Life hacks for university students 

Going off to university is a big step. Around two-thirds of university students in the UK decide to move away from home for university, and for many, this is their first experience ever of living independently as an adult without their family. 

University is an amazing way to kick start adult life and your career journey, meet new people from all over the country and the globe, and a place that could be the making of the adult you! There are so many big lessons, in life and academia, that you can pick up at uni. 

To help you go about university life in a more savvy way, we at Currie Easy Self Storage have created this blog on life hacks for university students.

Prioritise looking after your personal health and wellbeing

First and foremost, being an adult and heading off to university will require you to take responsibility in a mature way to look after your personal health and wellbeing, including sexual and mental health. 

A crucial initial step (which many students ignore and forget to do) is to register with your local NHS GP practice. That way, if you have any health concerns that crop up during your time at university, your local GP practice will have all your medical notes at hand and be able to attend to your needs properly. 

Before, it may well have been that your parents organised your doctor and dentistry appointments! But now you’re at university, it falls on you to ensure you arrange your medical appointments accordingly.

If you need mental health support, therapy, or just someone to talk to who you feel you can trust, get in contact with your university’s student welfare support team. 

You may be able to get financial support 

If you are from a disadvantaged background and unable to afford study-related things like a laptop, books, and study supplies, you may be eligible for financial support and grants.

Enquire at your university to check if you can access Hardship Payments/Emergency Help Payments through the student support services.

Look to learn life lessons and grow as an adult

If you are starting university at 18 or 19 for example, you’re still very young! Fortunately, there are plenty of valuable life lessons you can pick up at uni, including living with other people, renting from a landlord, paying bills, interpersonal skills, research skills, team skills when completing projects in groups and plenty more.

At university, always look for ways to help you grow into a rounded responsible adult. Why not look into carrying out some enriching charity or volunteer work with a local organisation with people you might not otherwise often come across in everyday life at university? There are many charity schemes out there providing opportunities for students to support the homeless, disadvantaged, and elderly people in the community.

Try getting along with your flatmates

Flatmate disagreements, whether it be over clutter, loud music, or hygiene habits, are a typical common occurrence at university. After all, you may not know the people you will be sharing a flat with too well before signing on the dotted line of a tenancy agreement. And in the first year, your on-campus accommodation will most likely put you together with flatmates more or less at random! 

However, do what you can to try to get along with your flatmates as best as you can. You can do this by trying to find common ground. Perhaps you share a hobby for something, such as sports, technology, books, fashion, culture, or music? This is a great way to strike a good bond with your flatmates. 

Strike up a good bond with your lecturers

You can learn a great deal from your university professors. They will have worked hard to be specialists in their field and acquire a PhD, so your brain can work as a sponge and benefit from taking in all their knowledge, tips, and wisdom. 

In addition, if you manage to strike up a great bond with your lecturers then they will hopefully be able to provide you with glowing references to show to your future employers!

Get involved in extracurricular activities

Universities are positively brimming with extracurricular sports teams, all sorts of societies, clubs, and activist groups. Do you like having a well-informed debate? You can join a debating society at university to hone your skills.

Ultimately, employers out there today are after well-rounded dynamic individuals. So, it may help you a lot in the future if you can demonstrate that you got stuck into rewarding extracurricular activities on offer at university that went well beyond the necessities of doing your course. 

Take advantage of opportunities to gain professional experience

Some UK university courses offer students a year in industry or internship placements. If it could provide you with valuable professional experience you can use as a springboard for your career development, definitely consider taking up an internship or job placement. 

Don’t take yourself too seriously

Whether you are a younger or a mature student, it is a wise idea to try not to take yourself too seriously at university, and doing so could really rub people up the wrong way. Even if you are taking a highly demanding course such as medicine, try and ensure that you get out a bit to socialise and meet people during your first year at university.

Try making a connection with your surroundings and the local people

Moved away from home to a new town or city? Maybe you have moved to a new country for university? Whatever your situation may be, another wise hack for university students is to make a good connection with the community surrounding your university. You can do this by joining local clubs, initiatives, and sports teams, or even just by having friendly conversations with locals whenever you get the chance to do so. 

In fact, a large number of people choose to stay in the place they go to study at university for the long run and many years into their adult life. 

Store your possessions safely 

You may bring any number of possessions with you to university, from books and clothes to sports equipment, laptops, kitchenware, musical instruments, and lots more, and these items need to be stored safely and securely! 

Taking out an insurance policy to cover your personal belongings when you are sharing a flat or student accommodation on campus is a must. Your landlord’s insurance policy will not cover your personal belongings sadly, hence you must take out your own policy to cover your possessions.

Even if you store items under your bed, use plastic containers and multifunctional furniture, and come up with a few other crafty bedroom storage ideas, finding safe student storage for all your belongings at university can be an uphill struggle, all the more so if you have a small bedroom.

The solution to your student storage dilemmas? Hire a secure self storage unit at Currie Easy Self Storage with 24-hour CCTV monitoring. At our units at Isleworth and Twickenham, you will benefit from having 24-hour access to your belongings in storage.

Business storage for students

Have you come up with a cool business idea at university, such as creating a brand with online sales? Then your stock will need to be stored somewhere securely. You will be pleased to hear that we also have business storage units at Currie Easy Self Storage that you can use at any of our three self storage locations around greater London, Isleworth, Richmond, and Twickenham.  

Here at Currie Easy Self Storage, we have you covered for all your student storage needs. We see many student customers passing through our doors year after year who are thoroughly satisfied with our comprehensive storage solutions. Interested in hiring a self storage unit with us? Get in touch by calling 08000 556 556, or emailing info@curriestorage.co.uk