And so the guide to Living in Cambridge as an International Student begins...

Transcription

1 MURRAY EDWARDS COLLEGE International Freshers Guide 2012 Welcome to Murray Edwards College! And so the guide to Living in Cambridge as an International Student begins... Getting to Cambridge For more Information on Coach buses and Trains: visit the National Express website. Arriving by Coach Bus from Heathrow Airport Follow the signs at Heathrow that read Central Bus Station. You can buy tickets in advance online, or at the station. The price is about one-way but can be less if you buy it in advance. There is an additional charge if you bring more than two suitcases (you are allowed two suitcases and one personal bag/purse). The ride is about 3 hours. The coach arrives at Parkside, Parker s Piece, Cambridge, which is next to a large park east of the city centre. College is quite far away and you will likely have much luggage, so it is best to take a taxi from that point ( 5-7). The taxi stand is right next to the bus stop. If there are no taxis when you arrive, you can call a registered taxi company (such as Panther Taxis: +44(0) ) and ask them to send one. Arriving by Train from Heathrow Airport / London If you do not have too much luggage and want to save money, then there is another option. From Heathrow Airport, follow the signs to Heathrow Central railway station. You can take the tube to London Kings Cross station via the Piccadilly Line (about 1 hour); or the Heathrow Express (every 15min) or Heathrow Connect (every 30min) to London Paddington Station, then the tube to Kings Cross. This is more expensive, but faster. From Kings Cross, you can take a train to Cambridge (about 21.20). The train can take 45min if it is non-stop, or a slow 2 hours if it stops at every possible stop, so check the route before buying a ticket! You will arrive at Cambridge train station, south of Cambridge along Hills Road. Take a taxi from outside the station and head to Murray Edwards College (should not cost more than 7-9). Arriving by Coach from London Buses leave from Victoria Station in London to Cambridge roughly every hour. Ticket prices range from 6-12 depending on how far in advance you purchase. The bus ride is about 2 hours. See above for information about arriving in Cambridge by coach. Arriving at Murray Edwards College On arrival please go to the Porters Lodge where you will receive your room key. Please check in with the Tutorial Office as soon as you can after arrival. Weather and Clothing Cambridge in Michaelmas Term (Autumn and Winter season) cool weather, becomes rainier as term progresses: rain coat, umbrella recommended, wear several layers (sweaters, cardigans, light jacket) end of Michaelmas term you will need a winter jacket (light or heavy depending on what climate you are normally used to) there is almost no snow but gloves, hat and scarf are good to have perhaps bring along some water-resistant boots the end of this term is very grey, cold and wet since the days are so short but you will pull through the dreariness! Cambridge in Lent Term (Winter and Spring) still rainy but less so, warmer weather so you just need a light jacket the sun starts coming out more as term progresses Cambridge in Easter Term (Spring) warm, sunny weather pack dresses, skirts, shorts, light clothing, Murray Edwards College International Guide 1

2 Bicycles You do not need to have a bike to get around Cambridge, however a bicycle is very convenient and time-saving. Having a bike is particularly useful if your faculty is far from college, you play on a sports team or row, or even to explore the area beyond Cambridge. Bicycles can be purchased secondhand at bike shops across town. For those of you who do not know how to bike or would like to practice, lessons are provided. Helmets are not legally required, but biking can be dangerous. Especially for those of you from right-hand drive countries, cycling in the UK can be a challenge and a danger at first. You can bring your own from home or college will be selling them in October at about 12. Bicycle Lights are legally required (one in front, one in back) when cycling at night. You can be fined if caught by the police without your lights. You can easily purchase these in town or bring some from home. Be aware that bike lights are often stolen so remember to take yours off when you park your bike. Bicycle Locks are an absolute must. Bike theft is very high in Cambridge. Again, bring one from home or you can buy one in town. The best type are the D-Lock, which look like a letter D. Registration: You will need to register your bike with college at the beginning of term. You can leave your bike in college storage during the breaks and summer vacation. Cambridge City Bus There are buses running throughout Cambridge and on the Uni4 service (but not other routes) you can purchase a ticket at a reduced rate when you show your student ID card. Uni4 tickets are now 70p. You need to buy the ticket for each journey separately, since no return tickets are sold for this route. Traveling Beyond Cambridge- London Coach (Buses) There are coach buses that leave from Parker s Piece stop and head into London. The bus ride is considerably longer than the train (1.5-2 hours), but also far less expensive ( 6-12). You can only either buy the tickets with cash paid to the bus driver or buy the ticket in advance online and print it out. You do not need a credit card for this and can simply use your UK debit card to pay. Tickets prices are slightly lower if bought online in advance. View the National Express website for further information: Also, if you think you will be riding the coach regularly, be sure to get a Young Person s coachcard at the Central Bus Station (located in London- not in Cambridge), which costs 10 per year and grants a 30% discount on most coach services. Trains There are trains leaving several times each hour from the Cambridge train to Kings Cross and Liverpool Street stations in London. The train ride lasts about minutes. The trains can be expensive - a off-peak same-day return to Kings Cross costs 22. Tickets can be bought in advance online or at the station. If you are not returning the same day or buy an open-return, then the ticket is more expensive. If you think you will be riding the train regularly, pick up a Young Person s Railcard at Heathrow station or the Cambridge station for 26 per year - it gives you 30% discount on most train routes ( 15 day return to London).. You need to bring along identification, a passport size photo, and complete a form. If you travel within London often on the tube (underground) and the bus, you could consider purchasing an Oyster card. This allows you to upload credit onto the card and gives you discounts on London tube and bus fares. Murray Edwards College International Guide 2

