There’s a spectacular kind of magic that one can feel when you drag two overstuffed suitcases down a university corridor, heart hammering, and slide a room key into a lock for the very first time. That was me, an international student from India, walking into what would be my home for the next whole year. Standing in that small room on move-in weekend, I remember thinking: ” This is really happening!”
And then Freshers’ Week began, and it really, really happened.
Running from 15 to 20 September, Freshers’ Week at Surrey was nothing short of a whirlwind. Every day was like a new page of a book, and I mean that literally. One afternoon, I was at a canvas painting session, carefully dabbing colour onto a blank white square (mine looked questionable, but I owned it). Next, I was hunched over a table decorating cards, laughing with people whose names I’d only just learned. There was no time to feel homesick because the timetable wouldn’t allow it.
But if there was one day that stood out above all others, it was the Freshers’ Fair. Picture this: an enormous space (Pats Field) buzzing with energy, packed with stalls, freebies, games, and more goodie bags than my two suitcases could ever hold. Every society at Surrey had set up its own stall, from sports clubs to cultural societies to quirky hobby groups I didn’t even know existed. It was like a taster menu of everything university life had to offer, and I wanted to try them all.
I played small games to win prizes (some I won, some I absolutely did not), grabbed every free goodie bag in sight, and wandered from stall to stall just soaking it in. I remember there were cameras streaming people live on a big screen in the middle of the fair, and when I saw myself, I started laughing, recording, and showing it to my parents. It gave students like me a brand-new, a little wide-eyed, genuine feel for what Surrey is all about.
My unofficial highlight of Freshers’ Week? Becoming an accidental tour guide for my parents back in India. Mid campus walks, I pulled out my phone, hit video call, and gave them the full University experience. The ginormous buildings (especially The Duke of Kent building), the open green spaces, the beautiful lake, and the energy of hundreds of students finding their feet, just like me. Mum gasped and said “Wah, wah!” approximately twelve times. Dad immediately launched into a questionnaire that would have impressed any university admissions officer. I laughed the whole way through, and somewhere between their questions and their smiles, I realised that even from thousands of miles away, they were right there with me.
As an Indian student, my culture travels with me wherever I go. Wearing traditional Indian attire and sharing those moments on Instagram felt like a quiet, proud statement: I’m here, and I’m bringing all of me with me.
To any future fresher reading this: pack light if you can (I clearly couldn’t), say yes to everything, and don’t forget to call home. Because Freshers’ Week is just the beginning, and if Surrey’s opening act is anything to go by, the rest of the show is going to be brilliant.
Jia – Banking and Finance student
