New Beginnings | A guide to fresher's week

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Freshers' week is often referred to as the 'best' week you will ever have at university: It is the week where you finally get to move away from home, gain independence, make new friends, join sports and clubs, and, of course, drink copious amounts alcohol without feeling bad about it.

As thousands of young people are just about to embark on their life-altering journey to university, I have put together a little guide to help first-time-freshers make their intro week as stress-free and enjoyable as possible!

1.  Find your flatmates on Facebook It's very daunting knowing that you are going to be living with complete strangers for the first year of your university life. I was so nervous about it that I'd wake up in the middle of the night with a cold sweat, but you've got to remember you are a stranger too, and everyone is feeling the same as you! Most universities have a Fresher's Facebook page, so be sure to join that and find your flatmates. Get talking, find out what you're all interested in, and hopefully that first walk into your new flat won't nearly be as scary as you were expecting.
2.  Find your coursemates on Facebook The second worse thing next to not knowing who you are going to be living with, is not knowing who you're going to have classes with. The first few days can be really nerve-wracking, especially if you don't know anyone on your course. Find your coursemates on Facebook and introduce yourself. Even if it's just a simple "Hello!", at least when it comes to your introductory lectures there will be a friendly face you can sit next to and not feel so worried about looking like the antisocial person you secretly want to be on the first day.
3. Make friends with the flats around you This is one of the things I really regret not doing in first year. Introduce yourselves to the flats around you and maybe invite them around for pre-drinks before going out, making for all-round more fun nights out. My flat was only small, so sometimes there would only be three or four of us out at a time. We could often here next door having flat parties and we would think "why didn't we introduce ourselves properly?!". Even if you don't end up doing anything with the flat opposite, at least you introduced yourself and will have slightly less awkward conversations during early morning fire drills in your slippers and shower cap.
4. Go to the activities and sports' fairs Freshers' week isn't just about drinking your weight in jäger bombs *shock*. The activities fair has hundreds of different clubs and societies you can join, so sign up to anything that looks interesting to you! But only actually take part in the ones you genuinely enjoy because it is surprising how much time they can actually take up. Even if you don't end up joining anything, it is worth just going along for the freebies. Did someone say free pizza? I'd also check out your uni's sports fair even if you aren't really into sports. There is so much more to choose from compared to your old school's clubs, including sports you didn't even know existed. What even is Korfball? Some universities even hold Give it a Go sessions so you can try out different sports before you fully commit to them. 100% recommended. 
5. Do NOT buy the Fresher's Week tickets/wristbands Apart from the fact these are a total waste of money, you don't want to be limiting yourself to the same club every night. Freshers week is a chance to try out the different bars and clubs to find your scene, so you don't want to be stuck in the same grotty club every night. Aside from that, your flatmates might want to do different things. Speak to your flatmates beforehand about what kind of events they want to attend. Are you all wanting to try out the paint party? I'd try and avoid buying any tickets before you get to uni, unless you are all sure that this is the place you want to go and it is guaranteed to sell out. Even if you decide to not go in the end, you can just sell your ticket on, there's probably someone willing to buy it.
6. Try something different You're most likely in a new city, with new surroundings and new friends, so why not try something you've never done before? During freshers' week a lot of universities host one-off activities for you to try. Go to something garish and out of your comfort zone all in the name of being a fresher. You never know, that wine tasting session you went to might just end up being your new favourite society.
7. Organise a film night You don't have to go out every night of freshers. There isn't a written rule that says you must. Besides, sometimes the best nights are those spent with a pizza and a big tub of ice cream, miming the words to your favourite chick flick. Class it as some serious flat bonding time (and to find out that the boys in your flat really do know all the words to 'Let It Go').
8. Don't go out on the last night of freshers Okay, if you don't have lectures until the afternoon on your first day, then go out and party to your hearts content. But if you have an early start on your first day, I recommend you opt for a cosy night in instead. And I'm speaking from experience. After a Uni of Vs Poly bar crawl, I was not in the right frame of mind for a two hour long lecture starting at 8am. The fact I managed to stay awake for both my lectures that day was a real miracle. But that isn't to say I wasn't nodding off and dreaming of my uncomfortable halls bed. It really wasn't worth it.

YouTube Culture | My Response To Zoella Criticism

Imagine you're in 2009 and you asked people what a 'vlogger' was. Most wouldn't have the faintest idea what you were talking about. Return back to 2014 on the other hand and you'd get a completely different response. That is unless you're over the age of 30 and don't have kids who are glued to the ever-growing internet phenomenon that is YouTube. Most-likely.

But it seems that YouTube and vloggers are becoming of greater interest to the press. Some of it is bad, such as the news of allegations regarding popular YouTuber Sam Pepper, which you can read here, but the vast majority of it is positive.

So, is all of this publicity a good thing?

