An image of students enjoying Welcome Week at YSJ, they're meeting in the Creative Centre and enjoying Freshers' Fair, where sports and societies come together to showcase what new students can enjoy and try and become members of.
Student Life

My Welcome Week Experience

GRACE COLEMAN

Starting university can feel like a lot, but Welcome Week at York St John helps to make things easier. Here is my experience of Welcome Week, along with some advice and recommendations on how you can make the best of your first week at university

The First Week

As a Law student, my first day was an introduction to the course. We were told how the degree is structured, what each year would look like, and how we’ll be assessed. These are the kind of things you look at when deciding which university to apply to. However, hearing directly from course leaders and lecturers helped to make the process feel more relaxing and reassuring. We found out what lectures and seminars are like, how to prepare for them, and where to go if we need help. This help could be academic support, wellbeing services, or careers advice, which YSJ has an abundance of.

Later in the week, we were split into smaller groups. We took part in some light icebreaker activities and had group discussions tailored to our study, helping us adjust to the course through the prompts. It was a good way to meet people and get a feel for how seminars can work, without too much pressure or stress.

There were also short sessions on important things like plagiarism, referencing, and how to use the library. These were useful and made it clear what’s expected in terms of academic writing and research, which was particularly helpful for me, as I know it was for others, as it helped to shape our studying.

Reflections

Overall, Welcome Week was a helpful way to get started. It wasn’t intense, and it gave us the chance to get used to the uni environment, meet our lecturers and classmates, and understand what’s ahead. I didn’t come away knowing everything, but I felt a lot more prepared than I did at the start of the week. If you’re about to start at York St John, my advice would be to take it all in, ask questions if you’re unsure, and don’t stress too much. Everyone’s figuring it out at the same time; you’re all in this together.

To find out more information about our students’ experience creating content as Student Voice Ambassadors, please read Ellie’s blog.

To explore more content from our Student Voice Ambassadors, make sure to check our Student Voices webpage.

GRACE COLEMAN

Hi! My name is Grace and I’m a 1st year Law student at York St John. Although I only live down the road in Scarborough, I’m living in York with a student accommodation provider for my first year. I have fallen in love with the city and the university so far, and I am so excited to see what is still to come – I couldn’t imagine being anywhere else! I decided to become a Student Voice Ambassador to show others aspiring to come to university the actual reality of student life, like the amazing rewards of being a YSJ student at such a brilliant university in an amazing city. However, I think it’s also important to show that sometimes life can be tough as a student, especially away from home, but how support is available in abundance from everyone in the university, and how it helps you to empower yourself. Fun fact: I have a huge fascination with bees. It started when I wrote an essay on their importance to the environment in secondary school, and I discovered how amazing the tiny creatures actually were- such a small insect with huge global significance! It’s as if they’re a metaphor for us to – no matter how small we feel in the grand scheme of things, we can do things to make a big difference.