Settling into Student Accomodation: Tips for the First Week Living Away from Home

There’s something very strange about your first few weeks of living away from home. You’ve been looking forward to your independence for months, packing, planning, shopping, asking questions, doing virtual tours of your university campus, and maybe connecting with new classmates over student forums. But once you’re actually sitting in your new room surrounded by boxes, it can suddenly feel very real and a little scary. Even the most exciting new chapter can come with a little homesickness and uncertainty, and during your first few days it is normal to find yourself sitting on your new bed in your new room wondering what to do next.

The good news is that you don’t need to feel settled immediately. Your student accommodation will become more familiar with time. At LHA London, our charity has helped countless young people move to, and settle in, London with affordable accommodation across the city, and these are our best tips on how you can do it too.

1. Get to know your housemates 

One of the biggest changes when moving into student accommodation is suddenly living alongside people you may never have met before. What you need to remember is that your housemates are probably just as nervous as you are.

You don’t need to become best friends immediately. A simple hello in the hallway can help make your accommodation feel a little bit more familiar and friendly.

Try spending a little time in shared spaces rather than staying in your room all day. Make a cup of tea in the kitchen, ask your housemates where they’ve moved from, maybe see what classes they’re taking, or grab something to eat together.

To break the ice, you could suggest:

• Cooking dinner together
• Ordering a takeaway
• Having a movie night
• Exploring your local area or university campus as a group
• Visiting a nearby café
• Going to a student society event
• Having a games night
• Going grocery shopping together

2. Have a conversation about sharing your space

During your first week, it can be useful to have a quick conversation with your new roommates about your expectations around sharing space. It might feel slightly awkward to talk about these things when you’ve only just met, but having some basic expectations from the beginning will make you feel much more at ease and avoid any misunderstandings later down the line.

You don’t need to create a strict list of rules. The aim is simply to make sure everyone understands that you’re sharing a home and that everyone deserves to feel comfortable in it.

Remember that your housemates may have completely different routines to you. Your roommate might love staying up late, while you prefer to get up early for lectures. Similarly, they might be incredibly tidy, while you are more relaxed about dishes in the sink.

Living together is a learning experience for everyone, so try to approach those differences with patience.

You might want to discuss:

• How often the kitchen or bathroom needs cleaning
• Whether you’re happy to share certain food or household items
• How you’ll divide shared chores
• Whether there are particular quiet hours
• How you’ll handle guests
• Where everyone’s food will be stored
• How you’ll communicate if something is bothering you

3. Make your room feel like yours

Your room is likely to become your little sanctuary during university, so making it feel personal can make a huge difference to how quickly you settle in.

There can be a strange amount of pressure surrounding university rooms. You may see pictures online of beautifully decorated student bedrooms and feel like yours needs to look exactly the same. It doesn’t.

Your room will naturally evolve throughout the year. You might realise that you need a better desk lamp after a few weeks, or decide you need more storage. Just let it happen naturally.

If you need any tips on how to decorate student accommodation, we have you covered. 

4. Keep a list of things you’re missing

One of the best pieces of advice for your first week in student housing is to keep a list of things you need.

You might arrive thinking you’ve packed everything, only to realise three days later that you don’t have a folder for your university notes or enough sticky notes to last the term. Sometimes, you don’t realise you need something until you’re actually living without it.

Keep a note on your phone and add things as you think of them. Your list might include:

• Notebooks
• Pens and pencils
• Folders
• Paper
• Highlighters
• Paper clips
• Binder clips
• Sticky notes
• A desk organiser
• Storage boxes
• Coat hangers
• Laundry bags
• Food containers
• Cleaning supplies
• Toiletries
• Phone chargers
• Extension leads
• Umbrella
• Reusable water bottle

Don’t worry about buying everything immediately. Your first week is actually a great time to work out what you genuinely need rather than spending money on things that end up sitting unused.

You may also discover that your accommodation already provides some items you thought you’d need to bring, so check what is included before you buy anything.

5. Learn by experience

When you move away from home, you will experience periods of time where you feel like you don’t have everything together and that’s okay. Everyone is just figuring it out as they go. Moving away from home for the first time is a huge change, and part of the excitement is learning who you are and what you need in your daily life without any parental guidance. 

6. Get to know the area 

Once you have set up your room and introduced yourself to your housemates, you need to figure out where all your local amenities are. Take a quick walk around the area and look for all the most important places like supermarkets, pharmacies, train stations, takeaways, the GP, post office, and any green spaces.

It will help you feel more settled in, and prevent you from panicking if you need to grab something in an emergency.

You should also look for:

• Local events and clubs: If you come across any posters or venues advertising events that you would be interested in attending, make sure you keep a note to look them up when you get home.

• Gyms and leisure centres: If you like to keep active, keep an eye out for your local gym so you can research reviews and facilities when you get home. You can even pop in to discover opening hours and membership costs, and compare these to the facilities your university provides.

