Guide to finding student accommodation in the UK

Halls of residence is the British way of saying student housing or student dormitories. There are two types of halls, the ones offered by the university and private ones usually located outside the campus.

They usually consist of 5 10 rooms on one floor sharing a kitchen and living room or any other type of common area. Most of these rooms have either their own bathroom/toilet or they share it with a room next door.

There are plenty of room types you can choose from, single room, double room or deluxe room, all depending on the budget available to you.

Great thing about halls of residence is that you are surrounded by students and therefore more likely to gain some new friends.

Another great thing is that in most cases (especially if it's university halls of residence) they're located on the campus, which means you can avoid everyday commute and public transport. You'll be able to wake up 10 minutes before the lecture and still be on time.

In the UK you can choose from catered or non-catered halls of residence. In catered halls, you get three meals per day (breakfast, lunch and dinner) and you still have a common kitchen at your disposal if you get hungry between meals.

The price of the room does not vary depending on whether it's held by university or if it's private, but you are likely to pay more if you choose the catered option.

Most of the application options for university halls of residence are automatically sent to your email once you have been offered to study at the university. This means you should apply as soon as possible if you want to reserve a place on campus as the number of rooms are limited.

If you get accepted, in most cases you will need to pay the rent in advance. It can be either six months in advance or a whole academic year, depending on the accommodation.

If you choose to live in a private house, there are number of options for that too.

Most of the houses become available in June, once the academic year and all exams have ended. Students tend to go home during the summer and therefore leave their current accommodations.

If you already have some friends you would like to live with, that makes the job a bit easier since you already know your flatmates and you can search for a house together.

If you're coming alone and want to live in a house, that's okay as well because there are many other students looking for both a house and flatmates.

The best place to start your search is SpareRoom, where you can find everything you need. Just define your search, whether it is a flat or a house, single room, double room, flatmates literally anything. That's how I found my house and flatmates!

Another website that offers not just house rentals but second-hand stuff as well (in case you need some furniture for example) is Gumtree.

Gumtree covers all UK regions, no matter where you choose to study. Another option is Facebook marketplace, which often makes the communication with the landlord much easier and you get to see their profile.

Even though organising private accommodation can be hard especially if you're moving from far away, the advice is not to pay anything in advance if you haven't seen the property or you haven't met the landlord in person.

Make sure the place you want to rent is legit, taking into account the location, size, price and anything else you find important.

Don't forget to take some stuff that will make you feel more like home even if it's a teddy bear.

Once you move in and settle, get to know the people you share your living space with, you'll start to feel much more comfortable and ready for all the university tasks ahead of you.