Hello!  

It’s been quite the busy few weeks here as a Postgrad, and I’m happy to have found the time to pop in and say hello! 

 Life’s been just a series of assignments, essays and coursework these days, and I cannot wait for Easter holidays! I look forward to unwinding here in Guildford, as I enjoy the views from my accommodation. I live at the University, and on living on campus has been quite fun. That brings me to what I’ll be talking about today – accommodation whilst studying at University! 

The housing options are broadly split between on-campus  and off-campus accommodation. The on campus accommodation includes the stag hill campus, the manor park student housing and the hazel farm student housing campuses. These student housing options are managed by the University, and they are spread across the 3 locations. Looking at University managed accommodations, they are split across various bands – Band A, B, C, D, E, F and family flats.  

These bands differ mainly in terms of size and facilities, and prices vary accordingly.  

My experience in University accommodation has been great so far – they are clean, safe and affordable! I live in a Band C room, which means that I get a single room with a sink. I share the bathrooms and kitchen with my flatmates, and its been quite pleasant so far. I haven’t had any issues of having to wait to use the facilities, and we have our beloved cleaners coming in every week to ensure maintenance. On-campus accommodation gives you the opportunity to socialise and get to know your flatmates – it can be an interesting experience! Band D, E and F have increasing facilities in that order, with en-suite and studio flat facilities. Both Manor Park and Hazel Farm are located away from campus, about 15 minutes by walk and have regular bus services to and fro from the University at Stag Hill. Pretty well connected and hassle free, if you’re looking to stay near University this would be a great option. 

Off campus accommodation primarily consist of privately let houses and rooms, managed by a landlord. These accommodations are quite common among students at the University – if you’re looking to stay outside the University campuses, there are quite a few options available. However, these fill up before the start of the academic year so its best advised to start looking if you’d like to stay off-campus. This can be another great  way to get to know people; meeting completely random people and sharing a house as housemates can be a great way to get out of your social comfort zone and interact with people from different backgrounds, as you can expect at University! These listings are primarily advertised on platforms like SpareRoom, Facebook Groups and the like. The University has privately managed accommodations as well, so it might be prudent to check out those options as well. 

All in all, the housing options at University and around offer unique experiences with their own features. It is best to choose an accommodation that caters to your level of comfort and needs, and information about all the housing types are available on the website here – https://www.surrey.ac.uk/accommodation/our-accommodation.  

Should you have any questions, please email us! We’re happy to help incoming and prospective students with their queries. 

See you in the next one, 

Cheers! 

Gaurav