3 Eating in College College serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner on most days (breakfast only during term). However certain nights each week (once or twice a week depending on if you attend Formal Hall) you will have to either cook for yourself or eat out since college does not serve food in the Dome (which is our college dining hall). Eating in college is not a meal plan, but is pay-as-you-go, such that you pay for whatever you eat in the Dome. You can upload credit onto your college ID card and then pay for food as you need it. For further information on eating in college, you can visit the MECSU website: Cooking and Kitchens Most are equipped with: microwave, stove, refrigerator, toaster and an oven. College does not provide you with dishes, cutlery, drying towels, or pots and pans. For those of you flying, I do not recommend that you bring any kitchen items with you since this takes up valuable space and weight in your luggage. Furthermore, you will be able to purchase anything you need at a reasonable price at a number of stores in Cambridge. Eating Out Something I was pleasantly surprised to discover is how many offers can be found online for restaurants. You simply sign up to be on the mailing list for various restaurants and receive weekly offers and then print out vouchers to get great deals such as 2 for 1 meals, 50% off main courses. Some restaurants that regularly have offers: Pizza Express, Café Rouge, La Tasca, Ask, Strada, Bella Italia. Miscellaneous Shopping tips View the icusu International Freshers guide (or look online) for shopping details. If you really need something or forgot to pack something crucial, there are good go-to stores for basics and inexpensive clothing. Primark is a very cheap UK store it may not be the greatest quality, but it is really inexpensive. This is the go-to place for cheap dresses, towels, swimsuit, socks, shoes, everything. For example: dress 10, sunglasses - 1, sandals - 4. Asda or Tesco: you can get cooking supplies, stuff for your room, and much more here. The only drawback is that both are quite a distance from college. T.K. Maxx sells designer clothes and shoes, as well as quality cooking and baking items at discounted prices. Boots Pharmacy- Soaps, creams and shampoos can be heavy in your suitcase so there is no need to bring these from home. Boots sells all these beautycare supplies at reasonable prices. Charity Shops- throughout Cambridge you will see what are called charity shops such as the Red Cross, Oxfam, Save the Children; these are secondhand shops where you can find inexpensive clothing, books, CDs, clothing for fancy dress, all sorts of things really fun to browse and great deals to be found! Hangers and Storage Space You are unlikely to have hangers in your closet when you arrive. If you have space, then sure bring them along. But there is no need to do so because they can be cheaply purchased. College has a trunk store space where you can store your empty suitcases throughout term. Sheets, Towels and Laundry You can rent towels and sheets from college at an additional cost. There are washing machines in college that cost approx 2 per load. The dryer costs 1 per load. You can purchase washing liquid anywhere in Cambridge, so no need to bring it along with you. You can get passport photos done at the Post Office in the city where there s a photo booth. It can be helpful to bring along several passport-sized photos of yourself. Murray Edwards College International Guide 3

