I remember my first week at UVic like it was yesterday. The disoriented feeling of walking around campus, tearing up leaving friends and family, and having my first taste of cafeteria food. To say I was upset and scared when my first year was abruptly cut short was an understatement. Leaving budding friendships to head back to my snowy hometown hurt. Incoming class of 2024, let’s take a little study break for a while.
It’s normal to cry when you first leave home. Whether it’s tears of joy or sadness, you are entering a new phase of your life. It may take a few days to get into the groove of things regardless of if you moved to Victoria or not. Online courses can be daunting, so spending these days writing everything you need to do this semester in a planner prevents flipping back and forth syllabuses — avoiding having to write an essay in 2 hours because, for some reason, it didn’t show up in your calendar. If you’re living on campus, the MOD is the temporary dining facility that you’ll head to many times a day. For the morning coffee, dark roast is best for sensitive stomachs. Late-night dinner? Cob’s bowls are the absolute best (at least for cafeteria food)!
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A Cob’s Noodle Bowl
The ease of socializing during the first few months of university is breathtaking, yet this year we have a wall stopping us from friendship building — the lack of in-person connections due to Brightspace. While our in-person social circles are suggested to be small, connecting with Zoom study groups is a nice way to interact with other students in your department. In addition to this, some groups (like HerCampus!) allow for online participation throughout the semester.
Victoria is a beautiful city and you should aim to explore as much as you can. There’s Cadboro Bay, 10 minutes from the campus, or you can spend a few hours hiking up Mount Douglas or Mount Tolmie. Walking the Dallas Road trail, exploring the coffee culture, and trying to find the best fish and chips are lovely ideas of things to do on your days off.
A whale in Inner Harbour
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Art on a downtown building
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Front row on a double-decker bus = one of the best ways to view the city!
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Whether you’re joining UVIC from Victoria or abroad, Her Campus at UVIC gives a warm welcome – you’ll do amazing this year!