Adjusting to life in Leicester

Starting your law degree is an exciting time but coming to university can be a big step and it may take a little while for you to adjust. 

Life as a law student at Leicester may be very different from what you have experienced before and it is not unusual to find all the changes difficult to get used to at first.

The University has lots of useful information for new students on settling in once you have arrived.

Advice from our students

This is what our current students said about their experiences and the advice they would give to new students:

What helped you to settle in?

• "Speaking with my personal tutor during the first fortnight was really reassuring."
  
  
• "I kept myself busy – joining clubs and societies and exploring around the city – and so I didn’t have time to dwell on the things I was worrying about."
  
  
• "The activities in the International Welcome Week really helped me to settle in and meet people. Meeting other people from my own country was good - immediately we had something in common.”
  
  
• "When I was in my room in halls I kept my door open so I could say 'Hi' to the people passing."
  
  
• "It sounds boring, but reading EVERYTHING that I was given by the Law School and what was on Blackboard meant that I knew what I was supposed to be doing."

What helped you survive your first year?

• "Make sure you develop your time management skills so you keep on top of your reading and tutorial preparation. If you get behind it can be hard to catch up."
  
  
• "If you have a problem – ask! All the lecturers have 'office hours' when you can go and see them."
  
  
• "Read the information provided by the Law School. I studied at university before, but the rules and procedures are different at Leicester, so it’s important to know what you have to do."

What have you learnt about British culture as an international student?

• '"You alright?' or 'Alright?' is a greeting and is a combination of 'Hello' and 'How are you?’. They don’t really mean that they want to know how you are feeling or that there is something wrong. You can just reply with ‘hello’ or 'I’m fine thank you'."
  
  
• "A lot of Brits will use words like 'love', 'dear', 'darling' or 'sweetheart' at the end of sentences. In the Midlands and Northern England some people also say 'duck'. They are just meant as expressions of friendliness."
  
  
• "Pubs, bars and nightclubs are really popular social locations for students. Student societies might organize pub crawls (which involve visiting a number of places in a particular order) or drinking games. Some students do drink to excess, but not everyone does. There are plenty of social events at uni that don’t involve drinking."
  
  
• "The British use sarcasm and irony quite a lot in daily life. Sometimes it’s hard to decipher when someone is joking or being serious and it may take a bit of time to get used to this."

Further advice

• View the University’s checklist for international students.