Making the most of my last undergraduate year

Last year I had a chat with a representative of PwC. It was an informal CV consultation in an event set up by the University’s Careers and Employability team. I had no obligation to apply for the employer after I graduate - it was simply an opportunity to have an interactive one-on-one session with someone who was hiring. What we spoke about during this meeting has had a profound impact on my last year as an undergraduate student.

As we chatted through my CV, we spoke about how my grades and job history were good, but there was a space that was missing a lot of writing: extra-curricular activities. It is true that your grades are crucial to your job search. At the same time, however, so are your activities outside of academia. As cheesy as this may sound, it indicates to employers how wholesome you are as an individual and thus plays a crucial part in what give you an edge as an applicant.

Never managed a team before? There is support out there for you. I got this book from the Academic Skills  shelf on the third floor of Hartley library.

So, in light of this, I became President of the Filipino Society. I had never managed a society before, let alone had been part of a committee. I am still getting used to delegation and event planning, but with the help of the team I hope to make this year a successful one for the society. Our first event for the year was, of course, the Bunfight.

Planning this turned out to be quite enjoyable, and we decided that the best way to introduce newcomers to Filipino culture is through the stomach.

So, we got sweets!

The Filipino Society’s stall at the bunfight. The tubs on the right hand side are Filipino sweets and chocolate.

Our aim is to bring Filipinos together and to promote our culture – anyone can join, regardless of nationality! But I must state that the sweets weren’t to lure people into signing up for the society. We decided to have them out as it was a good conversation starter and, well, who doesn’t like treats anyway?

We also chatted to prospective members about other events we are planning to hold such as Karaoke nights, Movie nights and last but not the least, our Filipino themed Halloween Party!

Our poster/invite that we handed out at the Bunfight!

The Freshers' Week Bunfight was exceptionally busy this year. Within the first hour we must have chatted to over 100 students! I also had the time to look around other societies’ stalls, and I was surprised to find out about groups that I never even knew existed.

Are you a fan of Harry Potter? Game of Thrones? Did you know that Southampton has a Fandomonium Society where you can express your love for your favourite books, TV shows and more? Amazing!

The Bunfight in full swing! (Credit to University of Southampton’s twitter page)

 Of course there were perks to being a committee member and running a stall too…

The Bunfight pass allowed stall runners to skip the queue and have a wander through the stalls on their breaks!

I also attended the LGBT Society lunch at The Bridge. The purpose of the society is to provide a space for LGBT+ students to socialise with one another and express who they are free from judgement. I believe in this cause so I’ve also decided to join this year.

Me with the LGBT Society Committee

Looking back on my first time at the Bunfight, I realised how easy it was for me to sign up to too many societies. SUSU has over 300 different student groups, including over 80 sport clubs and 30 performing arts groups.

For me, it is far better to actively contribute to one or two clubs or societies than be a passive member of them all!

And so, the final countdown has started; I may have to be a bit more organised but the pleasure principle need not be lost!

Happy socialising!

Rylyn

Let's talk about cooking

It’s a much-talked-about topic: the challenges that students face being away from home. One of the biggest is learning to cook. There are hundreds of cookbooks aimed at students, but what many of them don’t cover is the real basics: pantry essentials, absolutely necessary cooking utensils, and how to limit kitchen waste.

I came to university having never cooked anything for myself other than a few basic dishes (namely pasta, toad in the hole and pancakes). When I moved into halls I really struggled to find my feet with cooking, and if I hadn’t been blessed by living with someone who not only knew how to cook, but was happy to teach me, I would still be living off Asda’s frozen mash potato (yeah, it’s really a thing).

First up, the pantry essentials. Over time I have realised that there are certain foods that I just cannot live without in my kitchen. Regardless of my food plan for the week, I always make sure that I have these basic staples in my cupboards:

• Brown Rice. It’s a must have because it goes with so many different proteins or veggie dinners.
• Pasta. Of course, no student kitchen is complete without some kind of pasta, I love fusilli tricolore, and almost never buy plain white pasta.
• Carrots, onions and garlic. If your kitchen currently doesn’t have any of these bad boys, get it sorted. Almost everything I make has at least one of these ingredients present, from pasta sauce and chicken casserole, to burgers - these veggies are must haves. 

