Fresher's week as a mature student

Hello! I’m Elena, aged 30, and last year, I applied to study at Solent University through an agency based in Romania – I was successful and started in September 2019.

I’ve wanted to go to University for a long time but hadn’t found the right course for me until I found BA (Hons) Marketing with Advertising here in Southampton and I was seeking an exciting change.

I was thrilled to be admitted and when I entered the Spark building on campus - I have to say I thought it was fabulous!

Fresher’s week is something like cotton candy, it’s done in what seems like a minute. Make sure you take lots of photos! One of the fun things for me was the bingo game. At first, as an international student, it felt quite lonesome and it took me time to get to know people, but it was a good way to be able meet people from other courses and halls of residence.

As an international student I attended other meetings in Fresher’s week, such as registering with the NHS and there was one touching on all things British, such as how dentists work here and what the emergency number is (999), and so on. This was very useful and helped me understand how to access support should I ever need it.

As for living arrangements, I live in Chantry - a halls of residence provided by Solent University which is not far from the main campus. I’ve now become more comfortable in the dorm life and also in the classroom environment. The first two months felt very lonely and out of place, like I do not belong here at all, but with patience and positivity the blues went away and my perspective shifted.