Start of year essentials
Get organised in your first few days!
Article by : SpunOut.ie
Spend your first few days at university or college organising all the annoying but essential stuff of student life. This can include:
- Unpacking and making your new accommodation feel like a comfortable home. If you’re sharing with other people, make sure to check with them before doing anything drastic!
- Getting to know your new neighbourhood - find the nearest supermarkets and bus stops.
- Enrolment and registering for your course. Make sure to explore the campus so you know where everything is and how to get to classes.
- Checking whether your student grant or loan has arrived.
- Paying any tuition fees and accommodation costs.
- Working out a realistic budget for all your expenses.
- Find out about the college health service and whether you need to register with a doctor.
- Getting a library card and a student card.
- Buying anything that you still need for your accommodation or studies.
- Searching for a part time job if you need extra money to get you through the year.
- You should start to settle in and make new friends during the first months at Uni. However if you feel like things aren’t going well, you’re stressed or with serious money problems then speak to one of your lecturers or a campus counsellor. Your student’s union will have information on who can help get you out of a sticky spot.
Start of year costs
When you start college or university, you can expect a lot of expenses. It’s a good idea to have some money saved or to budget carefully for the following:
- Accommodation deposit (usually the same as one month’s rent but some places now ask for a month and a half’s rent as deposit).
- At least one month’s rent in advance. This means that if your accommodation costs €600 (£400) a month then you might have to pay €1200 (one month’s rent in advance and one month’s deposit) BEFORE moving in.
- College or university registration fees.
- Anything you need to buy for your new home (bed clothes, TV, TV license, kitchen stuff and so on).
- Books, stationery and maybe a computer.
- Equipment for your course.
- Student card, student union’s card, student travel card, bus or rail pass and all the passport photos you need for these!
- Socialising with your new friends, it’s just as important that you have enough money to do this! Just don’t party so hard that you can’t make it to morning lectures.
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