My kitchen veggie basket

• Tinned tomatoes. They’re cheap (33p a can from International foods), keep forever in the cupboard and by making your own tomato pasta sauce it can constitute almost all of your five a day in one meal.
• Tomato puree, for the same reason as tinned tomato. I make a lot of sauces from scratch rather than buying jars of tomato pasta sauce. By making your own you are taking out all of the salt and sugar that are in bought sauces and massively boosting the health factor in your dinner. Easy peasy!
• Soy sauce, sweet chilli sauce and BBQ sauce. Need I give much explanation? Whatever you’re cooking I bet it can be improved by the addition of one of these.

I didn’t mention the spice rack because that develops naturally as you buy the things you need for new dishes – plus when you move into a new flat you can share spice staples. 

Your cupboard doesn’t need to be as packed as this!

Right then, now that you have a kitchen stocked with the right food, let’s look at the utensils you’re bound to require:

• A decent size, decent quality saucepan. You don’t have much space for these things, particularly in halls, so rather than having three or four, spend your money on one good quality pan that will last - and take care of it!
• One good size deep frying pan ( big enough to feed four people) . You will come back to using this time and time again, and by getting a deep one you can use it as a wok for stir fries, and cook up enough Bolognese to feed your whole flat, or yourself for the next week. Remember, if you’re going to make a Bolognese or curry, cook more and then freeze what you don’t eat. That way next time you don’t feel like cooking, you simply have to heat it up, rather than turning to a ready meal.
• A rubber/silicone spoon. Rubber and silicone spoons are so forgiving and so easy to clean! Avoid wood because it’s harder to clean and easier to stain and damage.
• A good set of knives. You probably don’t need more than three. I bought a set of three knives from Sainsbury’s for £12 and they are brilliant! A good knife doesn’t have to break the bank, but it will make your life easier to have them around.
• Plastic chopping board.
• Pyrex dish – not sure what to call it but you know what I mean – the things you make lasagne, pasta bakes, toad in the hole or casserole in.
• A colander or sieve, obviously.

As I’ve had three years to build up my stock of utensils – combined with my partners stuff, I have about five times as much as I need.

Not everyone can afford one of these bad boys but put it on your Christmas list -  you won’t regret it - or watch out for one in the sales!

Pretty much all of the above can be bought from Ikea or nearby supermarkets for less than you’d think. Strapped for cash? Ask your parents if they have a spare lying around, or go halves with a flatmate who is in need of the same stuff.

Finally, how to limit kitchen waste - i.e. how to avoid throwing out food that you haven’t gotten round to eating and has now gone off. There is only one reliable way to do this guys; make a food plan, and be disciplined about it. Every Sunday before I write my weekly shopping list I make a food plan based on what I already have in the kitchen, and what I think I’ll fancy cooking based on how much time I’ll have to make dinner each day. By doing this I have cut my kitchen waste hugely, and saved a fair amount of money in the process.

My food plan for the week

Just because we are students, it doesn’t mean we have to live up to the cliché that students can’t cook and don’t know how to eat. Don’t waste your money on a cookbook, that’s what the internet is for! Bbcgoodfood.com has thousands of recipes and most of Jamie Oliver’s recipes are online anyway.

Some hotdogs with spicy BBQ caramelised onions, red pepper and bacon. 

 

20 minute chicken stir fry

Now, go forth. enjoy learning how to cook and love what you make!

Emma

Getting involved in the Creative Industries

After all that waiting, it’s finally here. The legendary Freshers' Week is now very much upon us. In fact, by the time you’re actually reading this, it’ll most likely already be on its way out. Even as a Third Year shuffling through the unbridled madness for my final time, it seems sad to see it go; the sheer enthusiasm and energy is unlike anything else university has to offer. But, of course, all good things must come to an end, and I guess there are these little things called degrees that we’re actually supposed to be getting on with too!

In fact, for me, the first few weeks re-settling in to the university way of life have actually been about one thing and one thing only. No, not that damn spaceship oven again - I’m talking about the Creative Industries.

