It can be really daunting moving into a new area, especially with strangers! I lived with 7 other people in university accommodation in my first year. Now, I'd consider myself to be easy to get along with, (I hope anyway!) but sometimes I struggle around new people. I remember feeling excited at the prospect of university, however, as I pressed down on the door handle to the flat I started to get SUPER nervous, I remember shaking - and that was having already spoken via Facebook to my flatmates!
I found it really helpful being able to find my flatmates before I moved in. I was in a big group chat for Crown Place (the accommodation I stayed at in first year, it's at the University of Liverpool and I deffo recommend it!) and I think there were polls for each block and then inside those group chats, there were polls for each individual flat so you could find people who were in your block, and also in your flat. I managed to find most people who I'd be sharing a flat with and we spoke a fair bit in the few weeks before uni, everyone got to know each other and it definitely calmed some nerves that I had before moving in day!
Through social media, I was also able to find chats for my course, this was most useful for knowing about information and things, as well as some general chit chat. I remember the week after freshers week, a few of us arranged to have a few drinks at The Sphinx (our SU bar) which was really nice and that's really where I met Josie!
Making friends at uni can be worrying also, and my advice would be: really try to push yourself and take any opportunity. If anything interests you, or if there's anything which gives you an opportunity to meet people, accept the invitation. The start of the semester is potentially the best time to meet people as everyone is in the same boat as you are; they want to talk to you and get to know you!
Having said that, it took me a few months to form some good friendships outside of my flat, and I definitely recommend meeting people from outside your flat, even if you hit it off from the moment you meet them, it's best to throw yourself out there and meet lots of people rather than relying on your flat, as they might not always be there for you, or you may come to realise that they're not your type of people.
A lot of people have an amazing time at the start of uni and in freshers week. However, this doesn't happen to everyone at all, freshers week isn't the easiest for most people as you're really thrown in at the deep end!
Considering EVERYTHING seems to be online at the moment due to COVID-19 (especially before actual uni starts), social media seems to be where it's at! It's not going to be like normal to meet new people, at all, but as long as you're aware of your university's regulations and do what you can within those and make the most of it, you can still have a fab uni experience!
Love Ailsa x