Sep
#SotonQandA Round-Up – Everything you wanted to know
We held the second part in our series of live Q&As on Wednesday, where you took to Twitter using the hashtag #SotonQandA to ask us everything you wanted to know about student life and Freshers’. Our Vice-President Engagement, Dan Varley joined us to answer your questions. Here’s a quick round-up of what happened…
- You asked us about free bus passes for Freshers’ in Halls and yes, you lucky lot do indeed get free access to Unilink bus passes if you are in Halls of Residences. You’ll find this is a great way to get around the city efficiently (especially if it rains!). If you live in Winchester, we offer a free shuttle bus between WSA and our Highfield campus that you can access using your Student ID card. You can find the full timetable here.
2. Aside from working and playing hard, food has to be a top priority for any student. Rachel took to our live Twitter chat to ask more about where you can find the best takeaways.
3. There are a lot of Freshers who are keen to find out more about life in Halls and Amber was no different, asking about how many students lived in each flat in Richard Newitt Courts. These questions are best answered by University Residences or our Halls Committees, so make sure you get in touch.
4. We understand that many of our members are concerned about when lectures start. UCAS usually list course start dates as 01 September by default, but lectures start at the University of Southampton from Monday 03 October (varying depending on each course). Don’t worry, you will have plenty of time to find out more information about your timetable and how lectures work when you arrive during Freshers’.
5. Rachel wanted to know about whether students can bring their own printer or scanner to Halls. You’re free to bring whatever you like! Don’t forget that there are many libraries on campus where you can print items and students have a printing allowance, so you won’t need to pay unless you print large quantities and more specialist documents, such as dissertations.
6. George is among many students who have asked us about job opportunities on campus. We employ over 300+ student support staff to help us run our outlets, so we opportunities in our bars, The Shop, Lettings agency and more. If you are interested in gaining experience for your future career, we also offer crew member roles within our Marketing & Communications, Technology and Events departments. We usually have a large recruitment drive just after Freshers’ – you can keep up-to-date with the latest at www.unionsouthampton.org/work-with-us
7. Ally took to Twitter to ask us about car parking at the University. Car parking is organised by the University – you can get a permit for Halls or park as a visitor on campus. Find out more on their website.
8. Your Student ID card is a must – it is your access to libraries, Sport and Wellbeing and the Unilink bus service. You will also need a Student ID card to pick up tickets from our Box Office for Freshers’. Therefore, we urge you to order yours as soon as possible from the University website.
9. Carys had another question relating to timetables. The University do a fantastic job of co-ordinating timetables, but with so many courses and so many students, it is quite common to have the odd lecture clash. If you pop on the University website, you can find a full FAQs section explaining what to do in this situation.
You can also access your timetable by doing the following:
- Log into SUSSED (https://sussed.soton.ac.uk/cp/home/displaylogin) using the username the university gave you, which is also your email address e.g. ghy1k16 (no need to put the full address when you log onto SUSSED) and the password you chose during the enrolment process
- Once you are logged in, your account shows all the links you need, services available and events coming up. Click on “Online Timetable”
- Your timetable will open in a new tab – you can display it by week, month, module or location.
- Click on a slot to see more information about it e.g. location, lecturer, week pattern etc.
Thank you to everyone who sent in those questions. Based on other FAQs we have had over the past few weeks, we have a few extra ones to add:
Sports Tasters – What’s it all about?
After meeting the 100+ sports clubs at our Bunfight: Student Groups Fayre (on Wednesday 28 September) and picking up enough leaflets to build a paper fort, you may be feeling a bit overwhelmed. Fear not! These leaflets have the time and location of each club’s tasters. If not, they have the contact details and the link to their Facebook page, where you will find all the information you need.
There’s a good chance you put down your new university email on several clubs’ contact list during Bunfight: Student Groups Fayre – in this case, you can sit back and wait in anticipation for our Sports Tasters! This is a weekend of sport run by our student groups to help you get a sense of what our sports clubs have to offer and see if you like it!
Join us on Saturday 01 and Sunday 02 October (www.unionsouthampton.org/calendar) around the various sports facilities, university and union buildings.
They are ALL FREE and require no club/sports membership!
If you miss the Sports Tasters – don’t panic! The first sessions of most clubs are free so you can attend anyway and see if you like it before joining!
Understanding Halls Room Numbers
We have had many of you asking how to interpret your Halls room codes. Halls of Residences are run by the University, so it is best to contact them to be sure. Each Halls has slightly different coding systems based on the set-up of the Halls. However, our Halls Committees have handily written a quick guide to help you find out your room numbers based on City Gateway:
GWA 6003A-L6
So, the first bit, GWA, indicates what block you’re in. The last letter is the bit to look at, either A, B, C or D.
The next bit, 6003A, is your room number. The 6 is the floor you’re on, the 003 is the room number you’re in (all flats have 7 rooms). Most floors have two flats on, either A or B, the last letter here is the flat you’re in.
The last bit, L6, just indicates again what level you’re on!
So this student was in Block A, Level 6, Flat A and in Room 3
Union events and information – How do I find out more?
Trying to make sense of the tidal wave of events that just bowled you over? Visit our website calendar at www.unionsouthampton.org/calendar to get all the information you need about each event and make your pick! (Remember our main events have their own Facebook event available on our Freshers’ page).
Want to go for a pint at The Stag’s or a bite to eat at The Café? Check out the opening times of all the Union’s retail facilities, the Advice Centre and much more on our website!
We are offering you many day-time and night-time events during Freshers’ and the rest of the year. For our ticketed events, you will need to get your tickets from our Box Office at www.unionsouthampton.org/boxoffice or from our Union Reception (Building 42), Highfield campus.
As you will have read earlier, our Bunfight: Student Groups Fayre is on Wednesday 28 September during Freshers’. This is when we give you an opportunity to meet our 300+ student groups (clubs and societies). Get a sneak peek at what’s on offer on our website at www.unionsouthampton.org/groups.
Have you got any more questions? Get some more clarification or simply find out more about our Unionby contacting us via Twitter @Union_Soton and we will be more than happy to help.
#SotonFreshers
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