If you asked anyone to describe me in one word, it would be “quiet” – if they even knew who I was. I was never self-conscious of my personality, but this meant that by the end of high school, I had only one friend from my year group and I had the unofficial title of “Most Antisocial”.

It’s not that my classmates weren’t nice. I was just scared of talking to people. I’m actually very open with strangers, but I didn’t know how to make conversation without it lasting only a few seconds.

When I got to Cambridge, I wanted to start a new life – and that meant making some new friends. Speaking from successful experience, here are some tips on how you can make the most out of Freshers’ Week.

Take the initiative 

Don’t rely on others to approach you. Take the initiative to be someone’s friendly face of the day. Trust me, it gets easier once you’ve talked to your first college mate! All freshers will be in the same situation as you – you’ll all be in a new environment and you’re all looking to make friends for life. Whatever you’re feeling, you definitely won’t be the only one. That alone will make it easier to connect with others. It will become harder to make friends from scratch once groups have already formed at the dinner table.

Rehearse what you’re going to say or ask 

If you’re like me and you freeze at the prospect of having to start and maintain a conversation, rehearse what you’re going to say or ask in advance. It will help alleviate any nerves before approaching someone new! Use your experience to improve as you go along. Pro-tip: prepare for the inevitable “tell us an interesting fact about yourself”. Be as quirky as you like and don’t sweat it.

Be a good listener 

If talking about yourself is not your forte, let the other person know that you’re more interested in what they have to say. After all, freshers come from so many different backgrounds! Body language is important here. I try not to cross my arms out of habit – it would make me seem distant or uncomfortable. Smile. Make eye contact. Listen – probe for more, if you can. Most importantly, be genuine.

Attend as many fresher events as you can 

It may be tempting to stay in your room the whole day to avoid interacting with others, but fresher events are designed to maximize interaction in a fun way! You never know who you might meet. In my Freshers’ Week, there was a pizza-making event where we were put into pairs. We shared the same dough and ingredients, but for some reason, I could only scrape half of my pizza from the oven tray. My partner found it hilarious and offered to share his culinary masterpiece. We got college married by the end of term!

Don’t feel pressured to do stuff you don’t want to do 

Don’t feel that you have to join the pub crawl if you feel that being jostled between hundreds of people in a bar would make you feel uncomfortable. There are plenty of other events in college that provide a cozier alternative. You’ll still have a chance to get a taste of Cambridge nightlife when supervision work is light.

Don’t be discouraged if things don’t go the way you want them to 

There may be times when a conversation may linger to an awkward stop, or you may get bad vibes from someone. You may have been too nervous to approach anyone the whole day. That’s totally okay – trying to interact is a huge step in itself! Take some time to unwind on your own and try again the next day.

Keep going 

Once lectures begin, things start to get interesting. Try to meet people outside of college too, whether it’s within your course, in whatever club you’ve decided to join, or on the dance floor! Take time out of your work to engage in kitchen gossip, go on swaps, or chill at your JCR events. Whatever makes you feel more at home.