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We often get asked about making friends at university. The following activities can help you meet others on your course and build connections.

Study buddy scheme

The study buddy scheme is a fantastic way to meet others on your course, as it matches you into groups based on your course, department, year, and modules. We’ll put you in contact with your group and invite you to several events over the first couple of months at university to help you settle in. Look out for an email, or information in your weekly email bulletin with information about how to sign up.   

Coffee mornings and the common room

The common room is a communal space open to students all day, every day, with space to relax, meet friends and study both collaboratively and alone.

Find it in Trent Building B10, an open spacious room with large windows over-looking the lake. Here you might not only bump into your course mates, but also have the chance to meet others as this space is for the whole of your school.

The common room hosts regular coffee mornings, providing free hot drinks and biscuits, so why not use this as an opportunity to say hi to a new or familiar face and meet someone new. Look out for posters and news in the weekly bulletin to find out when.

Peer mentoring for undergraduate students

Our peer mentoring scheme matches you with a second or final year student mentor from your subject area. Your mentor can share their experiences and help you with settling into student life, such as:

• how to find the library
• how to get to grips with university study  
• where to get the best coffee on campus

Why have a peer mentor?

Starting university can be daunting, and this is completely normal. A peer mentor can offer a friendly face and ear, a voice of experience and insider tips, and can guide you to further sources of support. You may wish to become a peer mentor yourself in second year – it’s a great addition to any CV. 

How to sign up

If you would like to take part in the CLAS (School of Cultures, Languages and Area Studies) peer mentoring scheme, sign up by Wednesday 18 September. You will then be able to see short profiles from our wonderful range of peer mentors and indicate which mentors you feel you’d be best matched with. You will be allocated a mentor based on these choices.

You need to activate your university IT account before you can sign up. For more information on this see the Student IT account webpage.

Once you have signed up, look out for an email in your university inbox from the peer mentoring coordinators with details of who your mentor is. You will also be invited to our mentor mingle event, running in the second week of term, where you will meet your mentor and fellow mentees for the first time.

Sign up to the CLAS peer mentoring scheme

If you have questions about peer mentoring, or would like more information, email ar-clas-ese@nottingham.ac.uk.

Postgraduate socials

Every year, we plan master’s student pizza socials. These events let Faculty of Arts postgraduates socialise over food and drinks. We promote them through the weekly email bulletins.