As Southampton students will have no doubt noticed by the sheer size and scale of this year’s annual Bunfight (that’s the Union’s societies fair to anyone else), there are an awful lot of societies on offer, ranging from the subject-based to the downright insane. The Creative Industries is built up of a much smaller section of all of these groups and deals with, well, anything creative. This stretches from my own loyalties as Film Editor of the University’s entertainment magazine The Edge, to the likes of SUSUtv and even as far as the circus society.

Of course, in the spirit of creative collaboration, this year saw my first attendance at the annual Creative Industries Induction Week, wherein all the committee members for all of these creative-minded groups hang out in a gigantic room and talk/learn about how to be the best at what we do. It’s a pretty jam-packed week full of all sorts of fun stuff, covering everything from the likes of media law to simple team-building and beyond, giving everyone involved an almost encyclopedic knowledge of our own societies.

The Edge Editorial Team was certainly out in force too, as we took advantage of some incredibly useful workshops on how to use industry-standard software like Adobe InDesign to lay up our latest issue. It may have been slightly fiddly at times, and I may have become rather irate with a certain computer, but ultimately everything just about fell into place, and the new-look designs are pretty incredible. Our first issue of the year has been distributed throughout Freshers week (look out for the odd review inside from yours truly) and our second is on its way to the printers as we speak - so look out for more entertainment-related fun hitting Southampton very soon!

Our stand for The Edge at the Bunfight was a thing of beauty.

Just in case that wasn’t enough, the whole week was topped off with the team-bonding session to end all team-bonding sessions - a DIY laser-quest tournament held within our very own student club The Cube. Equipped with some classic retro Aliens-style laser guns and with plenty of inflatable barricades and camouflage netting around to hide behind, it certainly was a rather epic way to pull the week to a close. Our mixed-society team may have ultimately lost out on the top spot, but we definitely learned an awful lot about communication and team-work along the way.

With the induction over, it was over to the Bunfight to spread the word about just how great the Creative Industries are. I may have been standing around for a shocking amount of time, repeating the same pitch to what felt like hundreds of confused-looking faces, but spreading the word about one of my closest passions, and sharing our work with the University community certainly filled me with an incredible sense of pride and achievement. Joining a society and becoming a part of something bigger really enhances the university experience - I couldn’t recommend it enough!

The Edge and SUSUtv joined forces for some bunfight fun (Image courtesy of SUSUtv)

Freshers’ Week is just a mere taste of the extra-curricular opportunities on offer from the University, and based on the turn-out and enthusiasm so far, it really feels like this is going to be a fantastic year.

Ben

From High School to University

Welcome to all of the new Freshers who moved in over the weekend! Although it has only been a few days, I hope you have started to settle in and that you are happy with your new home here in Southampton. I’m sure the first few days will be extremely strange since you now are in charge of making your own dinner and doing your washing, which I know alone can seem strangely overwhelming! It is hopefully some consolidation knowing that in a month you should be all used to it.

This is my last week home in Oslo and last Sunday I turned 20! My 10th birthday is still so fresh in my mind that it was almost overwhelming turning 20 and I have spent a fair amount of time thinking about what I have accomplished and what is yet to happen. So cliché, I know – but let me explain!

Last Thursday it was the annual “aksjonsfinale” at my old High School here in Oslo, something I have attended both last year and this year as a non-student there. Every year the school has a fundraiser for different causes around the world. The “aksjonsfinale” is the night when the people involved in this announce how much money the school has been able to raise. It is one of the big highlights of the year and the venue it is held at is always so full many people have to stand.

Kristelig Gymnasium (KG) has around 900 pupils from Year 8 to Year 13 and the school raised over 2 million Kroner (roughly £200,000) this year. 

What is funny is that this is the same venue as the school holds the graduation ceremonies every year and hence the same place I graduated 1-½ years ago.

My graduation ceremony in 2014 all dressed up in my finest attire, the Norwegian traditional costume “bunad”. 

My old academic teacher, which is very similar to the Academic Tutors we have at Southampton, asked me if I wanted to come by the school on the next day to tell his class about both the transition from High School to University and from Norway to studying abroad. So, last Friday I had the privilege of being back at my old High School and talking to some of the final-year students about university and being abroad.

