So you’re coming to Staffordshire University this year, ready to learn and study hard right? You’ll be expecting lectures, assignments and tonnes of work, but what nobody tells you or advises you on is how to spend that time between lectures or on evenings when you’re free. Let me step in…
Everyone comes to university with the excited positive go go go attitude, but trust me by the third week making breakfast will seem such a daunting task, well it did for me! So I spent most of the next few weeks sampling the different breakfast options on campus; Verve, Ember and Brindley food court, they all did it, but for me nothing beats the Ember Lounge sausage sandwich in a burger bap! It’s not on the menu, but if you ask for it they do it, for you bacon lovers they do those too! Brinley do a great full breakfast if you fancy treating yourself to a full English. Other than breakfast (the most important meal of the day) the campus doesn’t come to life until the afternoon but that’s not a worry as you’ll be too busy having lectures in the morning to early afternoon.
So you come to a gap in your time-table in the afternoon, you’ve got a few hours, it’s not long enough to go back to your accommodation or you’re too lazy to! What is there on campus to fill your time?
Well whatever type of person you are, Staffs has it for you! Few hours spare, but still got some notes to type up? Nip over to the Cadman library, grab a coffee from the Costa Coffee we have in there and relax while you get that work done. Maybe you’ve come to university determined to be healthier, nothing better than to spend your time having a short work out at the gym in Sir Stanley Matthews sports centre. In a perfect location on the Leek road side off campus and unbeatable prices on memberships, you’ve no reason to not burn those calories. It worked a treat for me in my first semester, loved going and keeping in shape but due to an injury I’ve not made it this semester but I’ll be back in September and perhaps see some of you. So you’ve no notes (how ?!) and don’t fancy getting physical, pull up a seat in the Ember 
Lounge, get a lovely cold bevey and maybe play two or three games of pool! My course mates and I can’t stay away from the table and have even organised a pool tournament so get practicing…there’s money to be won!
If you’ve still got enough energy after a long hard day studying and playing pool, you’ll need something to occupy yourself in the evening, any one is kidding themselves if they say night time isn’t what students love. It’s the time when you can wind down, relax and have fun, whatever way that is. At Staffs we have options both on and off campus, I’ve experienced both and both have the positives and negatives. So first off the on-campus options and for me a must for every student, societies and clubs! The university is full of them and you’d be lying if you said at least one didn’t appeal to you! The first month at uni really is the best time to sample try and see which one suits you, they are a great way to make friends with like-minded interests and usually lead to further socialising opportunities! For example, sports teams don’t just train and play then not see each other for the rest of the week! They have socials where friends of team mates join and have a laugh. So please get stuck in, you will not regret it. Maybe you want to go out have a laugh, dance and have a drink look no further than LRV! Gobble on Wednesday’s and Refresh on Friday’s are where it all happens! My favourite was the 80’s Gobble we had earlier on this year, by far the best I’ve attended non-stop 80’s cheesy pop and even the odd song with the dance everyone knew the moves to! I definitely left that night with a smile on my face! If the club scene isn’t your thing, the Ember Lounge shows football all week, karaoke on Tuesday’s, quiz nights on Sunday’s and the gym is open till late at 10pm for you gym buffs so you’ve got plenty of options!
Off campus around Staffs there is so much to do I couldn’t list it all! But a few highlights for me are Scarefest at Alton towers, the best way to scare yourself silly around Halloween or the two local cinema’s, we have the Odeon and the brand new Cineworld! Odeon tips it though with their amazing £5 tickets which is better for a student on a tight budget!
So whatever time of day, whatever you fancy doing…You will never get bored at Staffordshire University!
