My experience living in Garden Halls 2020-2021.

Hello, my name is Alice, and I am currently a third-year veterinary student on the BVetMed5 course at the RVC. When applying to RVC and looking into accommodation, Garden Halls particularly stood out to me. The biggest point drawing me to these halls was that it was an intercollegiate hall, meaning I would be living with students from many different London universities, not just RVC. This proved to be a great decision, as during my time there I made some great friends who studied incredibly different things, who I am still in touch with 4 years on. I found it was nice to come home after a busy day at vet school and be able to detach completely by listening to my friends talk about topics completely new to me.

Another major factor that influenced my decision to request Garden Halls as my first choice was its location. Garden Halls is located just a 2 minutes’ walk from kings cross, 15 minutes from Tottenham Court Road and 15 minutes from RVC. I really appreciated living so central in my first year, and it really allowed me to feel like I was living in London! I have appreciated this more since living further away from central London. The convenience of Garden Halls meant I was able to walk around central London in my spare time, go shopping, cycle and see West End musicals easily.

The Halls themselves were also very beautiful. It felt more like living in a hotel! We had access to a games room, cinema, social spaces, canteen, music room, common room, laundry room and even tennis courts. My room was a double standard townhouse room, with a shared bathroom between two. I also had other vet friends who lived in a different part of the halls and had a single room and shared showers but en-suite toilet. Both types of room were very modern, with a desk, storage, whiteboard and often a nice view over the surrounding area. The shared kitchens were also very modern and clean, with electric hobs, microwave ovens and all essential appliances included. I was in a self-catered room, but Garden Halls also offers a catered option. It was also a very social halls of residence. Most weeks there were activities organised by resident coordinators, and people would often meet in the social spaces in the evenings.

Moving in I was very nervous, but also excited to meet my housemates and other people in the halls. The location of Gardens made my transition after moving there much easier, as there was so much to do within a 10-minute walk. When you move into new halls, I think it is important to remember that everyone else is probably feeling the same way as you, and often making friends can be much easier than you might first expect!