So, you’ve made it this far. You’ve got the grades, survived the results day party and are about to make your way to the sunny city of Exeter. Here at Her Campus, we know how daunting starting university can be, so we’ve compiled a list of all the people you’ll probably encounter in your first week in Exe…
1. Nervous fresher
This one’s pretty obvious and applies to almost everyone heading to freshers. It’s absolutely natural to be nervous when you meet new people! The overly confident freshers who seem to have made their best friends for life in the first five minutes? They’re nervous too.
2. Gap yah fresher
‘Oh my god this reminds me of this time in Thailand…’ This fresher doesn’t care that you don’t know that tiny hut on Ko Pan Nhgan that does the best fishbowls, they’ll talk about it like you were there on their travels too. In fact, they won’t just talk about it, they’ll go on and on and on about it. It’s amazing how scrambling eggs can remind this person of ‘this one time on their gap year’… You’ll soon know all of their stories better than they do. They rarely wear anything other than their harem pants from Indonesia, but in time you’ll get used to the smell of incense buring from their flat…
You can easily spot a Gap Yah Wanker from their clothes…
3. Third Year shark
Now beware of this one! Many third year students view their final freshers as a time to go absolutely wild and try and get with as many young and innocent fresh as possible. In the dark corners of Timepiece (where you’ll find yourselves on a Wednesday or Friday) sharking third (or second) years will attempt to snatch up any unsuspecting prey. Freshers is a time when everyone goes a bit wild and lets loose. Don’t worry if you get sharked by a third year, they mostly won’t remember your name, and it’s okay if you don’t remember theirs either!
4. That one flatmate you’ll meet on the first day and then never see again…
They say there’s one of these in every flat. You’ll meet this person on the first day, they seem quite nice if a bit timid, and then you’ll never see them again. Whether they’ve made different friends or dropped out, you’ll never be quite sure…
5. Long distance lover
We all know how it goes. You meet your bae the summer before going to uni and decide to keep it going the 200 plus miles. This fresher will miss half of pres because they were having a Skype argument with their significant other, and will be popping off to another university every weekend. Much like the flatmate you’ve only seen once, this fresh will disappear off the flat radar until they eventually break up with bae and make a comeback in second term and you’ll have to redo freshers with them because they missed out the first time round…
‘So..er..I’m not the best at life advice, but don’t worry… Jack, er John sorry was no good for you!’
6. Girls gone wild
If you’ve ever gone on a party holiday abroad, you’ll know there is always that one girl who takes it too far and ends up lying in her own sick before pres have even properly begun. Guaranteed they’ll be people who view freshers as Maga X2. As long as you don’t land yourself with the label of ‘The Liability’, you’re allowed to go a little bit crazy. Some of the best friendships are formed while holding each other’s hair back while you take turns to puke up that 7th tequila shot…
7. ‘I can’t wait for the course to start’
In every flat there is that one person who maybe goes out once during freshers and instead focuses their attention on rereading all of their course books for the fifth time in preparation. Each to their own…
8. Homesick fresher
While it’s perfectly natural to miss your home when you go through the transition of starting university, some people find it harder than others. Don’t worry if you find yourself looking up train times at four in the morning wishing you were in your own bed, that’s allowed! Just try and focus on having fun and remembering that everyone is in the same boat as you.
9. ‘Helicopter Henry’
At Exeter, there tends to be a trend of the ‘haves’ and the ‘have-even-mores’. Especially around Holland Hall, don’t be surprised if there’s that one fresher who needs to assert their position as Big Baller by turning up in their private heli.
10. Some of your best friends…
Freshers is a scary time for everyone involved and you’ll be meeting a lot of new people. Don’t worry if you don’t click right away with everyone, you’re bound to meet your crowd eventually. Some of your best friends are made at university. It just takes time, but you’ll be guaranteed to bump into the guy you were headbanging to Stacey’s Mom with in Mosaic… ‘Ah my fresher friend… no idea what his name is though…hi!’ It’s said that most Exeter students meet their future wife or husband with in the first three weeks of term. No pressure!
It’ll be messy, but be prepared for a whole lot of fun at Exeter freshers…