By Alexios Stellas, MSc Computing & Security, Department of Informatics
Moving to a new city can always be scary, especially when it is in a different country than the one you grew up in. I moved to London in September to start my MSc at King’s. I must admit I was worried if I would enjoy my time here, since I had no friends and knew no one in London.
That worrying feeling did not last long. From the first day I arrived I was going to events organised by King’s for newcomers. From tours, to campuses, to theatre performances, I had plenty of opportunities to make friends. One of the things that really stuck with me was the weekend where I learned about King’s societies. I went to a huge venue where every society had their own booth where they showcased the societies. There must have been more than a hundred societies, ranging from activities and sports to theatre and coffee lovers. It was AMAZING! I had the chance to join numerous societies, some of them I must admit I never followed up with.
On the other hand, some of the societies I joined helped me meet a lot of new friends and organised great events, which I participated in. My favourite society was the KCL Tech Society, through which I learned a lot about tech, by going to their events, dinner parties and hackathons.
For any new students I would also highly recommend joining a KCL sports club. I am pretty sure King’s has a club for almost every sport in existence. For me table tennis was something I loved and being able to join the team and train every weekend was a great way to exercise.
Unfortunately, there were months that I could not attend any events. A Masters programme demands a lot of studying, so you might find yourself not having time to frequently attend society events. Do not despair though! One of the things I love about King’s is that there are always places to study or chill. My favourite spots would be the Waterfront Bar and the study spots at Bush House. It is great having spaces like that to be able to enjoy your time, not only between classes, but also to enjoy an afternoon of studying or drinking!
Overall, King’s provided more ways to go out and socialise than I could have imagined when I first came here and for newcomers: I am telling you, there is no need to worry about meeting people and enjoying your time in London, King’s has pretty much set everything out for you.
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