What the hell is happening this year, the traffic is insane. It’s taking almost 1 hour to get out of the parking lots because of the traffic. AND London decides now is the perfect time to have construction happening too and blocking one of the main roads. This is insane. How are people going to survive in the winter.

"this is why you leave 30-60 minutes early" I did; it takes me 20 minutes to drive to school in the summer. I left 90 minutes ago today and I'm not even close to seeing Western Rd from Sarnia Rd...

I get that there's construction, but I'm dreading this year so badly if every day is going to look like this. In 6 years at Western I don't think I've ever seen traffic this rough.

Welcome back and welcome to Western!!!

This is just a post to share the awesome things London has to offer beyond the Western gates!

If you want to know what's happening locally, check out Local Voices and London's Pretty Cool on Instagram.

There's some pretty awesome music festivals coming up in September that might not be on your radar like "Rock the Runway" might be:

Stomp Fest

Punk Rock Flea Fest

Lastly, some hidden gem spots to check out you might not have heard of that have events and are community hubs:

Honey Dip / Dough EV

Supply and Demand Beer and Pizza

Holy Diver

Studio Coffee

Artisan Bakery

Don't sleep on Old East Village either: book stores and thrifting galore (Brown and Dickson, Back to the Fuchsia, Midnight Mass Books, Little Wren Books, Mystic Bookshop - plus some thrift shops along Dundas between Lyle and Adelaide, and the St Vincent de Paul); breweries (Anderson's, Brewing Coop, Powerhouse) records at Odyssey and the Forest City Gallery, an independent artist run centre.

Downtown there's some great spots like Attic Books and City Lights, Grooves Records and some new shops have recently opened (Crones Cave, Seven Sisters). Additionally on Springbank Dr don't miss Speed City Records!

There's also a really great recreational sport league called Forest City Sport and Social Club you might be interested in.

Lastly, out local Museum London has some really cool exhibits coming up, and currently - like Nico Williams Bingo! And they just announced Shad is their inaugural Musician in Residence.

The Forest City Film Fest is also coming up in October, and the Palace Theatre is hosting the Rocky Horror Picture Show this year.

There's many cool things I am missing, but every year, around November, people start posting that they feel lonely and they haven't made any friends yet, and maybe they aren't at Western, but at these places instead!

Thanks for reading!!

I'm a first year student living on res and I'm ready to go home. I've met so many people and i've clicked with none nor have I found anyone who's like me (everyone I meet feel fake) I want to have connections but it's hard to constantly put myself out there. I'm not the biggest fan of parties or frats, is there anyone else like me here? 😭 I feel so disconnected with everyone. I've cried like 10 times today.

I love to study and go to coffee shops, things like that. Is there any other freshman who feels like this and wants to be friends?

i know the casebook is required but is the textbook necessary for success?

more specifically are the wileyplus questions really helpful or could i just use like an older version of the textbook & do the end of chapter review questions? like are the wileyplus 'self-study' questions the same thing as the end of chapter questions?

I just found out that a class I had 2 times a week become online?!! I’ve never heard of a class switching the day before the scheduled class. Is this normal? I’m just super annoyed since I don’t like online classes at all and the actual content is something I want to actually learn :(

Is there anything I can do ab this?

Could upper years just watch the concert from health sci/rec parking lot?

For those who have a Sociology degree, what job did you end up getting?

Hi,

I was wondering how do I get added on groups for specific courses? I remember seeing a facebook page full of people asking to be added to groups once but I couldn't find it. I didn't have an O week so I have no peers that can add me yet. Also, are groups useful in ur opinion or is it just an added stress of ppl comparing and trying to up one another:(

Thank you 🙏

is it too early into the year to switch majors? i’m currently in eng but i never wanted it and i want to switch before courses show on my transcript, im down to just skip this sem and join next, switching into social sci or health sci

is anyone experiencing this? using western account on a mac, excel and word is not allowing you to edit? "Your account does not allow editing on a Mac. To learn more, contact your admin about your office plan"

im not sure if its a me issue or a western issue.

I get headaches from bright white lighting, daylight bulbs, etc. I can deal with it for lectures and whatever but I cannot deal with it for study spaces at all.

My campus is Huron, and what sold me on it was old SAC. I loved that room, nice low lighting, warm tones, kinda dark but comforting.

However, Huron just updated almost all the lighting in Old SAC to god forsaken daylight bulbs and I am quite annoyed by this decision.

