How would you imagine the best way to arrive in a new city?
How about a welcome party greeting you at the airport? A stream of buses to take you directly to your new university and a crowd of singing, dancing student waiting for you there. Imagine they had coffee and cakes and a place to store your luggage while you organise and orientate yourself around your new beautiful campus.
This is the treat that awaited new students arriving at KTH this week. Arriving first at Arlanda Airport, they were greeted by a group of KTH ambassadors and many other newly-arrived KTH students. Buses brought them to the KTH Campus, and there, with fika (coffee and cinnamon buns), music and dancing, they took in their first impression of Stockholm.
The Arrival Days take place every August, organised by KTH and the Student Union, THS. It’s a chance to meet new people, register to your courses, set up your IT account and pick up your bedding if you’re going to stay at KTH Campus Accommodation. I visited KTH to see the 2022 Arrival Days this week, and the excitement was infectious. It made me want to start at KTH all over again.
This is the beginning of the Stockholm adventure for most students. The next few days will be full of International Reception events – City tours, pub nights and games in the city, hikes, kayaking and cabin parties outside of it.
My International Reception in 2020 involved tours of the best cafés around Stockholm and a kayaking trip with the KTH Outdoor Club. These set me up for the great years ahead. I always know a great café to try when people come to visit, and after joining the Outdoor Club that day, I became the club’s Chairperson in 2021 and participated in so many of their great events.
When I arrived first to KTH, these events made it feel like the city was welcoming me, like I was meant to be there. It can be a scary thing to move to a new country, but with this kind of welcome, you can feel right at home.
So to all the new students, welcome! I hope your time in Stockholm is as great as mine has been.
~ Declan