• Coffee shops: Local cafes and coffee shops can be a great place to study if you need a change of scenery, or simply to relax and take your friends in your spare time. If you have any dietary requirements, figuring out if your local hotspots cater to these early on can be useful for when you want to pop out and grab a croissant or drink at short notice.

• Libraries: If you live off campus, it is highly recommended that you know where your local library is when you’re studying from home. This will prevent you needing to travel to your university if it is further away, and will give you additional study material to sift through.

• Job openings: If you are interested in working while at university in a position that isn’t directly related to your field of study, then having a walk around your local area and searching for job postings in shop windows is a great place to start. Working close to your accommodation will be more convenient and safer for you while you’re getting to grips with your new city.

7. Map out your journey to campus

If you’ve moved to a new city that’s unfamiliar to you, the public transport system can initially seem intimidating. But it won’t take long before you become familiar with your usual routes.

Before your first day of lectures, practise your journey from your student accommodation to campus.

Give yourself extra time during your first few journeys. There is nothing worse than starting your first lecture already stressed because you couldn’t find the right platform. And remember, getting lost occasionally is part of learning a new city and it’s better to do it now than when you have a lecture to get to.

Check:

• How long the journey takes
• Which bus, Tube or train you need (if necessary)
• Where you need to change
• How frequently your route runs
• How much your journey costs
• What your alternative route is if there are delays
• Where to safely store your bike if you cycle

8. Find your local student spots

Your accommodation doesn’t have to be the only place where you feel at home. Part of settling into university is finding places where you can relax, study, exercise, or meet people outside your accommodation.

Try somewhere new occasionally. You might discover your favourite part of the city completely by accident. And don’t forget to check your student union. 

9. Get into a routine

The first week can feel chaotic. There are welcome events, university inductions, new friends to meet, places to explore, freshers week to be had, and potentially a lot of late nights.

Enjoy it, but remember that establishing a basic routine can make the transition into university life much easier. It doesn’t need to be strict, and don’t worry if it takes a good few weeks to settle into. 

10. Don’t forget about food

One of the biggest adjustments when moving away from home can be feeding yourself.

You may be used to having meals prepared at home, or simply not having to think about where your next meal is coming from. Suddenly, you’re responsible for deciding what to buy and how much you’re spending.

Don’t put pressure on yourself to become a brilliant cook overnight. Start with a few simple meals you know you’ll eat. Pasta, stir fries, jacket potatoes, soups, sandwiches and easy traybakes can all be great and cheap options when you’re getting used to cooking for yourself.

It’s also worth learning which supermarkets are closest to your accommodation and whether there are cheaper alternatives nearby. 

And remember that your first few weeks are a good time to experiment. You might discover that cooking with your housemates is cheaper and more enjoyable than cooking alone. 

11. Give yourself time to adjust

Perhaps the most important piece of advice we can give you is to give yourself time. There’s a lot of messaging around university suggesting that you should immediately have the best time of your life. You’re supposed to make lifelong friends, join societies, explore London, keep up with your work and feel completely independent from day one. But real life isn’t always like that.

You might feel homesick. You might miss your family. You might not immediately click with your housemates. You might spend the first weekend in your room watching television. You might get lost on the Tube.

None of this means that you’re doing university wrong.

Moving away from home is a major life change, and settling into your student accommodation takes time. Let yourself have good days and difficult days without feeling like you need to force yourself to enjoy every second.

And lean on your friends and family wherever possible. 

12. Stay connected to home

Living away from home doesn’t mean you have to stop being connected to the people and places you know. If you’re feeling homesick, call a family member or friend. Send someone a photograph of your new room. Tell your friends about your first week. Schedule a video call if you’re studying particularly far from home.

You could even bring a small, familiar routine into your new life like having a Sunday phone call with your family or cooking a meal that reminds you of home.

These small connections can be incredibly comforting while you’re adjusting to your new surroundings.

Your accommodation is your home too

It can take a while before your student accommodation in London actually feels like home.

At first, it might simply feel like the place where you’re sleeping between university events. Gradually, though, you’ll develop your own routines.

You’ll know which cupboard contains your favourite mug. You’ll have a preferred spot on the sofa. You’ll know when the supermarket is quiet. You’ll recognise your housemates’ footsteps. You’ll have your favourite takeaway and your favourite route home.

Those little things are what turn accommodation into home. You don’t need to force that feeling during your first week. Give yourself the time and space to settle naturally.

If you’re relocating to London and need affordable accommodation with plenty of space to study for your upcoming exams, then there’s nothing like the comfort of LHA London.

Our hostels cover all major points on London’s map and cover your bills too, so you don’t need to worry about any additional costs while you focus on building the life you want.

For more information about how our charity can help you get set up in the big city, take a look at our available accommodation and don’t forget to check out our offer to discover what we can offer you.

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