For those living in halls of residence or private accommodation, most flats will have a cinema room or something similar enough. Use it! Even if you don’t manage to strike up a conversation with fellow cinephiles in your building, at least it’s a change of scenery from bed rotting in your room. Once you’ve settled in and established a few friends from around campus it’s the perfect place for a night in: free, cosy and convenient. I wish I made use of my first year ‘snug’ a little more.
When it comes to socialising, don’t just stick to those in your class. Sure, it’s nice to have others who you can rant to about assignments but it’s equally important to branch out, so your conversations don’t get stuck on work all the time. Most societies will at some point have a film related social- these are one of the easiest ways to get involved with a new club because there's no pressure to do anything but sit back and watch a film about a common interest. Keep an eye on social media to find out what’s on offer or even pitch a suggestion to the committees- they'll appreciate the ideas.
Finally, my personal favourite-if you’re looking for something to do in your downtime that’s not revising, make use of those student discounts. Cineworld in the city centre offers cheaper tickets to students. But a must try haunt is the Tyneside cinema, an independent spot with the best selection of new releases and reruns (especially around Halloween for fellow lovers of horror movies). Stop by in person or sign up online to ‘Young Tyneside’ which secures cheaper tickets for those aged 15-24. It would be rude not to really.