks in the UK such as Lloyds, Santander, HSBC Bank, Barclays. Do your research and choose a bank that would be convenient for you and your family during your study in Huddersfield.
No. 2: Registering with a health centre
You must register with a GP (General Practitioner) as soon as possible. In my first year, registering with University Health Centre was suggested in my Induction Schedule and I highly recommend that you do this during your first week. This is because when you feel unwell, you can book an appointment with the Health Centre and a check-up with the GP. When I first arrived, I felt welcomed by the staff and at the same time could access the medical services I needed. And when there was Covid-19 vaccination, I could easily book the appointment to have the vaccine as I have already registered with the Health Centre. So, I suggest you register with the University Health Centre during your induction week.
No.3. Get to know the University
You will of course get to know the building you will be studying in! In addition to knowing your department explore the rest of the University, a lot of activities take place in Student Central. Our Sports Centre, Students’ Union, Library, International Office, Career and Employability Centre are based here. There are campus tours that take place throughout the year, which you can book on the University website to get to know more about the University.
Also, it is inevitable that you will get to know your classmates and the lecturers as they will accompany you throughout your studies. Personally, I cannot study well without support from my friends and tutors. I will say that reaching out for help and support is not a bad thing as everyone will help you solve any problems, and you won’t have to suffer on your own. You can talk to your personal tutor, or module leader if you have any issues regarding your assignments. There is also an Academic Support Team in every school, so you can go to the team and ask for their support with your studying.
No.4. Settle down in your accommodation
When you arrive at your accommodation, it is important that you find a safe place to keep necessary documents. For example, as I am an international student, I have my passport and BRP, which are vital to my residence and my study in the UK. I have known some of my friends that lost either their passport or BRP, and it was costly for them to have these papers replaced. Therefore, I recommend you take care of your documents.
After moving in, it’s fun to get to know your flatmates. I am currently living in a shared house with my friends. I find it helpful to get on with my housemates - they helped me when I was sick, supported me when I was looking for jobs and I have really cherished memories of living with them.
No.5. Joining a society
There are a wide range of societies that you can join, ranging from academic societies to activity groups. Also, there are more than 60 global societies on campus that represent different countries around that world. You can become a part of these if you are interested in learning more about different cultures and making new friends. I became a member of Vietnamese Society (Vietsoc) since I arrived and this September 2021, I was voted to be the President of the society. So, if you would like to join, we welcome you
No. 6. Going Shopping
If you ask me one thing that I love about living in Huddersfield, I will say it is going shopping. Doing groceries here is so convenient as the supermarkets are close to each other and the price is affordable. Near my accommodation, there is an Asda, Iceland, and Lidl supermarkets, so I can easily buy my supplies even when I am in a rush to school for classes and working. When I first arrived, there were some food items that felt so strange and different from the ones I know in Viet Nam. One of these foods was an onion. The onion here is really huge compared to ones in my country!
In addition, the local shopping centre ‘Kingsgate’ is so close to the University that I can go there in 5 minutes to grab a Costa coffee for a good start to each day
