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fresher's diary

First year Simon Hall describes his induction week

 

Saturday

As I arrived at Paddock Field it felt good to be on campus, along with my parents and a car packed to the roof. My flat had a large communal area with lots of chairs to lounge around on, bright orange walls with posters and a big open kitchen area with views straight out onto the sports pitches and miles of countryside. I was pleasantly surprised at my room which was bigger than I expected, with a small en-suite and plenty of cupboard space.

My flatmates were very friendly and like me, were a bit nervous and couldn’t wait to get to know everyone else. We were half boys and half girls and even better we all turned out to be medics! After checking out the flat we all relaxed in the lounge and got to know each other, had a laugh while playing a giant game of Jenga and checked out the many freshers’ events on offer.

We decided to take a wander around the Uni and ended up at a welcome event. Back at the flat I got the hang of the oven and microwave and ended up cooking a jacket potato with spicy beans and cheese for dinner. Afterwards we all played singstar on my flatmate’s PS2 (singing cheese badly probably wasn’t the way to make a good first impression!).

In the evening we joined our neighbours downstairs for drink, music and an industrial-sized container of flying saucers to prepare us for our first night. Soon more neighbours arrived and it was clear that it was going to be very easy to meet new people. We headed for the lively Falmer bar where we played pool for free and then moved on to East Slope bar for music into the night.

Sunday

Woke up early to the sounds of our last flatmate moving their things in; after venturing out and introducing ourselves to her the group gelled really well and it felt good to have a full flat. We got the bus straight to Sainsbury’s and ended up with baskets of cheap own brand food.

Later we went to the Retreat bar in Uckfield House for a medics’ champagne reception. It was a welcome party for BSMS students where we met our medic ‘parents’ from the second year and our ‘brothers’ and ‘sisters’ who had just started in my year. I think it’s a great addition to welcoming new students at BSMS; I doubt I would have made friends with as many older students otherwise. It was good to listen to their experiences of the first year, and things to watch out for! It actually felt very easy to approach and talk to people.

After dinner I got drenched running back to the bar in the pouring rain for the UBSU welcome party, for students from all courses. It was a fun night with a good DJ and we bought tickets for more fresher’s events….

Monday

We all had to be at the Medical School by 8.30 - which was really difficult to get up for! I recognised lots of medical students from yesterday whom I could chat with; with the Medical School being so small, I hope it will be quite easy to learn everyone’s names. We had a morning of lectures from Prof Jon Cohen and other senior staff welcoming us.

At lunch my flatmates and I went back home, and I ended up cooking lime and
coriander fish cakes with vegetables (frozen and out of the packet of course) before returning for an entertaining welcome and presentations from the Student Unions and MedSoc (our medical society).

Later we were split up into groups of eight and introduced to our Academic Tutor with whom we would meet weekly. These groups would also be the same for our dissection room sessions which would begin in only two weeks time!

We went to the comedy night at Mandela Hall, with talent ranging from an ex-student to professionals from the big Komedia club in town. The crowd got really involved and some people came out completely embarrassed. Well worth £5.

 

Tuesday

Another early start again of 8.30 (a reminder I guess that Medicine is no ordinary University course) for a morning of lectures. Dr Gray quoted The Times describing a place at BSMS as one of the most coveted in the UK, which I’m sure made people feel even more proud to be here.

We were given an introduction to the Clinical Practice Modules (my first ones will include gastroenterology and dermatology in the local hospitals, GP visits and practical examination techniques, which all sound exciting). Afterwards we split into our clinical facilitator groups where we met our tutor and ended up running around the room playing a
teamwork game.

After tomato and tuna pasta we had ICT inductions and then met our personal tutors. In the next few weeks we will be working with them in their GP practice and begin to learn skills such as how to take a medical history from a patient.

That evening I went with my flatmates to the Party on the Pier, which had been closed off just for students. After being spun upside down on a 100ft ride, going on the bumper cars and winning a massive cuddly toy on a sideshow, we ended up being the first ones to sing karaoke in the bar next door. After our expert renditions of Elvis, Tom Jones and Right Said Fred, we left with our prizes and went to the beach to eat some doughnuts and check out the town. Back at the flat, after decorating the lounge further with our new free stuff, we relaxed with our nachos and dip and watched the Family Guy movie.

Wednesday

Bit of a lie-in today since we started at 10.20 on the Sussex side for another full day (all Wednesdays usually have a half day with time for sport in the afternoon). After some library and ICT induction sessions I joined some friends for the Sussex freshers’ fair. There were tons of stalls everywhere with societies covering every interest you could possibly think of from the drum and bass, and pirate appreciation societies to scuba diving, windsurfing, kung fu and women’s rugby.

Freebie overload followed with t-shirts, sweets, pens, condoms, and money off offers. We then spotted the inflatables and ended up doing the bungee run and knocking each other off a pole by hitting each other around the head in a big Gladiators-like game. Quality!

At the medics freshers’ fair I signed up for the BMA and other organisations plus importantly got more freebies including a medical dictionary, a usb stick and a pen shaped like a syringe. I joined lots of groups including the Surgical Society, Squash, Basketball and Wilderness Medicine.

Unfortunately after that we had to have a Hep C screening, then had photos taken.

That evening was the main Medic night out, where we would all be taken to the Arc club in town. It ended up being on the beach edge and turned out to be a really fun night.

Thursday

Today began at 9.30 with lectures on child protection awareness, health hazards and Occupational Health. I bought a ticket with my friends for the Sussex Fresher’s Ball; masked, with Zane Lowe DJing and Fun Loving Criminals appearing. There was a poster sale on as well and we bought a handful to go up in our lounge. After going to the library
to get some huge textbooks, I went back to the flat and made a lunch of cheese on toast with Worcester sauce.

That afternoon I met my ‘parents’ and went to the pier where we met up with other groups, ate chips, and then took a wander through the quirky Laines part of town (where it’s easy to get lost). My ‘mum’ Wendy and her housemates had got some party food in for us at their house, and they showed us the hospital where we would be going soon. It seemed
odd that in only a year’s time we will be in Wendy’s position - she seems to have learned so much.

Friday

We started early with a 9am lecture on sex and drugs which turned out to be entertaining. We had lectures on the duties of a doctor and health and safety, followed by chats with our new teachers. Induction was finally over and we would be starting our modules next week along with our clinical practice. Thankfully we’d have a lie-in the next day!