The teachers I had there were without any doubt some of the best you will find, who truly cared about us, saw what we were capable of and pushed us to reach our goals. As I reached the last months of being a student there I had convinced myself that I would never ever experience being at a school like KG again. But then, standing there in front of this class it hit me how lucky I have been to be student at KG for three years and how lucky I am today to be a student at Southampton.

I’m almost certain I wouldn’t have enjoyed my first year at Southampton if it wasn’t for the extremely kind and devoted staff we have here at the University and how they always have done their utmost to help me with all the different problems I have had.

My best example is from last October. I had picked my modules for my first semester and ended up with a module clash which easily could’ve been avoided if I had put a bit more time into checking what modules I could do and not do. So, feeling a bit embarrassed, I showed up at my Student Office and explained this. Not only did they help me pick which one of the two economics modules I should do by letting me talk to the different lectures who showed me the books used for each modules, but they also went back to my grade transcripts from High School to see which module would fit me based on my previous grades in economics.

Remember that my previous grades were in the Norwegian grade system, so the Admissions Team helped me to find out what my Economics grade would be equal to in England and when we finally chose which one was the best for me, they helped me find a good module to substitute the clash.

I’m sure some would think “But that’s their job!” Yes, indeed – but instead of all the extra help I received, the Student Office easily could have said “Ok, fine. Pick the economics module you want to do, find another module and then fill in the module change form.” This is just one of many examples I could give that definitely helped me settle in at Southampton.

The transition from High School to University is challenging in so many ways. As I mentioned to the final year students back at my old school, no one is going to hold your hand at university and remind you to do your readings all the time, so hopefully throughout High School you will have developed a good work ethic to take with you to university. However, if you need help with any type of problems (like a module clash) don’t panic, because at Southampton you certainly aren’t alone and for that I am very grateful.

Moving away from home and starting university is a big step where you naturally mature a lot in the process. The biggest transition for me was being alone and away from everything and everyone I was used to being around. In addition to this, let’s not forget the obvious - getting used to the cars driving on the wrong side and queueing to get on the bus, but it has all been manageable!

Now that I’m entering my twenties, I have decided not to stress about the next ten years and instead focus on what I want to accomplish/do this year:

• I want to get my driving licence this year. Its definitely about time and maybe learning to drive on the wrong side of the road will help me to stop being so confused every time I cross the roads in England! 
• I want to take up sports! I used to play tennis for about six years, so I have decided that although I might not be on a competitive team this year, I definitely want to start playing tennis again, no excuses. 
• I’d like to get involved in some sort of charity. I kept saying last year that I would do this, but I never did and I think this is one of the best ways to give back to Southampton as a city. 
• I want to do one of the language courses. As students at Southampton we are so lucky that we are allowed to take a FREE language course along our degree and I have always wanted to learn German, so Keine Entshuldigung! 

On a final note, I have eaten so much cake this weekend I’m going to be rolling back to Southampton on Sunday.

Alexandra

Why Hartley Library is awesome

The new term has started and I’ve now borrowed all the books I need for the next few months.

Looking through the rows and rows of book cases at Hartley Library, I thought it would be appropriate to write about why I love the place so much.


So here’s my homage to my second home at the University of Southampton.

Why it’s awesome in a nutshell:

1. It is open 24 hours every day during exam season.
2. Being a Southampton student gives you access you thousands of hard copy books and electronic materials free of charge.
3. It’s arguably the warmest building on campus. 

Some of my Politics and International Relations course books. Here’s to 3rd year.

Most people become accustomed to their university library fairly well during their time as a student. It’s probably the first place you’ll be introduced to as a visitor to Southampton, and I don’t know about you, but many people often judge the quality of a university in question based on the quality of its library. I myself am one those people!

Taken from the green space outside the Library. One of my favourite places to sit in between studying.

Hartley Library is nearly always busy. It can be quite difficult to find a space to study during exam season. This however is simply because it is such a conducive atmosphere for study; students choose to come here in their droves because of the super-fast internet, abundance of books and resources in close proximity, and also group study rooms - which are perfect for teams working on a project or a tricky problem.

