From first-night tears to conquering uni fears!

Welcome to First Year Diaries, our student blog series where we look back on the many different experiences of first year at Queen Mary. This entry was written by Smriti, a biomedical sciences student who is graduating in 2025.

The photos used do not represent the people in the stories.

How old were you when you started your first year at Queen Mary? 18

Had you ever been to university before? No

Arrival Day

Tell us a bit about your life growing up

I grew up in a small town in what you could call the countryside of the UK, but coming from an Asian background with immigrant parents, I had my quirks. In school, I was a quiet girl that kept to herself; I went to an all girls school and had a tight group of friends. As I grew up, I did learn to slowly get out of my shell but, coming from such a small town, I was always in my comfort zone with most of the people around me. Going to university was veryyy scary for me! But it was something that I always wanted to do.

How did it feel when you got to campus for the first time?

The first time I stepped onto campus was on my move-in-day, so it was very overwhelming. Coming to London wasn't new, but this time I had my family give me a send-off, with flowers and a car filled to the brim! (I was just moving rooms technicallyy, but just 60miles away).

When I got to campus, the noisy trolley, key card and a letter with my room number was handed to me. I was told I was on the top floor of Pooley, and I was thrilled! The canal view, the view of London from the top floor, what more could I want? As I went towards Pooley with my noisy trolley, I read 1-16 first block 17-30 something second block. Then it hit me, I wasn't on the top floor, I was on the bottom floor!

I was devastated. I thought, well it is what it is, and proceeded to go to Flat 17. It took me around 2-3 hours just to move in my items. At the end of all the moving, I was grateful I had the ground floor and not the top, as I couldn't imagine moving all that stuff to the top floor. But on move-in day I think I was too preoccupied making sure I had everything I needed to really comprehend anything.

Which hall of residence did you live in?

Pooley House

Did you start unpacking as soon as you got to the room?

I did not start unpacking. Instead, my dad took a nap on the naked mattress while me and my sister went to grab food! I think my first meal in my flat was KFC.

Tell us about meeting your first new flatmate

I remember we had door tags that we could fill out and hang on the doors. I filled mine out, then saw that another person had one hanging on their door, so I snooped and went to read it. In the kitchen, ResLife had left a big interactive map to help us introduce ourselves to each other, so I filled that out too!

The first new flatmate I met was super nice and extroverted, something I was overwhelmed by at first, but now looking back I think it was the type of flatmate I needed. All my flatmates were super nice and welcoming, I remember playing loads of different games in the first week of university just getting to know them. People were of different ages, from different countries and studying different things. I think coming to university was very daunting to me, as none of my friends from back home were going to QMUL.

What did you do in the evening?

I remember cleaning my room and putting all my items in their places. The idea of having unpacked boxes in a room I was going to sleep in overnight was not a nice image in my head hehe, so I just cleaned and slept on that first evening. I also remember calling my parents.

How were you feeling when you went to sleep that night?

I was super excited! The independence I was feeling, the idea of living by myself and the thought of exploring London was so exciting to me, and I remember going to bed feeling really great.

BUT, this all came crashing down when I woke up at 3am from a nightmare that left me in tears. Maybe I wasn't as prepared and calm about moving to university as I had first thought!

I called my dad at 3am, thinking I was just going to have to deal it myself as he would be asleep as anyone would be at 3am. To my surprise, he did pick up the call, and our conversation was definitely something I needed. After that, I stopped convincing myself that I had to deal with this alone, and accepted that I didn't have to be okay straight off the bat. It would take me time to acclimatise to this change, and that was okay.

Freshers Week

Describe freshers week at Queen Mary in one word:

Freebies!

What did you get up to?

I met loads of new people! I exchanged socials with a lot people (half of whom I don't speak to anymore to be honest), but that allowed me to come out of my shell more, which I think helped me a lot in university!

I also joined and talked to lots of societies that I was interested in, which was always fun, but I did end up spending money on some societies where I only attended one event...

I also went grocery shopping, but I knew to only buy items in my budget. Cooking was something I always loved, so apart from dinners with my flatmates and other friends here and there, I mostly cooked for myself during Freshers Week. Whilst cooking I got to meet my other flatmates, too! I also went to my fresher friends' flat and cooked there too, and met lots of people that way. I usually did not feel homesick but as soon as I did or felt it coming, I would FaceTime home, and then I was good.

How did you feel when the first day of classes was looming?

Being a studious person ever since school, I was eager to get started with University work so I was looking forward to the degree!

The First Week of Classes

What was your very first class/lecture like?

It was very intimidating, also very fast. I knew that it would be much harder than A-Levels, but not that challenging. I think it took a few weeks for me to really get a routine down regarding note-taking and organising the content as it is such a content-heavy degree. However, I think if it wasn't so challenging it wouldn't be as enjoyable! The mixture of emotions I have felt during this degree is like no other, it has moulded me into the person that I am today.

Did you meet any memorable people in your classes?

There were many memorable instances; turning my camera on and not realising it was on on zoom in a lecture theatre with 200 people was definitely memorable for me, and hopefully for other people too, as it has been recorded on Qreview! (That is one of the very few lectures I have not rewatched because its haunting, it needs to be buried).

As for memorable people, I met two of my closest friends now through lectures, and without them I couldn't have survived this degree. With them there have been TOO many memorable moments both in lectures and outside of, which is something I will always treasure!

One Year On…

How did your feelings about your classes change with time?

Not to burst bubbles, but it does get harder! I'm not going to lie, there have been modules where I have cried every time before going in, but I think overcoming those hard modules, bad assignments and extenuating circumstances and still making it through is a true accomplishment.

Looking back, it feels good as I overcame such obstacles and dealt with it successfully. I definitely didn't struggle through it alone; I've had countless meetings with my advisors, module organisers and cryfests with my sisters, so you don't have to deal with it on your own either. There are a plethora of helping hands around you, USE THEM!

On the whole, what was your first year at Queen Mary like?

It was definitely much better than expected! I do wish I went to more ResLife events! I have learned to appreciate the events ResLife throws more since becoming a Residential Assistant myself; in first year I didn't go to many events, but I think my first year at QMUL would have been even better if I had.

Although I didn't stay friends with everyone that I met in the first week, and I don't talk to my first year flatmates very often anymore, the memories are still there. Throughout university I made lifelong friends: friends that I will invite to my wedding, friends who will probably give a speech too!

A lesson that I have learned along the way is definitely that no one cares what you are doing or saying! I think being an introvert, I am still learning this lesson everyday. But, I have become better than 18 year old me, and that is so so rewarding to think about.

If you had any advice for current or incoming first year students, what would it be?

Advice I would give to current/incoming students, especially as a graduate, is have fun!

Understand that people are too focused on themselves to judge what you are saying or doing, so live life the way you want it to make sure you gain everything university life has to offer!

Don't be shy to step out of your comfort zone, it is the only way to grow, and even if you don't end up making tons of friends in uni, its okay because you have your whole life ahead of you. Years of work, years of interacting with new people, and one day you are bound to meet YOUR people!

Love - Smriti hehehe