The Tour That Became Home

If you had told me on my first day at the University of Salford that some of the strangers walking beside me would become my friends, that I would have a favorite booth in the library, or that I would eventually be helping other students find their way around the university, I probably would not have believed you.

At that point, I was mostly trying to remember where I was.
 

👋 The first few hours

Moving from Nepal to Manchester for my MSc in Data Science was exciting, but it was also a little overwhelming.

Back home, I was surrounded by familiar faces and routines. Here, everything was new. The language was different, the buses were confusing, the weather had its own personality, and even simple things like knowing where to go on campus took some figuring out.
 

🏫 Then came the campus tour

It was not some life-changing movie moment. There was no dramatic music playing in the background. It was simply a group of new students walking around campus on a rainy day, trying to remember building names like Newton, Lady Hale and so on and pretending we weren't slightly overwhelmed.

But this is where everything changed. I started talking to people. We introduced ourselves, compared where we had come from and started talking about our struggle in adjusting to the weather, finding part-time jobs and settling into a new place which made us realize that we were all in the same boat. Some of the people who were complete strangers that day became the people I would later sit with, study with, laugh with and turn to when university felt difficult.
 

🤝 From strangers to familiar faces

One of the things I worried about most before coming to the UK was making friends. I think that is something many international students quietly worry about. I knew all about my course, the university, and what I needed to pack. What I hadn’t prepared for was the feeling of arriving somewhere and realizing that everyone you know is suddenly far away. What helped me was understanding that I did not need to make my closest friends immediately. It started with small conversations.

“Where are you from?”

“What are you studying?”

“Have you figured out where this building is?”

“Have you found any part-time jobs yet”

Sometimes that was enough. The people I met through those early days slowly became part of my everyday university experience. And once I had people say hello to around campus, the university itself started feeling different.
 

📚 The places that became mine

There was another kind of friendship I developed at Salford: my friendship with the campus itself. At first, the buildings and the Peel Park were simply places I needed to find. Eventually, they became places connected to memories.

My classroom in the SEE building became a place where I struggled through Data Science projects and learned that university was not simply about finding the right answer. Sometimes, it was about learning to ask a better question.

And then there was Clifford Whitworth Library. During my first campus tour, it was just another building. Later, it became one of my favorite places at university. I have spent countless hours there, including some very late nights when a deadline seemed much closer than it had any right to be. There was something comforting about sitting in the same booth or study room, opening my laptop and seeing other students quietly working around me. It became my little corner of Salford. Somehow, that familiar booth and study rooms made a huge university feel smaller.
 

🎥 Becoming the person I never expected to be

As I became more comfortable at university, I started doing things that the nervous student on that first campus tour would probably have found surprising. I became an International Student Ambassador. I also got a chance to be part of the university's social media video, which meant appearing in front of a camera far more often than I ever expected. Neither experience felt completely natural at first. But that was part of the fun. I was learning to speak more confidently, represent my university and put myself forward even when I felt slightly uncomfortable.

And becoming an International Student Ambassador gave me a particularly strange feeling. I remembered being that new student. The one trying to figure everything out. The one looking around at unfamiliar faces. The one following someone else around campus because I didn't yet know where I was going. Now I was on the other side. I was helping someone else feel welcome.
 

🌱 Putting down roots

I used to think that feeling at home meant feeling completely comfortable. Now I think it means something different. It means having places you recognize. People you can call. Routines you have created. Memories attached to ordinary buildings. A favorite library seat. A familiar walk across campus and peel park. A friend you can message when you have absolutely no idea what you are doing. Moving to Manchester did not make me forget where I came from. My roots are still in Nepal.

But perhaps moving away taught me that roots do not have to mean staying in one place. Sometimes they mean carrying where you came from while making space for somewhere new.
 

💬 What I would tell someone coming to Salford

If you are an international student thinking about studying in the UK, I would tell you not to put too much pressure on yourself to have everything figured out immediately. Go on the campus tour. Talk to people, go to every event possible. Ask questions, even if they feel silly. Get lost occasionally, although, speaking from experience, maybe check the bus number first. 🚌

And give yourself time. Your, first week is not your whole university experience. You might feel homesick. You might feel awkward. You might wonder whether you will ever feel like you belong. I did too. But the person you are when you arrive does not have to be the person you remain.
 

🏡 The tour I didn't know I needed

Sometimes I think about that first campus tour. I remember being surrounded by strangers and trying to take everything in. At the time, I thought the tour was simply showing me where everything was. Now, I realize it showed me something much bigger.

It showed me the beginning of a place that would eventually feel familiar. The strangers became friends. The buildings became memories. The library became my quiet corner. The student who once needed someone to show her around became an International Student Ambassador who could show someone else around. I arrived at Salford expecting to earn a degree. I did not expect to put down roots.

And perhaps that is the funny thing about finding home. Sometimes, you don't realize you are growing roots until you look back and notice how far they have reached. 🌱

- Samragi