With many newspapers and other media outlets trying to 'keep up with the times', herds of journalists and reporters are writing stories on 'internet celebrities', and often not doing enough research before doing so. A prime example? Zoella.

What with a recent article published by The Independent, linked below, it has become apparent through a quick scroll through my twitter and Facebook feed that Zoella is like marmite: you either love her or you hate her.

But for those who don't really know who Zoella is or watch any of her content, are articles and blog posts like this giving off the wrong impression and causing people to jump to conclusions to quickly and to soon?

Posting one of her first videos in 2009, Zoe could have never imagined that 5 years later she would have 6 million subscribers watching her and listening to her every word. 

What started out as a hobbie when in her teens gradually became her full-time job.

With almost as many people watching her as the amount of people living in Tennessee, USA, it is no wonder she is gaining so much attention.

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But it is because of this huge following that as soon as she makes one small blunder, someone, somewhere is bound to pick up on it.

And what is said blunder? She contradicted herself. *gasps* Everyone contradicts themselves once in a while. Only not always in front of 6 million people, including reporters and internet trolls waiting around for the one moment she slips up.

During the BBC Radio 1 Teen Awards, where she won an award for Choice Web Star: Fashion/Beauty, she told a reporter that if she were to give her teenage following one piece of advice it would be to fret less about their appearence. And according to the author of The Independent piece mentioned above, "It’s maddening that a girl who has made it her business to tell teenagers how to put make up on, or get their hair just right, now feels she’s in a position to admonish them for “fretting” about their appearance."

But you only have to watch her vlog channel to see that she is comfortable in her own skin and isn't a bad role model for kids at all. In the vast majority of videos she is wearing no makeup and is going about her daily life as normal. What the younger viewers should be seeing. What she said is hardly hypocritical. It isn't like she is showing viewers how to get a 'perfect' face, or the 'perfect' look, show is just showing them how she likes to do her hair and makeup. She even filmed a video called 'Your skin doesn't define you' where she went on to explain that you will eventually go on to feel comfortable in your skin- it doesn't matter if you have a few spots, or a few scars.

I may even go as far as to say that if she wasn't wearing makeup on her main channel videos she would receive even more criticism for not doing so. I'm sure there would be some kind of upheaval if the presenters on This Morning or any other popular TV show didn't wear makeup.

Thousands of people wear make-up because they want to. You don't just have to feel insecure about yourself to wear it, which is what I think a lot of people here are forgetting. It's all a part of growing up anyway. We experiment with makeup. Some days we wear it, some days we don't. I don't feel compelled to spent half an hour putting makeup on every day when I'm only going to into uni for a few hours. 

So, if she often says she isn't a make-up artist/beauty vlogger, and instead is making content not only that she wants to create, but what her audience also wants, then why did she win the award? Well probably because she seems so 'ordinary' in these videos: she's had no expert training and has taught herself, much like what the younger girls watching her videos want to do. Not only that, but her tutorials and styles are affordable. You don't have to look very far to find a makeup tutorial that only uses the high end brands such as MAC and Chanel.

You just have to look through her uploads to prove she isn't just a beauty/fashion YouTuber. Take her collabs with other YouTubers and her DIY baking videos for example. Excited for Christmas yet?

And then theirs the topic of her anxiety. Zoe is a sufferer of anxiety and panic attacks and is very open about this to her audience.

Recently, she posted a video, answering questions about anxiety, and prior to this she posted a video explaining her anxiety. In her Q&A, she reassures her audience that anxiety is a common thing and that they are not alone. 

Going through some of the comments on my Facebook newsfeed, a lot of people were scrutinising Zoe for 'attempting to cure anxiety with her techniques.' She even states that even with her relaxation techniques to battle her anxiety it hasn't gone away; she never said that it is a cure for it.  Some also went on to say that none of her ideas worked for them so why should she bother try telling people to 'cure' their anxiety? She even said 'We're all very very different, and we're all programmed very differently". She understands that everyone is different and they may not work for everyone.

Now, even though I am not as open about it, I also suffer from anxiety. The video didn't really help me because I already know how to control my anxiety (kind of!), but it would have helped many people, which is evident from a quick scroll through the comments.

It seems that a lot of people are just looking for a reason to hit out at Zoe. If a friend came to you asking for advice you'd give it, whether they take it on board or not. And that's exactly what she is doing.

I also saw another comment by a Facebook user who said "She needs to stop accepting thousands of pounds to talk about some ****** hairspray or whatever." Zoe, along with many other YouTubers are very open about product placement in their videos. Zoe has frequently said that companies send her products to talk about in her videos, but she only talks about the ones she truly enjoys using. She's also never disclosed how much she gets paid by certain companies, or if she does at all.

I realise that I've completely rambled, but as someone who has watched Zoe for almost 3 years I felt compelled to write something about this current topic. Honestly, I believe that people can be entitled to their own opinions, but when it comes to things they know very little, or not much about, they should do a little research before heading to the internet to vent their fury.