Monday 7 October 2013

Fresher’s and Firsts


I’m sure for a 500 word post on my first 2 weeks at Sheffield I could simply make a list of feelings and emotions and that would be it, though I get the feeling that may be a little tedious to read. Instead I’ll try to fit in everything that I’ve done, though that could be difficult.

I guess the start is packing bags and loading the car, a mixture of feelings at this point; excitement, nervousness, eagerness to get here and start making new friends. Leaving home is fairly similar, and let’s be honest, different for everyone.

Arriving in Sheffield is the same as arriving in any city I’ve been to, a maze of roads; you just have to hope you’re on the right one and not about to be hit by a tram! Arriving at Endcliffe (student village) was much nicer, if only for the lack of trams, at that point there was a sense of relief and apprehension. Relieved because we were finally there (it’s only an hour and a half from home but that feels much longer the first time), apprehensive to see what my flat was like, how many people I’d be sharing with and all those other unknowns. When I did get into the flat I was pleasantly surprised to find that my room was huge, there were only 4 of us in the flat and all seemed fairly nice.


The Matrix bouldering wall in the Goodwin Sports Centre, a good place to spend the evening with other climbers.

CU acoustic night, Upstairs at Costa in Broomhill

CU acoustic night, Upstairs at Costa in Broomhill

I’ll stop waffling on about moving in and get on with fresher’s/intro week. It was a great week to make friends and meet plenty of people, not only within the department between talks, but also from the rest of the university through the huge range of activities throughout the week. By huge range I mean that I was struggling to choose each day! It was easy to make friends as everyone was looking to make friends and you had a warm welcome from everyone. One of the places I met the most people was at the CU (Christian union) acoustic night, it was a great night to relax and talk over a coffee to people from all over the university. 




One of the highlights from fresher’s week was the model glider competition which we all took part in within the department. The challenge was to build a glider from a number of pieces of balsa wood which achieved the longest total flight time over two flights. There were plenty of designs around and plenty of failures; I would say my group was on the better side of failure though it certainly wasn’t great. Either way it was a great way to get to know a smaller group of people better which was really enjoyable and seems to have made some lasting friendships.

The Balsa Baron from Team ‘Winging It’

There were so many other events to do, and so many societies and sports teams to look in the fairs, but at the end of the day fresher’s was a busy week.

First Lecture

First lectures last Monday were a little tedious as many were introductions to topics, but things improved towards the end of the week. I’m still trying to find the best way to make notes in lectures and settling in to the new learning style takes some time.
A little student participation in lectures
A private side room and bar just for us!
I’ll finish up with the AEROSOC social from Thursday night. It was great to be with so many people doing the same course and to enjoy spending time together on a night out. It was a great way to round up my first two amazing weeks at uni.

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