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Starting a conversation can be tricky when you don’t know anybody, but don’t forget, everyone’s in the same boat! To start you off on the road to friendship, here’s our list of seven things you should definitely ask a fellow fresher – and seven things you really shouldn’t.
It’s OK to ask:
1. Where’s the SU bar?
Don’t worry – no one’s going to think you’ve got a drinking problem! The Student’s Union bar is where lots of students head when they first arrive at uni to meet fellow freshers and learn about events happening around campus for the rest of the week. Just make sure you do some basic unpacking first, as making the bed after one too many vodkas is virtually impossible.
2. What other events are you going to?
Trust us, you won’t be as busy in the next three years as you are during freshers' week (OK, you might find yourself pretty occupied in the run up to exams too, but in a different way). From freshers’ fairs to getting-to-know-you events at halls and club nights aplenty, there’s so much to entice you it’s hard to know which the best events are.
Don’t be afraid to ask your flatmates and fellow freshers which events they’re going to, where to find out important information about the term ahead, where to grab the best freebies and where all the coolest parties are happening. You don’t want to end up the only one at a dull event organised by the geography department. Not even if you’re studying geography.
3. What is there to see and do off campus?
It can be easy to get caught up in the campus bubble, especially during freshers’ week, but there’s so much more out there to explore!
If you’ve moved to a brand new city for uni, make sure you take some time out to get to grips with your new surroundings. Chances are, some of your course mates will be from the local area or will at least have had a chance to look around already, so ask people you meet on campus where you should go off campus. This will help you to feel more confident in your new home and hopefully widen your social circle too.
4. Do you want to hang out?
If you’re sometimes shy around new people, just remember, they’re probably nervous too. You won’t be the only one feeling a little bit lonely, so go and turn those strangers into friends!
Don’t be afraid to ask your flatmates, course mates or anyone you find yourself hitting it off with if they feel like hanging out. This could mean getting a drink, going to the cinema or even organising a group study session with others from your course – whatever feels comfortable. Your social calendar will fill up before you know it!
5. Do you want to go on a date with me?
University is a time for making connections of all kinds, so don’t be backwards about coming forwards when it comes to matters of the heart. Will and Kate first met as freshers after all. Are those wedding bells we hear?
6. What are you drinking?
Higher education is a chance to expand your horizons, and we think building on your repertoire of drinks is definitely an important part of this. Snakebite might be a student staple, but why not treat your taste buds to something different and order "whatever they're having"?
7. What’s your name?
You think we’re joking, but trust us, we’re deadly serious. There’s always one person you’ll get chatting to who’s name you will forget to ask, leading you to spend the next three years avoiding them in case they start noticing that you always greet them with ‘Oh, hey….you!’. Awkward.
Try to avoid:
1. So, what grades did you get?
Not everyone you meet will necessarily be that chuffed about their results, not to mention it’s kind of forward to ask. Maybe wait for them to bring it up if they want to.
2. Why are you studying that?
Now that tuition fees have reached £9,250 a year (this will be rising to £9,535 in England from the 2025/26 academic year) lots of students are thinking carefully about their job prospects before choosing a degree. While that’s definitely a good thing, it’s still important that you actually enjoy your course, and there’s certainly nothing wrong with studying a subject just because you love it. Chances are some students already know their degree won’t necessarily lead directly to a job, so there’s no need to question them on it.
There’s a wider array of subjects you can study at uni now than ever before, which is awesome! Some courses might seem a bit weird and wonderful, but keep an open mind. Maybe that one person you met studying golf course management really wants to manage golf courses when they graduate!
3. How can you afford this?
Talking about money is so déclassé. University is expensive, and most people will have loans, some will have grants, and some will be funded by their parents. Again, it’s best to leave this to the other person to bring up if they feel comfortable discussing it.
4. Why aren’t you drinking?
Students have somewhat of an unfair reputation of always being out on the lash (newsflash, we do go to lectures too, you know), so students who don’t drink tend to be viewed as a bit of an oddity. Don’t question their decision, they’re probably already sick of explaining it.
5. Go on, why not just have one?
Seriously, let it drop.
6. What did you do on your gap year?
Nooo! Never make the mistake of asking someone about their gap year, unless you want to spend an hour listening to them describing how they ‘found themselves’ on an extended break in Africa/Australia/South America. A gap year can be an amazing experience, but not every little detail of it is interesting to anyone other than the person who went on it.
7. Shall we play Never Have I Ever?
Sure, playing Never Have I Ever with your new flatmates seems like a good idea – until you wake up in the morning and realise you can’t look anyone in the eye anymore…
Find out how to make the most of freshers’ week. Or, get some more advice on uni life.
