One of the first things you can do though is to log on to your student finance and change the name of the University you are attending (if it is different to the uni you have put down originally).
By doing this straight away, you ensure that you're going to be able to secure an appropriate loan for your stay at University, after all, you have to pay to go there. In the next few days or weeks student finance should send you a letter detailing exactly how much and in what size instalments you will be paid your tuition and your maintenance loan. A bit boring, but it's vital I'm afraid.
Once you've got that sorted you can start thinking about where you're going to live! If you have decided to live at home and commute then you're sorted for this section but if not, the rest of you are probably either living in student accommodation which is attached to your uni of choice, are getting a flat with your mates or if you're lucky enough, getting a flat of your own. Either way, now that your maintenance loan has been confirmed you will be able to more solidly confirm rent payments with your accommodation carrier.
If you have applied for student accommodation as I have myself, you should receive an email soon after your acceptance offering you a place at your chosen site or another similar location. Keep an eye out for the email to see where you will be living! I don't know what it will be like for other Universities but at my chosen uni I was asked to log in to the website above and confirm that I wanted the place and then confirm a payment method. I am also assuming that for most other accommodation types a similar procedure will have to be followed.
Finally, over the next few weeks there may be many different things that you need to confirm (such as university email accounts, key release forms and student identification applications) so again, log onto your email every day to check if your University has sent anything and complete it promptly so that you don't forget. It also helps if you print off all of the email confirmations and documents that you may need and organise them in a folder or plastic wallet of some sort, after all, moving in day is probably going to be hectic and it helps if you know where everything is. This is my folder!
All that should be left to do after that is check on the uni website about when you can move in/start classes and what time you can go as well as any entry procedures you need to follow on the day. Next step is actually going! Scary...
Extra tips:
Now that you are going to be dealing with a lot more money than you are probably use to it's worth going to your bank and booking an appointment to talk about your options with someone. I did this and managed to get a student account, perfect for, well, students, and got my very first savings account!
Also, if you are like me and you're 'living in', your maintenance loan may only just cover the cost of your rent and bills so, unless your parents have offered to help you a little bit with finances, it's essential that you start looking for a job as soon as possible. Make sure your CV is updated and you have any reference letters from previous jobs handy, I've applied for some and haven't heard back yet but wish me luck...
Finally, I'd urge you to check out what your University is doing by way of a fresher's week because they're a great way to break the ice and also probably help to curb the home sickness the first week. You may have to buy a ticket for freshers week or simply just pencil in a couple of events into your diary, for me, I was sent this letter:
I hope everything goes smoothly for you and you get to University without any problems!
No comments:
Post a Comment