University Of Aberdeen Freshers 2013-14

I am from Glasgow I have put down esselmont as my first choice , if your from birmingham I'd presume your staying in halls where you staying ?


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Since im moving from soooo far im gna try and limit my costs...pretty high as it is.... I put down fyfe and some other ones i cant seem to remember lol

I might change once i get a job n all..... N try and control my spending....... I hope hahaha

I dont really know where esselmont is..... Lol.... But we'll meet along the course.... And i hear they have good sports facilities sooo all happy happy.... Good uni and they'll toss me a football...or a cricket ball.... Or tennis..... Haha

Im excited and sort of nervous at the same time..... And i haven't really had a good look at the place.... Exams and all.... I hope its great.... I do Bio Chem and Maths with phy at AS.... What about u?? Are u excited?? Or nervous??

And should i bring a toaster?? :-P

Esselmont is up at hill head besides pretty much all the other halls , fair enough controlling your spending need to have some beer money and food money after you pay for halls every week , yeah heard the sports buildings are **** hot as they have all recently been built , i like football and tennis both quality cricket however .... :L but each to there own , I am just excited really not nervous don't really get nervous or anxious or that generally quite calm , have you joined the Facebook page ? Don't know if the halls have a toaster but I bring one or get a cheapo one from Safeway asda sainsburys or that for like a tenner I think when you get to Aberdeen


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So excited to come here! I'm from somerset in England right in the south west! A long way away but the best uni I've visited!! New Carnegie anyone?!


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Hahahaha no one seems to enjoy cricket, guess ill be playing by myself lols
Nahhhh not really a drinker...... More coke etc... :-P
Im moving all the way from Birmingham soooo its such a long way... Makes me a little nervous i guess..... Just a tad ;-)

But yeah football i know how to play..... Tennis iv always wanted to play, never actually have, like proper tennis..... Sooo should be great plus i guess i want to be able to make most decisions for myself now without all the issues of parents disagreeing :-P

By the way i cant find the facebook page.... Im pretty sure i joined the wrong one..... Theres no one on there.....
Any link??? :-P

I think it's maybe because its not played at many schools in Scotland plus for me it takes to long , I know the basic rules and what's going on but it just so long , well that's fair enough a lot of my friends don't drink (athletics and religion) I am sure you'll be fine when you get to Aberdeen as everyone is in the same boat new place new people etc , yeah I play football too but like you have never properly played tennis well I have but I am awful haha so just stick to watching it , I can not wait for the freedom

If I am not mistaken a girl called jasmine just posted a link if its not I will be more than happy to find it for you

Sorry it's jasmaine
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Aww no problem! Don't worry you'll be okay, just think: loads of people move away for uni all the time, you'll have fun! ooh what you studying this year and what are your conditions? Aww I'm sure you'll do great - don't worry! Well I've actually done 2 out of my 3 exams, and my 3rd is art and I only need to submit a folio on the 5th of June, so that's handy

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Ahh I've done 2 exams, 6 more to go! I am doing Biology, Chemistry and Maths. To begin with I wanted to do medicine, hence the subject choice lol. Well I need to get BBB- pretty decent I suppose. It's just Chem that I am slightly concerned about. Plus I need to get A's in my Biology to be within a chance of getting a B overall. I kinda mucked up my AS year, so it's been a struggle since. What are your conditions? Oh and have you applied for accommodation yet?

