1. If you haven’t already done this (or parents made you do it during a tour) take a picture with the wildcat statue!
Comparison pictures from year one to graduation can be a memorable college keepsake.
2.Attend a social in your dorm.
All of the dorms on campus, especially the all-freshman dorms like Christensen and Williamson, have weekly socials with various events you can go to such as tye-dying, trivia night, Bachelor viewing parties, pizza socials and more. It’s a great way to get to know the people in your dorm, your RAs, and most of the time it involves free food!
3. Join a club / go to Uday.
You will hear this starting day 1 from your parents, professors, advisors, etc.: join a club or organization. It’s easy to look them up on UNH’s website and email the coordinators directly. But it’s even better to attend University Day (UDay) in the fall where all of the clubs and student organizations gather with booths and sign up for anything that interests you. It’s a fun event to go to since pretty much the whole University is out on T-hall.
4. Take a fitness class.
Campus recreation offers tons of free fitness classes throughout the year. Classes are fun and there’s something for everyone including zumba, pilates, yoga, boot camp, total-body toning and more! If you can’t get yourself to the gym, check out the fitness class schedule on the campus rec website and bring your friends.
5. Hit some of the key food spots.
There are so many places to eat on-campus and downtown. Some of the key ones you should visit your first year are Wild Kitty (Wildcatessen), Dhop (Durham House of Pizza), The Dairy Bar, Libby’s, and at least one coffee truck. Also, Philbrook Dining Hall has late night hours and (since I lived right in Christensen) it’s the perfect location for some 11 o’clock cereal, french fries, or french toast sticks.
6. Go to a hockey game and/or football game
Whether you’re a sports fan or not, UNH games are an amazing experience that everyone should go to at least once. Standing in the student section of the Whittemore arena and participating in the chants at hockey games is so much fun. The brand new Wildcat Stadium should also be reason enough to make it to a home football game.
7.Study in Diamond Library.
The library is a beautiful building with tons of space in it. It’s a very quiet place to go if you just need to focus and get studying, but it also has rooms where more people can gather for study groups or projects.
8. Go to Wagon Hill Farm.
It’s just a bus ride out of campus to see a relaxing view of the lake and take pictures. If you want to just get off campus and have a day outside, go to Wagon Hill Farm with some friends.
9. Go to a concert put on by SCOPE.
Believe it or not, some pretty famous people perform at the Whitt every year! (Logic, Future, Kygo, Lee Brice, Lupe Fiasco, etc.) Keep an eye out for announcements about the fall or spring concerts and buy your tickets fast.
10. Sit on T-hall lawn on a sunny day.
It’s the perfect place to throw a Frisbee or football, sit and do homework, lounge in a hammock, or just get some sun. Also, there’s a guarantee you’ll see some puppies running around.