Fresher’s Week is one of the highlights of the university experience. But what if it falls short of your expectations? Award-winning YA author, Sara Barnard, talks to us about why it’s ok if Fresher’s Week doesn’t go as planned and how to get through it with your positivity intact! Her brilliant new book, Something Certain, Maybe addresses the rarely-talked-about experience many go through when the reality of university life isn’t quite as expected.

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There are so many things to think about when preparing for the university experience, not to mention the building anticipation of Fresher’s Week! Getting the right laptop, the right posters for the wall, the right first-day outfit, the right stationery set, the right frying pan. And that’s not even starting on all the daydreams of the year to come, those flatmates who will (hopefully) become friends, the lectures that will change lives, the nights out that will form lifelong anecdotes – and Fresher’s Week kicks it all off…

What can get lost in all this preparing and planning and dreaming and hoping is the one thing that can make all of the difference: expectations vs reality.

It’s so easy to get caught up in the excitement of all the brilliant ways it will go that preparing for the possibility that it might not can get a little lost. So my main piece of advice for Freshers embarking on their great university experience, beginning with Freshers week, is to manage your expectations.

Here’s my advice on how to keep it real:

It is just one week

If it goes brilliantly, great! What a great first week. If it goes badly, that’s OK! It’s just one week.

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Set your own limits

As exciting and overwhelming as it all may feel and as much as you may think you need to ‘keep up’ with other people and show how fun you are, the only person who actually decides how much fun you will have is you. Trust your own instincts. You don’t have to stay out all night or drink the bar dry to make friends. (Unless you want to! But if you do, please, make sure you drink some water before you go to bed!)

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Remember everyone is in the same boat

It might not feel like it, because some people are just plain better at pretending, but everyone is new, everyone is trying to make friends, everyone is nervous and excited and overwhelmed. Be kind to yourself, and to others. It will really make a difference in the moments when it feels overwhelming.

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Check in with the people that love you

They may feel very far away, but your old life is still there and the people in it will probably be thinking about you constantly, maybe worrying about you, wanting to ask how it’s all going but not wanting to bother you during such an exciting time. Check in and let them know how it’s going and how you’re doing. A little ‘love you’ message goes a long way, in both directions.

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Don’t forget to enjoy yourself!

This is a week full of potential in so many different ways and it really is all in your hands. Whatever this means for you, enjoy yourself.

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Sara Barnard’s fantastic new book Something Certain, Maybe is hot off the press after being recently published by Macmillan. Get your teens to read this poignant tribute to students who are navigating the reality of university life and facing an unknown future. Get yours here!