As a new student at Leeds, I thought it would be suitable to provide some useful tips and advice on maintaining friendships after Freshers Week.

 

Firstly, if you are living in halls, it is essential to get to know your flatmates. During my Freshers Week, my flatmates became my closest companions and were also the people I spent the majority of my time with. My main advice to maintaining a close relationship with your flatmates is by creating a group chat on some form of social media. This is an essential tool as it allows you to make plans as a group or discuss what time you will be cooking dinner, so you can cook and eat together after a busy day.

The second essential tip to maintaining friendships is starting a movie or Netflix season with the people in your flat, so you can all relax together in the evening and discuss the programmes you’re watching.

My final tip is to purchase a good doorstop. This means you can leave your door open and socialise when you need to be in your room, it can be particularly important when comparing outfit options and pre-drinking before a night out!

During Freshers Week, everyone develops friendships with people on their course. As a joint honours student, I was lucky enough to meet people studying both English and Spanish. To maintain these friendships, my advice includes adding people on social media as well as joining any academic societies specific to your course. This way, you can continue to communicate with the people on your course post-Freshers Week and maintain the development of friendships at social events.

My final tip for maintaining friendships after Freshers Week is joining non-academic clubs and societies. This allows you to not only develop new skills and boost your CV but also provide social opportunities where you venture into new challenges with people who share similar interests to you.

University provides so many opportunities to make new friends and with these simple tricks, the friendships you established in Freshers Week will be maintained throughout the rest of your degree!

 

 

Jessica Farmer