Are you excited and nervous about starting university? Are you getting sweaty palms at the thought of living with new people? Firstly, its completely normal to feel anxious but don’t stress we’ve got your back with these five tips on how to get to know your new housemates.

Tip 1: Introduce yourself

Introduce yourself to everyone when you first arrive. Remember everyone is feeling a bit awkward and shy, so be brave and make the first move. When you move in make sure you introduce yourself, and if you are moving into student dorms, then leave your room door ajar. This will signal your moving in and people can pop their head in and say hello!

 Tip 2: Tea is always a treat

Offer to make everyone a “cuppa” and throw in some biscuits and you’ll be well on your way to making new friends. The simple task of making tea and having to ask how everyone takes their tea is a conversation opener and once you’ve done the hard bit of starting a conversation then everyone will relax and chip in and hopefully help you make the tea!

 Tip 3: Cook a meal

If you can cook, then it is a great way to get to know people. Perhaps try cooking a dish that is your favourite, and if you’re not from the UK then cook a dish from your country. This will make a great talking point and will help you bond with people. It could even become a weekly thing with a different person doing to cooking each time     

 Tip 4: Go to the pub together

Going to the pub is always a great suggestion but be mindful that some of your housemates may not drink alcohol or may not want to get drunk, so go easy with how you frame it, for example find a local pub that serves awesome food and suggest you all go out for a bite to eat and a chill out, rather than just go out for a drink.

Tip 5: Discover the campus together

Any university campus, large or small, can feel intimidating at the beginning and whilst your university will arrange tours you might find all your classes are in one part of the university campus, so a great way to get to know different parts of the campus is to meet up for lunch with your housemates and get to meet their classmates and friends.

This guest blog post was produced by Great British Mag, a digital magazine for international students in the UK.