What not to miss at #NUOpenDay 
The open day. The start of it all. The kick-off time for university life. But why actually go to them? What are the things you should be looking for? And why are all dad’s making the same joke – “I might come back here as a mature student”. The simple answer to these questions is to be tactical with your open days, and there is definitely some stuff you don’t want to miss during Northumbria’s.
All open days start early, and usually happen during winter. Therefore it’s cold, so my first bit of advice would be to get into Sports – Central as quickly as you can. You will find there not only heat but a flurry of people ready to talk to you. Go into the sports hall and scan the room, where are the course stands that you’re interested in? Or just slightly interested in? Chat to the people at those stands and ask them honest questions about workload, coursework to exam balance, lecture to workshop balance etc. See if anything instantly pulls you in. You’ll find that your parents are great at this chatting about the small, but important stuff, so you can just hover behind nervously. Make sure you’re listening though, as this is all about information consuming, so there’s less googling when you do your UCAS application.
The next move from here is crucial. You now have some information on course’s you might like to do, but that is a percentage of your life at Northumbria. The next thing not to miss is what makes Northumbria great – the campus. On your open day, pretend to be a student for a little while. Wander into the Habita and see if you like the atmosphere in there. Take a peek into lecture theatres, classrooms – the thousand places you can get a coffee at anytime. Go over to the library and look at the endless resources at your fingertips. Look around, can you see yourself as a student here one day? Then perhaps hop on to an accommodation tour, because being happy where you live whilst studying is vital.
Probably the part of an open day that people forget about the most is the city the University is in. Whilst you’re in Newcastle, you don’t want to miss out on what the city has to offer. You are potentially going to be living here for at least three years, so see if the city matches your tastes. The unpredictability of Newcastle is endless and you might find something in town that captures your imagination and sells you on coming to Northumbria. Do you like the cities architecture? That there’s a Greggs every two minutes? These are key questions you need to ask yourself on the open day.
The best piece of advice I can give about getting the most out of an open day is to immerse into the experience. Throw yourself at the day and see it as an opportunity to fall in love with the university. There are certain things you don’t want to miss like course info, campus life and the city but most of all don’t miss the chance to be engulfed by the university experience.