View from the Library entrance and its Café. Students often use this a meeting point. 

This desire by students of any course to choose to come to Hartley can be seen clearly when working at an estate agents. I have spoken to people who work part-time at lettings agencies who specialise in student houses, and one of the resounding trends that they tell me is that Final Year students will put the location of the house in terms of how close it is to the library above any other desired characteristic of the property. Even, in many instances, above rent, utilities cost, and the location to nightlife!

Now, if someone is willing to sacrifice a close proximity to Jesters in favour of the library, this only goes to show how good the library is. It also restores my faith in humanity that there are so many students who put their studies above anything else.

Of course Hartley isn’t the only library the University has; there’s also the Avenue Library, Health Services at Southampton General Hospital, the Language Resources Centre, National Oceanographic Library and Winchester School of Art Library too.

As for me, I have quite a busy week to look forward to: it's Freshers' Week on campus, so there’s the Bunfight, FilSoc Committee Meetings, prep readings and my part time job to juggle. It is also my 22nd birthday today (yikes) so I’m off to eat and celebrate!

Happy studying!

Rylyn

Attending the 2015 British Society for Population Studies annual conference

From the 6th to the 9th September I attended the 2015 British Society for Population Studies annual conference held at the University of Leeds. The Social Sciences department at the University of Southampton made up a pretty significant proportion of attendees at the conference - so much so that we were named the ‘Southampton Mafia’!

Firstly, conferences are great; if you ever get the chance to go to one, go! You will meet people who are interested in your research and will make contacts that will help you further your professional career. They are not only attended by lecturers and researchers; often there will be industry representatives there looking for their next graduate recruit, particularly at PhD conferences.

You don't even have to be a PhD or even a Masters student to attend. I fully encourage any undergraduate student who gains a good mark in their dissertation to take the work to a relevant conference.

The very imposing main staging building for the conference at Leeds. 

I took along a poster detailing half of my dissertation research which was focused on using agent based models to better understand fertility decline in modern Germany (don't focus too much on wondering what on earth that means, it's a pretty niche area of research!). My poster was displayed for the whole three days, but on the first night a poster session was held where you had to stand by your poster and try to explain what it's all about.

This was utterly terrifying…for about five minutes. Then I realised that I did actually remember what I had done, and probably wasn't going to embarrass myself that badly. Plus, there was copious amounts of free wine given out throughout the evening, so explaining my work to people gradually became easier!

 

My poster proudly displayed in a corner. As the first conference poster I had ever made I was pretty happy with the result, even if I didn't win the prize for best poster! 

Dr Sabu Padmadas and Dr Amos Channon from Southampton enjoying the drinks and perusing the posters on display. 

 

The poster session filling up. 

The conference was structured around hour-and-a-half long sessions composed of four 15 minute presentations from researchers and academics detailing their most recent piece of research. Unlike presentations you might give in your University seminars, these are made a bit more stressful by the fact that the person you've referenced in your presentation may well be sat in the room with you.

Southampton's own Dr Sabu Padmadas giving a talk on maternal health care in Ghana. 

Another Southampton representative, PhD student Anna Zincenko presenting her early thesis research. 

Conferences are a fantastic way to receive constructive feedback on ongoing research, there are few other opportunities to talk to so many experts.

Southampton’s Dr Pirelli-Harris questioned the presenters consideration of cohabiting couples, evidence of the fear of being questioned by someone you've referenced. 

As well as these sessions there were two Plenary lectures given by prominent academics which were attended by everyone.

Professor Helga de Valk giving a fascinating talk titled: European migrants: new demographic questions and challenges? 

The best thing about the conference organisation is that you have complete flexibility in which talks you attend. There were six sessions happening at the same time, and people were able to pick and mix, and go to the talks that were the most interesting to them. BSPS attracts a wide range of not only demographers but economists, anthropologists and social scientists. The result was a huge range of topics covered meaning that there was always something interesting for me to go along to.

