What to expect FROM YOUR FIRST WEEK AT COLLEGE

THE first week at university otherwise known as freshers' week - is primarily for first-year students to register on their courses and settle in before lectures begin. While it should be a fun start before you get down to academia, the week's activities can also be daunting.

"It is the student experience condensed into one week," explains Jonty Crane, communications officer at Exeter Guild of Students. "It is about getting involved in things you had never have thought of doing before."

Freshers' week is also an excellent opportunity to make some new acquaintances."Some people get a bit carried away in their first few weeks," admits City University welfare officer Ben Studd. "But most students do not know anyone at their new institutions, and are often moving out [of home] for the first time."

Ed Gaynor, who is entering his third year of studying medicine at Oxford University, advises resisting the urge to hide in your room.

"You will never again have the opportunity to meet people so easily," he says.

"You will find everyone else is as nervous as you are. It is also important to work out your budget before you get to university, and expect to exceed it during the first few weeks. It is more important to meet new friends and get comfortable than to worry about money."

Freshers' Fair This is a key event, where many student societies - and, increasingly, companies and marketing organisations - will compete to sign you up. Avoid committing to as many as possible and select a few that really interest you - at least until you know what your budget and academic commitments are going to be.

"Go for things that are new and different," says Ned Glasier, union communications officer at the University of East Anglia. "College might be the only chance you will get to do some of the activities available."

Check out the union When you enrol at university you automatically become a member of the student union. If yours is one of the many affiliated to the National Union of Students (NUS), you will be eligible for an NUS card and the benefits that brings. Your union will probably supply you with a handbook, which will have details of the social and academic events of the week, as well as useful maps and phone numbers.

Unions exist to support and represent members, to house clubs and societies and to provide cheap commercial services to members. Some may not be large or developed enough to have their own shops or bars but nearly all will have some system of student support service to provide advice and information. This may include drop-in centres or student job shops, run by fulltime, professional staff. But they may simply provide leaflets or rely on volunteer help. Your union should at least be able to point you in the right direction if you need guidance on anything.

WHEN Chris Hope (above) went to Cambridge to read maths two years ago, he had some doubts about what freshers' week might bring. "I had been told that university was a great place to meet new people," he recalls. "But I wondered whether the friendships I made at university would be as good as the ones that had developed over several years at school. But the nature of freshers' week means you meet loads of people. My fear that Cambridge would have loads of weird, uninteresting geeks was also unfounded, and I have made some great friends."

Know where to find help

During your first week you may feel lonely, homesick or ill, unhappy with your accommodation or short of money. But you are not alone and there is plenty of help available.

If you have a medical problem go to your GP.

It is vital that you register with one when you move to a new town and stay registered for the duration of your time there.

In the event of financial difficulties, ask your bank branch if it has a student adviser and what it can offer. Banks are keen to hold on to their student clientele and so if your loan hasn't come through, they will often bend over backwards to be nice to you.

Remember that your old friends and family are only a phone call away. Find out if your university has a counselling system or if your student union runs a nightline scheme, an excellent source of free, anonymous support.

Your university may also have a service of its own, independent of the students' union.

Don't expect too much

Sarah Pringle has just finished her first year studying English Literature at the University of York. She cautions against expecting too much from freshers' week. "After an exciting gap year I was unenthusiastic about returning to academic studies," she says. "I had few worries about settling in but the first term was less crazy than people had led me to believe.

"The first term was not indicative of the rest of the year and the people I met initially are not the only people with whom I now go to the bar. The boring moron who insisted on talking to me all freshers' week has found his own friends too, and now rarely pesters me."

Useful websites

. www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/onelife Good on many aspects of student life, particularly health and stress.

. www.rhul.ac.uk/counselling Royal Holloway's student counselling service includes good advice on coping with homesickness.

. www.counselling.cam.ac.uk Cambridge University's counselling service; includes a common problems page which advises on many different issues.

. www.uni4me.com Answers basic but important questions such as 'how will I learn?' and 'what will life be like?'. Also includes a university jargon buster.

. www.womanstudent.co.uk Advice and links aimed at female students.

. www.ukcosa.org.uk For overseas students studying in Britain.

. www.skill.org.uk National Bureau for Students with Disabilities.

Includes a good FAQs section as well as advice on help and extra funding for students with disabilities.

. www.good2bsecure.co.uk Offers help and advice on personal safety for students.

. www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk Health advice website; or telephone 0845 46 47 48.

. www.citizensadvice.org.uk Information on your nearest Citizens Advice Bureau.

. www.adviceguide.org.uk Information about your legal rights.

. www.nightline.niss.ac.uk Student welfare helpline service

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