University of York

11th  in Freshers' Weeks

Reviews

Anonymous

Moving in was a very smooth process, however I have since found out that my flatmates had second and third year students help them to move in but I was just with my mum and sister. once I had moved in I was left in my room for a few hours until I received a knock at the door from one of these second and third year students and he told me to go to the kitchen as everyone was in there. There was then an opportunity for us to drink, play games, and ask the second and third year students any questions we had. After this I had already made a good enough friend to show our rooms to each other and we did our make up together. Then everyone met downstairs and we went out together, following the organised schedule of events that the uni had put on, and this happened every night, with the company of the second and third year student, whose job was to look after us. I loved how organised my freshers week was, you had to buy a ticket beforehand for all events of that week, which meant that there was no stress or bickering over which club to go to, as our tickets were only valid in certain places on certain nights. I’d tell students to literally go to everything that you physically and mentally can, and to sleep a lot and drink plenty of water! I made my best friends in freshers week. The freshers festival in my opinion was too busy and I couldn’t move around so I left. Maybe each college at the uni should have a certain time slot or something.

Anonymous

Freshers week was sick met two of the guys I’d be friends with for life. Whatever has happened through past schooling of whatever freshers week gives you a clean slate. Everyone is in the exact same situation and it is very important to notice that. Just make sure you take initiative and it will always be met with positive response.

Anonymous

Extremely smooth move-in! Felt like a home away from home almost immediately. Tip for Freshers: Get as involved as possible whether that’s just by hanging out in the communal areas of your flat or going out on socials or to societies.

Anonymous

A clear timetable was sent out which made moving in and freshers week really enjoyable as everyone's knew what was going on and there was events for everyone

Anonymous

York have what are called STYCs which stand for second and third year contacts and two are assigned to every flat/house and they help you move in and look after you during freshers. They do icebreakers between you and your new flat mates and they take you to the clubs and make sure everyone gets home safe. My only complaint is that it was very alcohol focussed.

Anonymous

Good way of having the freshers fully involved by having second and third years guide the freshers all week long.

Anonymous

On arrival to my college there were 2nd and 3rds happy to help me move my stuff into my dorm which made the process much easier. Having settled in, at night before going to the club night organised we had 2nd Years come to our flat and take us around and stick with us through the night. This was helpful especially when getting the bus. The club nights themselves were good with good themes.

Anonymous

Unsure about college-specific events, but uni-wide ones were very accessible. Freshers fair allowed you to learn about and join as many societies as you liked. I did not go to any non-drinking events so cannot comment on that, but the drinking events were amazing! I met so many people both in my first year and second.

Anonymous

Freshers week overall was quite an enjoyable one. Moving in day at my University was so easy and simple. There were many current students offering to help Freshers move in and collect key documents and everyone was incredibly friendly in Constantine. The events themselves at the uni of York depend on what College you're in. So at Constantine, we had things like 50 shades night whilst other colleges like Derwent had a zoo night. There was events for both drinkers and non drinkers so everyone had something to do which was good. In terms of meeting new people, I found everyone to be willing to speak to others and introducing yourself to your flatmates, no matter how intimidating it might seem, will do wonders. It does seem weird at first going out with people you don't really know but by the end of the week you've gone through so much that it becomes more comfortable. The main thing I didn't like about Freshers week was the STYC system as it felt like I was being babysat but apart from that it was decent. P.s. your college chant will be stuck in your head all week and you become annoyingly involved in college politics/stereotypes

Anonymous

There were a variation of activities during the day and you get a second/third year to go to these activities with you, as well as taking you to nights out and helping people get home

Anonymous

I feel as though there could have been more activists to do during the daytime, other than that it was great

Anonymous

I thoroughly enjoyed my fresher's week experience, our Second Year Contacts made the transition into University life so easy! However, the on campus events could have been better.

Anonymous

The move in experience was straightforward and very organised . Freshers more geared towards to drinking culture and partying . If that's not your thing , then make a conscious effort to research as those events exist but are not marketed heavily compared to club events

Anonymous

It was fun with lots of Nightlime events and lots of new people to meet. Everyone was quite friendly and although I experienced culture shock at first it quickly left when I met my first group of friends. Everyone was really open and friendly and the events were top notch ranging from club nights to movie nights to game nights to dog petting day time events and of course the freshers fair. My advice to everyone will be to be as open and friendly as possible. Hey

Anonymous

The uni has a scheme called Stycs- these are second and third year contacts who are assigned to your flat in freshers week and take you out- they definitely help you to meet more people and help settle you in!

Anonymous

So much fun meeting new people and getting involved with loads of new activities, it was amazing to be able to go to so many events with new housemates and have an incredible time

Anonymous

Freshers at york was done really well! We had planned activities for a full 7 days and was never pushed into participating and there was alternatives for people that didn't want to go out (movie nights, game night etc) each house was assigned a groups of STYC's (second third year contact) that came out with you (ours were great just like extra mates on a night out) they pre drank with us but just helped us get our bearings on a night out and made sure we all got home safely. We had a slight issue on the first night as our college moved in before any other so there wasn't much going on, a big bbq was promised but never happened. Other than that I thought york did freshers really well, with something for everyone

Anonymous

York freshers week started off great. STYCs were around to help move us in and made the process really easy. The club nights were very similar and there wasn't much variety but overall it was a great experience.

Anonymous

Move in experience: very smooth, blocks had set times for moving in so never too crowded, and queues to pick up keys were very quick. Second year students volunteered to help carry stuff up to rooms. Events: really good timetable of events with something for everyone both day and night time. Was really good for getting to know flat mates.

Anonymous

Met some really great people and had a lot of fun. The freshers week events were fun but were literally the exact same as the events which run all year round.

Anonymous

Freshers week was packed with lots of activities including clubbing and events during the day. There was something for everyone and the general vibe of the first week was one of inlcuisivity and positivity. All of this was made better with the help of second and third year contacts too. They helped us around campus and the city, making sure every fresher felt safe and welcome. A great way to make everyone's transition to uni more comfortable.

Anonymous

The moving in was well organised and went smoothly. Freshers events weren’t great. There was a choice of only two things per night, usually a club night and another activity.

Anonymous

Having designated people from the uni to take everyone out and to stay in contact with all week was helpful but there wasn’t much info on other events other than the big club nights so u could miss out on some nice chill events due to them not telling you about them/not taking people there however they did seem to encourage people to mingle so all was swell

Anonymous

Freshers week was not at ALL what I expected! Sure, there was just as much drinking as everyone said, with glitter themes, singing on the bus and ruthless games of never have I ever. But the amount of daytime activities, such as barbecues, and also evening, non-drinking activities really impressed me. At York there is a system called STYCs where second years who used to live in your flat, redo Freshers to show you where everything is, give you all the tips on the best takeaways, and just organise your life whilst you settle in. I soon realized none of my friends had this, and honestly wondered how they coped!! Freshers week was a blast, and I can't wait till next year!

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