Ooh good luck! I'm sure you'll do great ah okay, that makes sense. Yeah sounds not too bad, although I'm not sure how difficult or otherwise that is with A Levels, I'm Scottish so we do highers and advanced highers instead. Aw okay, well I'll keep my fingers crossed for you! I've got an unconditional so thankfully I don't need to worry about getting specific grades which is nice and yeah, have you? I put Esslemont as my first choice, though they've changed the name to Grant Court now. Oh and have you joined the freshers group on Facebook yet? Think someone posted the link for it in this thread a couple of posts up

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I have just finished my first year at Aberdeen uni, so thought I would tell you all what I thought of it...
Accommodation: I was in Adam Smith. It was £99 per week which I feel was a little expensive (although I think it is cheaper this year). I didn't particularly like the layout as the rooms are along a corridor with a kitchen on the end, so not a proper flat. Nine people were sharing my kitchen- cupboard and fridge space is a nightmare (I ended up buying a fridge for my room). I moved in a couple of days after the official move in date. If possible, DON'T do this. I felt like friendships had already been formed in my "flat" and I was always playing catch up. Also, bring a doorstop and leave your door open (when you're there)- it makes your more approachable and its the closest you are going to get to having a proper flat.My flatmates and I did have to complain about the cleaner a couple if times, but the complaints were dealt with and resolved quickly. Over all, it's not a bad place to live. Don't be put off by the slight prison-like look, you get used to it! Personally, I would recommend Grant Court (AKA Esslemont)- it's just been done up and is pretty nice for the money. In my opinion, New Carnegie is not worth the money. There are better things to spend your money on than a tiny kitchen and "sofas" that are more like benches, but that's just me!

Freshers week: I was under age. And to be honest, it sucked quite a bit. They had events on like cinema things and stuff like that, but I was clearly missing out on so much fun. From what I have heard from others, freshers is great fun and a brilliant way to make new friends. There are various fayres at kings college. At the freshers fayre you get lots of freebies- even dominos pizza! Then there are the societies and sports fayres, but I'll get onto them later. Although I was under age, it was still enjoyable, just not as enjoyable as it could've been.

Making friends: Okay, so I am a bit quiet which can make making friends hard, but I have found that people in my degree (Chemistry) aren't particularly sociable. Everyone walks into lectures and sits with at least one empty seat between them and the next person (not sure if this is standard for all degrees/unis or not). My advice, in the first couple of weeks, don't let there be a gap beside you. Sit next to someone and make conversation. It's a win-win situation. If you get on well, then it could be the start of a friendship, if you don't then you will know not to sit with them again. Happy days. Another good way to make friends (and the way which I found best) is to join sports clubs or societies. You all have a shared interest and are doing an activity together, always a recipe for great friendships.

Societies/sports: Aberdeen has a fantastic array of sports clubs and societies. There is something for everyone, even if it is something you have never tried before. The senior members will welcome you in and show you the ropes and you will soon be having the time of your life! Also, they have AMAZING socials. Pub golf, family ties, lycra nights and various other fun and exciting socials which are sure to end with a funny story or two. Plus, it gives you something to do on Wednesday afternoons and the weekend so you don't have a chance to get bored.

Studying: The reason we all come to uni! As I said above, I study Chemistry. If you have done advanced higher (like I did) first year will basically be a year of revision. This can be a bit boring which can lead to missing lectures etc. From experience, don't miss lectures and do go over your notes. It will make life much easier come exam time. I made life very hard for myself, don't do the same. Also, the chemistry department don't take any rubbish. If you miss two labs or two tutorials, your course certificate will be with held and you will have to beg to be allowed to sit the exam. Just go, it is honestly not worth the hassle. For most degrees, your degree subject will only take up 15 or 30 of your 60 credits for each half session in first year. This means you get to pick two or three electives (15 credits each) to make up your credits. You can chose from just about any subject as long as it fits into your timetable. There are different types- sixth century, sustained study and discipline breadth. Sixth courses are from 9-12 every Wednesday (not ideal if you are a sports person) the usual structure is a 1 hour lecture followed by a two hour workshop. They are reasonably interesting and are continually assessed so no exam at the end. A good way to make up credits with minimum effort. Sustained study is when you take the same subject over your first two years at uni. There are a few languages to choose from as well as some other interesting subjects. Requires work, so not any easy option. Discipline breadth is where you can chose any subject in the catalogue of courses to study for a session. Some are continually assessed, others have a final exam it just depends on the course. Your subjects are chosen at your advisers appointment on freshers week. I would advise that you have a look at the available courses and have a rough idea of what you want to do before going. Also, watch they don't force you into maths. If they think your maths grade from school is a bit shakey, they will try. Knowing what you want to do can stop this from happening.