The days were very long. Having come here from what has been quite a lazy summer working as a consultant (meaning that I haven't had to face an early morning for over a month!) waking up at 7 am and sitting in talks through till 6pm hit me in the face like a brick. However, the conference organisers were prepared for this, and provided copious amounts of food and coffee throughout the day, starting with a full cooked breakfast and on the Tuesday ending with a formal sit down dinner.

Please don't take a picture of us while our mouths are full… 

Cheers! Eagerly anticipating food and enjoying more free wine, the evening was looking promising

The organisers really delivered with an outstanding menu that made us all feel very spoiled. I intended to take a photo of the dessert but unfortunately I lost all control of my spoon and only remembered my camera once I had finished. 

Dr Padmadas ….. And Dr Skazbo looking happy after finally having a chance to relax after chairing sessions and attending talks all day. 

It seems entirely strange that I should have to go to Leeds to meet fellow Southampton Postgraduates but there you go, it’s great for meeting new people! Happily I met some wonderful students and researchers and I am thrilled to be leaving with new friends and contacts.

While I am not normally that excited about the idea of spending three days surrounded by strangers and being asked difficult questions about my work (in fact, that's normally the sort of thing I would go out of my way to avoid), the atmosphere at BSPS was so relaxed and friendly that my nerves were (mostly) forgotten.

Plus, having such a strong Southampton presence meant that even though I was in Leeds, I didn't feel too far away from home…

My conference name badge joining the others on my desk!

Emma

The first night

Whether your very first taste of university life is just on the horizon, or you’re a seasoned pro returning for another shot at the student way of being (because you simply just can’t get enough), that all important first night is definitely looming. In fact, for me, that night was actually a few days ago.

After finally moving back to Southampton properly for the last time ever (an insanely scary and daunting thought), it suddenly hit me how bizarre that first night away always is. Be it first year, second year or beyond; shifting gears mentally after being out of the loop for a considerable amount of time is tough. Suddenly being the only person that’s responsible for your survival can be a little jarring at first, but that shouldn’t put you off.

With all of the many millions of boxes of my stuff finally unpacked in my new student house, my new room set up just the way I wanted it, and the shelves fully stocked with enough food to survive a nuclear winter, I realised I was very much in control of myself and what I do from here on. True, it’s a bit of a scary thought, but if you learn to trust yourself it’s also a pretty exciting one too.

After an entire day of travelling, I’m finally moved in. 

No longer are you restricted by dinner times or curfews - you are 100% in charge of what you do and when you do it. Randomly eating cereal in the middle of the night or sleeping in ’til noon is no longer an issue. I mean, you don’t have to do those things, and sometimes they might not really be a particularly great idea (especially if you happen to have a 9am lecture to trek to) but the fact is you can do them if you want to, and no one is going to stop you. You get to decide.

But it’s not just this realisation that makes that first night so strange and unique. Whether you’re in a house or a flat or the university halls of residence, that very first evening is your first taste of what the year has to offer. It’s likely that your living situation might change over the years or even during it if you want it to - but in the large majority of cases, that room is very much where your university experience will unfold.

The bed that you scramble out of after oversleeping before a seminar, the desk that you stare at whilst struggling through a particularly hard bit of reading or even the microwave that, sooner or later, will likely become crusted with some strange substance - these are the tools of your new life. Using them at first may seem odd and different and sometimes a little scary, but in time, it will simply become second nature.

Because as weird and sometimes uncomfortable as moving somewhere new can be, ultimately in time, we all adjust. Yesterday I spent an almost unhealthy amount of time staring at my new oven trying to figure out what all the buttons did. It’s a million miles from my oven back home, and glaring at it so blankly for such a long period of time did make me really miss the old one, but I persevered because in the end, one day down the line, I know that I’m sure to figure it out. For the record, that day wasn’t yesterday - I retreated to the safety of the microwave after nearly half an hour of twiddling random bits to no avail - but I still know that at some point I will conquer it.

The scary, spaceship-like oven in question. 

First night nerves are the most understandable; it always takes a little while to get comfortable with somewhere new. It’s just about trusting the fact that at some point soon you’ll settle in, and you won’t even notice it when you do.

Ben

How to house-hunt - looking for student accommodation

After a week of travelling, I’m finally home in Oslo again. This time my trip was to London and Southampton and I think it’s safe to say that this was my last trip abroad before the University year starts. It also gives me an immense pleasure to say that I am finally completely ready for term to start!