4 Registration with a Doctor It is required that you register with a GP Doctor (General Practitioner) in Cambridge. The nearest clinic (called a surgery here) is right next to college on Huntingdon Road coming up the hill on the left side. Please view the icusu International Freshers guide for more information on this. Bank Account College requires that international students set up a bank account and I recommend setting it up as soon as you arrive. It takes several days and maybe even a week for them to approve and process your new account. The major banks are: Barclays, NatWest, Lloyds, HSBC, and Santander. You will need your passport and a letter from college confirming your enrollment in the university in order to set up a bank account. This letter can be obtained from the tutorial office in A Block. Until your account is set up, you should still be able to withdraw money using your debit card from an ATM. Please view the icusu guide for information on bank accounts. Mobile Phone It s recommended that you get a UK mobile phone- there are many options available so it s a good idea to shop around to compare prices. You can do a pay-as-you-go or have a phone plan. Please view the icusu attachment for information on this. Internet Access and Computers Internet can be accessed for free in the college library (on college computers), in the college bar (Wi-Fi), and at your faculty buildings. For internet access in your room, there is an additional charge each term. College internet access is very generous with bandwidth. I recommend creating a Skype account so that you can chat for free with your family over the Internet. There are printers in the college library and the MCR (the MCR printer allows graduates 5 free printing per term). I do not recommend bringing along a printer from home or even buying a printer (these cost about 50). You may wish to find out whether your country s standard paper size is the same as in the UK. For example, North American standard paper is slightly smaller than UK paper so students have found in the past that the binders they had brought from home were of no use. Power Adapters UK Power adapters can be purchased at the airport or easily in Cambridge. Formal Hall Throughout this guide, I have been using the term Formal Hall, but what is this? Formal Hall is held once a week on Tuesdays in college (sometimes twice on certain Fridays). Graduates can dine at Formal Hall for free once a week, but places are limited and very popular. You need to book your place in advance through the college s online booking system for college members. You can also book tickets for guests from outside college (parents, friends, students). Formal Hall in Murray Edwards is a delicious three-course dinner and you bring along your own wine if you like. You do not have to attend formal hall each week and most people do not. On the nights of formal halls, college does not serve dinner. There are occasionally Superhalls for special events like Christmas, which are slightly more expensive but a great experience. You can also attend formal hall at other colleges through societies, through friends, and through International CUSU. I will be ing you about opportunities to attend icusu formal halls and meet internationals from other colleges. Formal Hall and Matriculation Dress For formal hall in Murray Edwards, we tend to dress up in dresses or skirts (does not need to be too formal or anything) and you can wear a college gown over this if you have one. Some colleges have formal hall several times a week and so may not dress up as much since formal occurs more often. Always remember to bring your academic gown along to other college formals. I would Murray Edwards College International Guide 4

5 recommend packing a few dresses. Matriculation you do need to wear an academic gown for Matriculation and for the dinner in the evening most people wear a nice dress - you take the matriculation photo and then later attend a formal in college. Murray Edwards Tutorial Office For financial, academic, or personal help, the Murray Edwards Tutorial Office is always there to assist you. You will be assigned a personal tutor who you can meet with if you are experiencing stress, problems adjusting or just need someone to talk to. Murray Edwards College Porters The Murray Edwards porters are located at the front entrance of college (the Porters Lodge or Plodge ). This is the front desk you will see as you arrive at the college. The Porters are on duty 24/7 and you can go see them if you ever need help or feel unsafe. Just some of the things the porters can help you with throughout term: if you lose your room key or university ID they will give you a temporary one and order you a new one (try not to lose it though, because you will be charged about 18!) get a photocopier card to load credit onto you can then use the photocopy machine in the library adding credit to your university ID for eating in the college dining hall getting new light bulbs, reporting any problems with your room such as a clogged sink or a broken lamp borrowing tennis racquets or squash racquets and balls, booking courts to play on in college UK Lingo and Cultural References I still have problems when my friends are talking: we are having a normal conversation, when all of a sudden, someone uses a word or makes some cultural reference, which I have never heard of. They all seem to understand what was said, except for me, the international student. Whether English is your first language or not, these lost in translation moments will certainly occur and the best way to deal with them is to simply ask for an explanation. There is no harm in asking! Tipping General information about tipping: it is not necessary to tip taxi drivers though I tend to round up or give a little extra if they help me with heavy suitcases when eating out, tipping is entirely at your discretion, though customarily people tip 10-15%. check the bill carefully because the restaurant may have already added in a 10-15% service charge, so you do not need tip on top of that in a pub, it is not necessary to tip the barperson Extra Expenses Room internet connection college will charge you termly to have internet access in your room. You will also need to purchase an ethernet cable ( 3) from college when you arrive or you can bring your own if you have one. Many find that the cables the college sells are not very long, so you may consider bringing along your own to have more mobility in your room. Societies and Clubs- Many clubs are free, but some may charge you a membership fee (generally from 5-10). The Cambridge Union is an exception to this however since it charges a lifetime membership at a cost of 120. Sports If you play for a university team, then you will need to cover your costs and this will vary depending on the sport. College may reimburse you for subs and essential kit so talk to your tutor about that. If you play for a college team, the costs are much lower if not free. College Gym: You do not need to join the college gym, but if you decide to do so, it costs about 35 for the year or 13 per term. Murray Edwards College International Guide 5