Hi there guys I am in desperate need of some advice. For first year I have stayed at home and to be completely honest I regret not considering halls for the first year. I have not struggled making friends and generally fitting in however I do think I would enjoy living halls better as I would have even more friends and potentially be more academic as I have a lot of distractions at home ( I have a blind sister so I do have to be on the lookout frequently). However I am not that far from the uni its self it's only a 20 minute train followed by a 10 minute bus journey however I do believe this every day Monday to Friday is taking its toll. Obviously I can't really go out at weekends because although I have made friends I can't exactly rely to stay at their halls and I definitely can't afford a £50 taxi to take me home. The only thing that's holding me back is that I have a part time job that pays pretty well right now that I wouldn't want to give up and the fact that I would be wanting to try private halls as I don't fancy a one bedroom flat to myself and this obviously makes things a hell of a lot more expensive - anything from 7 grand per 51 weeks :O. I really just wanted people to say what they would do in my situation because my parents didn't go to uni and no disrespect to them but I don't think they quite understand how it all works. Thanks to anyone who has taken the time to read this and reply in advance!!
Hi there guys I am in desperate need of some advice. For first year I have stayed at home and to be completely honest I regret not considering halls for the first year. I have not struggled making friends and generally fitting in however I do think I would enjoy living halls better as I would have even more friends and potentially be more academic as I have a lot of distractions at home ( I have a blind sister so I do have to be on the lookout frequently). However I am not that far from the uni its self it's only a 20 minute train followed by a 10 minute bus journey however I do believe this every day Monday to Friday is taking its toll. Obviously I can't really go out at weekends because although I have made friends I can't exactly rely to stay at their halls and I definitely can't afford a £50 taxi to take me home. The only thing that's holding me back is that I have a part time job that pays pretty well right now that I wouldn't want to give up and the fact that I would be wanting to try private halls as I don't fancy a one bedroom flat to myself and this obviously makes things a hell of a lot more expensive - anything from 7 grand per 51 weeks :O. I really just wanted people to say what they would do in my situation because my parents didn't go to uni and no disrespect to them but I don't think they quite understand how it all works. Thanks to anyone who has taken the time to read this and reply in advance!!
I was in exactly the same position as you when I was at Solent. I lived a 20 minute train journey and a 10 minute walk from University. Neither of my parents or my brother went to university and to them - it's the same as secondary school and therefore I shouldn't be getting so stressed about making friends.
I thought about moving out from home in my second year as I was having a tough time making friends outside my course - everyone else was going on spontaneous nights out and it was hard because I had to check train times and ask a few days in advance if I could crash on someone's floor in halls (not comfortable!) which then made me feel left out and as if I didn't bond so well.
However, I tried to apply for more loan from Student Finance England but because I was local and I tried to provide evidence that I was not financially supported by my parents, and even with the extra amount, the loan still wasn't enough to cover rent and expenses.
My advice would be to take a look at student finance or even give them a call (if you don't mind waiting an hour before you get through) if you have a group of friends from university that want to move into a house with you - go for it. If you go into halls in your second year you'll be bombarded with first years.
Staying at home for the three years actually gets better with time - when in my third year - I was definitely one of the calmest in my year because I had somewhere away from University life that I could focus on my dissertation, whilst still having money still in the bank to treat myself. Plus, I may only have a small groups of friends from university - but they have turned out to be life long friends
I hope this helps and good luck in your second year! Kath.