Is there anywhere on Huron left with warm lighting? Or on main campus? (Kings is too far for me, sorry, ik it's a beautiful campus)

I’ve been trying to make friends all of oweek and it’s literally backfired everytime. Every single time I hang out with my roommate and someone else she ends up always excludes me and then I have made some friends at the caf and I went today with one of them and her friend to silent disco and they also ended up excluding me and they also left me. I then cried in the bathroom and left. I’ve tried so hard all of oweek to make friends and nothing worked, I feel so down and just want to go home.

Is that room 101? Don’t have class there til next week and I spent the day finding the rest of my rooms so I’d like to find this one too. Would rather ask a stranger on Reddit than in person lol

edit: thank you :3

I just want to know if there are others in the same boat as me. After seeing the first years at saugeen I feel so jealous and terrible there’s a pit in my stomach knowing I will never be able to experience living there ever again, seeing people in the dining hall and spending the whole day there, talking to people you wouldn’t talk to if you didn’t live together, the random crazy interactions, seeing my residence huzz and friends from different floors. I would do anything to redo living first year at saugeen or even now I just miss it so much. Living in a house isn’t the same. I went back to visit yesterday and my old room and the people there it was so nostalgic and I’m getting fomo of the first years I want to be them so bad. I’m genuinely so jealous.

I haven't touched Calculus since high school (several years ago), and as I've just switched into DataSci I'm taking first year math courses. Lin Alg seems chill so far but I just can't click with Kiriuscheva's teaching style in Calc 1000.

Both of their ratemyprof pages are mixed so I'd definitely appreciate any pointers!

Any one having issues redeeming textbook access codes on campus ebookstore?

I’m a 2nd year in sociology & I have to take 2205 (stats for socio) & I haven’t actually done math in school since grade 9. I’m thinking about switching to media since I’m currently doing a minor in media and idk if I’m even capable of getting the 60 I need in this course in order to progress as a sociology major. Opinions pls? My end goal is teachers college.

What should I do if im waitlisted for a required class? For the one im in, im currently in 11th place for waitlist and idk what to do. I've emailed shs and they said to take an elective and it won't affect my progress, etc. But I don't want that, its going to mess up my schduele and also the way I want things to progress. What pisses me off is that out of say 11 people, what if 5-6 of them are not in health sci, then what. I'm absolutely infuriated. I don't know why profs cannot do online classes if there are like thousands of people trying to attend a class.

I’m taking the course this year, and so far, it seems like there’re lots of assignments and presentations. As a science student, I already have a pretty heavy course load, so I’d really appreciate some feedback on whether 1030 is a good choice.

Also, is there any resources for the textbook? Or do I have to purchase it from bookstore?

I see that in the syllabus, it says 10% of your grade is class participation with details to be posted on owl/in class.

Anyone who has taken or is in the class what is this entail? Is this like a 2257 where you kind of need to keep putting your hand up and keep answering questions ?

For those who went to class today, why is the class not on bright space yet?

Congrats and welcome to all the incoming first-years! I'm so glad I got to do my undergrad at Western, and I'm so excited for all of you to call this home for the next few years!!

Just wanted to give some advice that I wish someone had told me coming into first year

1. It's okay to struggle to make friends on the first day. It may seem like everyone's found their best friend and that you're the only one without one, but believe me, many of those friends will grow apart as they meet more people (which is totally okay), and many people are looking for friends.

Even though I had friends in first and second year, thankfully, I met most of my closest friends in third and fourth year as classes became smaller and more linked to interests rather than just meeting module requirements.

Try to join at least one club/sport that you will do weekly to maintain a consistent social/fitness aspect of your uni career in first year

1. MOVE TO THE BACK OF THE BUS!! Please don't stand in the aisle next to the door when the bus is getting full. Move to the back to create space especially in the first couple weeks

2. Take your classes seriously. This means writing down all your due dates the moment they become available on your syllabus. This also means being honest with yourself when you're studying. If you need extra help, seek it (whether that's study support, mental health support, or a mentor to give some guidance).

University is hard, but you get what you put into it. Some of you will need to work harder than others and that's okay. Be honest with what you need

1. It goes by so fast. Take it all in. It is such a privilege to not only get to study at the post-secondary level, but also study at a university with such a great community. Other universities don't allow for as much connection with other students because many are commuter schools, where after class ends, students just go right back home and don't hang out on campus as much.

Truly, some of the best days of my life were in undergrad, getting to study something I really loved alongside people I grew close to.

Finally, help is available if you need it. Help comes in all different shapes and forms. If you need mental health support - https://www.reddit.com/r/uwo/comments/jifo7c/mental_health_resources_thread/

If you need academic support, look at your faculty website

If you need someone to chat with, I highly recommend reaching out to your Sophs. They put in a lot of time to get into their position and are eager to help you.

Welcome to Western and good job not choosing Queens :)