Facilities: Aberdeen has a wide variety of buildings, from the ancient kings college to the ultra modern library, there is something to suit all tastes in architecture. The hub and butchart are the two social centres of campus. The hub has lots of different food outlets, with everything from subway to oldel paso, traditional scottish to italian. It also has an icecream place and a small shop. The hub is also the location of the careers service and student support. Butchart has a cafe and lots of sofas and tables to laze around at, it also had a second hand book store upstairs. There is a keystore on the high street, as well as a bakers, a coffee shop and a book store. The library also has a cafe, although it gets quite busy around lunch so sharing a table with people you don't know is quite common. The library is very modern, even featuring a giant hole through the middle. It looks great, but noise travels up from the cafe to the study areas which can be a bit irritating. There are silent study areas though, so studying in silence is possible if that's your thing. And finally, my favourite building, Aberdeen Sports Village. It is a short walk from campus and features a gym, indoor football pitch, indoor track, games hall, studios, outdoor track, weights area and soon (sometime in 2014 I think) an aquatics centre. So that's all your sporting needs checked off.

Nightlife: Aberdeen has a good amount of pubs and clubs, most of which are pretty decent. I kind of believe that it's the people that make a night out rather than the place. Having said that, paramount bar is great and has very cheap drinks. Ideal place to go before heading to the clubs. The queue for taxi's when the clubs close, is amazingly long so be prepared for a mighty long stand. Also be prepared for a mighty price tag at the end of the journey. Buses only do late nights (2am) on Fridays and Saturdays so any other night you'll have to get a taxi or walk.

Buses: Waste of money. Aberdeen has the highest bus fares in the uk. Student day ticket is now £3.50. In the first term I bought a 12 week pass which cost around £130. I used it to get to uni and back every day, more because I could than because I needed to. Don't buy it, walk. It takes basically the same amount of time, saves a hell of a lot of money and it will keep you fit. Obviously walking into/out of town is less convenient, but I would suggest (if you have time) you walk in and get the bus back with your shopping. It may only be a couple of quid, but do it a few times and it soon mounts up.

Okay, I think I have rattled on quite enough. Well done if you got this far, and I hope it was helpful in some way. Please bare in mind these are simply my opinions, nothing more.

I'm South West too, a nine hour drive up to Aberdeen, ouch!
Also want to be in New Carnegie! I still need to apply to accommodation yet, eek! (:

Thanks for your insight I found this really helpful thanks

No worries. Any questions, just let me know

I think you covered mostly everything , just wondering is the things I will need to bring with me or buy when I am there for living in halls , like any handy hits people such as myself wouldn't think to bring

Bring smart clothes. If you join any clubs or societies it is very likely you will end up at some kind of ball (also some degree subjects too- Med Ball, Law ball etc). I can't really think of anything else off the top of my head. To be honest, if there is anything you have forgotten, chances are you can buy it here. I wouldn't worry too much about it.

What I would say is think about what you REALLY need. I brought a lot of stuff "just in case" and now I am in the process of packing to move out I have found all this stuff which I haven't used the entire year. If you're unlikely to use it, don't bring it.

Hey everyone I'm an international student and doing medicine. I'm excited to come to Aberdeen but I'm also TERRIFIED at moving a million miles away from home. I've never travelled to the UK(actually I've never travelled to the other side of the world) before so everything's gonna be entirely new for me. But from what I heard most people are nice there and Aberdeen is a wonderful place so hopefully I'll be fine and not feel too homesick.Main reason why I chose aberdeen anyway is because the place reminds me most of home (the beach mainly). btw I'm from a tropical country and i've never seen snow and the coldest it gets here is like 23 degrees so any advice on what to expect?