Miranda and I have (finally) found where we are staying for next year! We couldn’t be happier with the place we found and I think that definitely underlines the importance of waiting until you find something you like. Next weekend most Freshers will move in to halls and I’m sure that by October you will start hearing about housing, thinking about housemates etc., so this is why I wanted to dedicate this blog post to student housing.

Although this might be most ‘relevant’ in January/February, I think all year around is ‘housing season’ for students. Why? Because the student housing is a huge business in Southampton and you will meet all sorts of people trying to convince you to look for next year’s houses very early, in September or October.

I think I’m already proof that you definitely don’t need to start looking for anything until after Christmas (at the earliest!). So, here are a couple of things I think you should be aware of in this jungle of house hunting:

Don’t rush!

 

SUSU, the Students' Union, and the University of Southampton run campaigns every year about how important it is to be sure who you want to live with before looking for houses, while letting agencies tell students how important it is to find a house early, because ‘all the good stuff will go first’. I think SUSU put it very nicely last year when I read an article from them saying that it was important to remember that there is no shortage of student housing in Southampton. Hence, you won’t live on the street if you don’t find a house by January.

As said by SUSU: “Get to know the people you want to live with before you commit to a contract. Second years will say “Housemates are more important than the house!””. Therefore, it is a good idea to visit the SUSU pages on housing and stick to what they say and also go to the housing day in January/February organised by SUSU. You can read the article I've quoted here.

To be fair, when considering accommodation it is always a good idea to listen to the University and SUSU. We were told this week by multiple letting agencies that September is a really busy month for them, mostly because the international students arrive to find houses for this academic year, so I hope I’ve made my point about waiting with the house hunting!

Civic Centre in Southampton with Mayflower Halls!

Be aware of the landlords and/or letting agents.

 

As I mentioned, student housing is a huge business in Southampton (as it probably is in every major UK student city), so you are bound to meet a few dodgy landlords and/or letting agents. Again, SUSU has done surveys amongst the students about the different letting agents, and identified the ones which are worth your time.

The number of people who were shocked and almost concerned we waited this long to find a house was surprising. I do agree, we probably waited a bit longer than we should have, but we ended up finding an apartment we really liked with a very desirable location for us and therefore it was definitely worth the wait! We have tried to be very conscious about everything in the process.

I would be lying if I didn’t say we have had a couple of viewings where things weren’t quite right – for example, lack of communication, professionalism and customer service. This is so important to remember in the whole house hunting process. It is perfectly OK to expect certain things from your potential landlord. For example, if you like a house/apartment, but it hasn’t been cleaned properly you are fully entitled to say you expect it to be cleaned thoroughly before you move in. Most students will rent furnished houses/apartments, but if you end up with a bed that isn’t OK, you are allowed tell your landlord this, or negotiate about getting a new desk.

During your viewings you will be told how amazing the place is, but if you don’t agree, you shouldn’t be afraid to say so and hear what can be done to change the things you don’t like.

Highfield campus with its local inhabitants, the ducks

The condition of the house is important!

 

This is not to argue against that housemates are more important than the house, but don’t forget that the condition of the house is important. After all, it will be your new home for a year (maybe more), so even if we know a student house will have its quirks, it still needs to be in a bearable condition.

You would never buy a house with mould in it, so if you see mould on the viewing you shouldn’t think that it is acceptable, even if the house looks nice. The location of the house is also important, so this is something all future housemates should discuss and agree on before starting to look at houses.


This post is not intended to scare anyone into thinking house hunting as a student is a nightmare - after all, most of the ‘horror stories’ you hear are minimal compared to all the positive experiences people have when renting. Just remember to be aware and determined (without not being open to new or different ideas). Just because you are a student doesn’t mean you any less important than any other tenant, so think about what is important to you in the process of finding a house and don’t settle for something you are not happy with. I hope you find this advice helpful!

 

I just had to post a picture from my trip to London

Bye for now, England – see you again soon! I can’t wait to move into my new apartment - it was well worth the wait.

Alexandra