Living independently for the first time

By Lucy Carmouche, January 2025

For many people, starting university is the first time they live independently. Some people are excited for this newfound freedom, others dread it. What both groups have in common is that it’s a new experience and figuring out how to live independently for the first time is a gradual process. I am about to graduate (hopefully) this year, so want to share some of the tips and tricks from my three years to hopefully give you a head start.

Settling in

• Unpack as soon as possible. Leaving boxes and suitcases un-opened will make it harder to feel comfortable in your new space. What you fill your space with is important to. One of my biggest tips is bringing parts of home to your new place. My first year room boasted my One Direction and Star Wars posters that I’ve had since I was eight, clipped photos of family and friends on my boards, blankets, books, vinyl’s and even my childhood teddy (something a lot of people had). I can truly say that decorating with these personal items made Lancaster immediately feel like home.
• Familiarise yourself with your surroundings. You probably know your hometown like the back of your hand, it’s one of the things that makes it feel like home. So, take time to explore your new place and become an expert on where the best coffee shops are, study spaces on and off campus and activity hubs like Morecambe and the Lake District. One thing that helped me immediately settle in was exploring the woodland walk around campus because I used to walk around the woodlands at home all the time. Getting to know Lancaster with others is also one of the best ways to spend time.

Looking after your space and yourself

Cleaning

My mum has always said a clean space equals a clean mind. When living independently for the first time, taking the advice of those around you who have done it for years is not a bad idea. My mum was (and always is if she’s reading this) right. I found setting aside 30 minutes on the same day every week to clean my space properly, and another day to wash my clothes helped me stay on top of things. Also, one thing I have learnt over my three years is that washing a dish will take you 20 seconds max. Some days staying on top of your space will be more difficult than others but splitting up tasks with flatmates and playing your favourite album whilst doing these tasks does make it more manageable.

Cooking

Another new experience may be cooking for yourself. I don’t know about any of you, but I was no Angela Hartnett when I moved out. I knew the basics like pasta, stir fry’s and microwave meals… and those served me well. However, this was the first time I could choose all my meals and wanted to take full advantage. I would advise you to look at recipes online or maybe note down some from family (this also has the added bonus of bringing you some home comfort). Some people bulk prep there meals for the week to save time and stick to pretty healthy food. I’d also recommend having easy make meals always in your cupboard, so if you are tired you can always have a bowl of noodles to tide you over.

Managing Finance

Living independently means taking charge of your finances. This can be a skill that takes some practice. Here are my three top tips for budgeting:

• Keep track of your expenses. I create an Excel spreadsheet for every month to keep taps on what money comes in and out of my account. It has rows like ‘Food Shop’, ‘Transport’, ‘Nights Out’, ‘Birthdays’, and ‘Rent’.
• Prioritise the essentials. From looking at your spreadsheet you may notice you spend more money than you would like to on non-essentials. I found setting up specific budgets for each row, like £60 on nights out and £120 for the food shop every month helped me prioritise and also save money.
• Research Student bank accounts. These are accounts made for people in higher education and can include additional benefits like a free railcard, free money and an interest-free overdraft.

Staying organised and creating a routine

Staying organised is integral to be able to manage all your new responsibilities and workload but it can sometimes feel like a very impossible task. Straight up, things will sometimes become disorganised. Finding the best way that works for you to try and stay organised, however, will make your life feel easier and give you more spare time to do things you enjoy.

• Building a routine can really help. Schedule your time, either in a planner, calendar or using daily lists to note down when you have work, lectures, times to study, exercise and other activities. How OTT you want to be with it is up to you but making a schedule is a sure fire way to stay productive and well-balanced.
• Another important thing that can be tricky when living independently (and at university) is having a good sleep schedule. A good night’s sleep looks different for everyone and there is nothing wrong with having a lie in. Still, science shows that falling asleep and waking up at a similar time each day improves your mood, health and energy levels. Your routine will very likely change throughout your life but starting strong from university will help you find what works best for you moving forward.

Making friends at university

I couldn’t remember a time before university when I had no friends. I felt like I had forgotten almost, and as no one from my home city came to Lancaster, I was a little nervous about doing it again at the age of 18. Fortunately, Lancaster made it pretty simple. From the get-go during freshers there are so many college and university wide events to go and meet people at. Take advantage of this and maybe set up a group chat with your new flat mates and go together. I found joining societies one of the best ways to meet people because we already had a common interest and got to meet up every week.

Though you may be tired of the whole 'course, name, and where you're from' spiel by the second week, it truly is the best way to make friends. I also want to emphasise that making friends is a different process for everyone and everyone around you is going through the exact same thing. If I could tell 18 year old me one thing, making new friends was something to look forward to, not to be nervous of.

Homesickness

Whether moving to Lancaster is a 3 mile journey or a 3000 mile one, you are in a non-familiar place surrounded by new people. This is not to frighten you, and hopefully some of my advice should mean this is not the case for long. It is very normal to feel homesick and here are some of my best tips for handling it:

• As previously mentioned, making your space your own. Bringing pieces from home and decorating your room with photos of those you love will help tons.
• Maintaining existing friendships with friends from home is also key. Set up regular face time calls or if you are able, go visit their uni and have them come and visit you. My best friend went to a university in Manchester and setting aside time for this really helped ease some feelings of homesickness.
• Staying in touch with your family, maybe once every week or whenever you need to call your family. If you can, maybe have them come up to you or take a trip home. This is not I’m a Celeb, no one is forcing you to have no contact with the outside world. These little catch ups are one of the best medicines for homesickness and will help you grow more confident that you can do this whole living independently thing.
• Making friends. People from Lancaster may become like a new family to you. Yes that is a bit cringe, but it is also true for a lot of people. Lancaster itself as a university and a place may become a comfort to you and soon enough, weirdly, leaving it may make you feel homesick too.

Final thoughts

I hope that this has helped somewhat, if you’re either living independently for the first time or if you’re in need of a little refresher. Also, remember that there’s loads of people to talk to at uni about this if you find yourself needing any more tips and advice!