Coming to study in a new country and city where I knew nobody left me wondering whether I would be able to find friends at university. If you are worried about this aspect of student life, my personal experience has taught me that there is nothing to fear. I have found some of my best friends at LSE, but there are still some things I want to share to give you a realistic perspective on what the social life at LSE can be like. Obviously, this depends on each individual experience; nonetheless, I hope that this provides helpful insight.

What makes LSE different

When I first started studying here, LSE had a reputation online for being a less social university than others. While this has not been confirmed in my experience, there are a couple of aspects which can potentially make it a bit harder to find friends instantly. First, the LSE campus is small and in the middle of London, which means that people will stay in accommodation across London. This can lead to longer commute times being involved when meeting up with people, especially since only the majority of first-years tend to live in LSE student accommodation. Naturally, this means you may have to make more of an effort when trying to arrange social outings.

Another factor is the academic intensity of LSE’s programmes. During term time, you will inevitably not have all the time to socialise, especially if you are not used to the language or the English system. My advice is to be patient since the workload gets more manageable over time. When in doubt, arrange a social meeting with friends rather than working all the time – you will make up for it.

Undergraduate vs Postgraduate experience

As someone who has studied both their undergraduate and postgraduate degree at LSE, making friends has been different for me at these respective stages. As an undergraduate student living in halls in my first year, I found it a lot easier to make friends immediately and had someone to socialise with every day due to the communal living.

As a postgraduate student, even though I am also living in student accommodation, there is a lot less opportunity to make friends in the setting I’m living in, due to the lack of catering. Besides, postgraduate programmes are a lot shorter and thus more academically intense in terms of workload. Nevertheless, with the return of on-campus teaching, I have made good friends in class, so my advice is to trust the process and not to worry if you haven’t found a friendship group in the first few weeks.

Be proactive

To make friends anywhere, it is always good to be proactive. You do not need to force friendships but there are a few ways of putting yourself out there. You can join a LSESU Society or sports club and attend socials, ask classmates for a coffee after a lecture, and attend departmental social events, or events organised by Residential Life. You will also meet friends of friends, so it simply pays off to stay open.

From my experience, making friends at LSE has not been an issue. Even if it takes a while, there are countless things you can do by yourself in London. You will naturally attract like-minded people, so do not worry if it doesn’t happen instantly.