Getting Ready for UK Campus Life: A Simple Tech Guide for International Students

The UK welcomes international students with open arms.

This is not just a statement; the numbers back it up.

During the 2024/2025 academic year, there were 685,565 students pursuing higher education in the UK. These numbers accounted for roughly 24% of the total UK student population.

Over 600,000 of these students were from outside the EU. One look at these numbers and it’s pretty evident that many people from across the world favour the UK when it comes to education.

Now, as an international student, you’re going to be bombarded with challenges, left, right and centre. You’ll need all the help you can to make the best use of your time here in the UK.

This article covers the tech side of things. It lists all the pieces of tech that you, as an international student, will need in the UK. Consider this a checklist of all necessary tech-related elements that’ll make your stay in the UK a more pleasant, fun and fruitful one.

Essential Gadgets for International Students in the UK

These are the gadgets that are going to carry you through school, college, and university. Although your budget decides the amount of power you get to deal with, we’d recommend not cheaping out here.

Here are the essential gadgets that every international student must have.

• Laptop: Pick a laptop based on the type of course you’re pursuing and your budget. Make sure you get one with a powerful battery. The last thing you’d want is to run out of juice while you’re in the middle of something important.
• Smartphone: Most international students don’t have to buy a smartphone, as they might already have one. If you don’t have a smartphone or if you plan to upgrade, get one that provides sufficient operating system and security updates.
• Smartwatch: We specifically say smartwatch because it eliminates the need to pull out your phone often. It’s pretty easy to check who’s calling, make payments and get notifications on lectures and deadlines even if your smartphone isn’t nearby.

Essential Accessories for International Students in the UK

Accessories make life so easy. They add a lot of value, whether you use them alongside other accessories or gadgets or use them alone.

This section lists the accessories that an international student in the UK must have. Although you could make do without some of them, the improvement to the quality of life they offer is hard to ignore.

• Power bank: A smartphone running out of battery is a nightmare for many. Always carry a power bank with you, so that you’re not left with a dead battery.
• External hard drive: This is a good backup option to cloud storage. Storing important documents, study materials, presentations, and more on a hard drive comes in handy if there’s a data breach or if you need to access a file in your cloud storage using wonky internet.
• Headphones (Probably Wireless): Invest in a good pair of headphones so that you can listen to lectures and your favourite tunes in high quality and without bothering those around you. We recommend getting a pair of high-quality wireless headphones if you don’t want to spend an hour untangling wire.
• Wireless Keyboard & Mouse: These are quality-of-life improvements. Your laptop may come with a built-in keyboard and touchpad/trackpad, but external wireless peripherals, like a keyboard or a mouse, improve user comfort. You can also expect better life and less cleanup of your laptop’s keyboard and trackpad.
• Adapters: The UK uses type G adapters, which come with three rectangular pins arranged in a triangular shape. If you’re using devices purchased outside the UK, then you’ll need a travel adapter to use the socket in your halls.
• Protection for Gadgets (Cases & Skins): This is another quality-of-life improvement. Protective cases bear the brunt of accidental drops and offer protection against the elements. Laptop skins, on the other hand, are great at preventing minor surface scratches and dust. They’re also a cool way to personalise your laptop.

Now that the essential gadgets and accessories are done, let’s move to the more important part: connectivity.

How International Students in the UK Can Stay Connected

A reliable mobile plan is instrumental in an international student’s life. With one, they can

• Stay connected within the UK
• Talk with their family and friends back home
• Access the internet wherever they go, rather than rely on sketchy public Wi-Fi
• Use maps for navigation
• Find internship and job opportunities

Basically, a mobile plan is an essential part of an international student’s life in the UK. By the end of this section, you’ll have better clarity on how to choose the right plan for you.

Mobile Plans

Choosing a mobile plan isn’t as easy as one might think. You have two options to choose from:

• Pay Monthly Plans
• Pay-As-You-Go Plans

Here’s a direct comparison between them.

A pay-as-you-go plan is recommended as most international students will not have a credit history.

Here are some affordable pay-as-you-go plans from Lyca Mobile.

In addition to these international students, Lyca Mobile has pay-as-you-go plans for China, Nigeria, and Pakistan as well.

Now that you’re sorted out on the mobile plan part, the next step is to choose a type of SIM card.

You have two options in this situation.

• eSIM
• Physical SIM card

Not sure which one to choose? We’ll help you out.

As an international student, you should choose an eSIM if

• You have an eSIM-compatible device
• You don’t want to deal with physical SIM cards
• You want to run multiple lines on the same device
• You want to switch between operators without swapping SIM cards
• You are environmentally conscious
• You don’t want to wait for the SIM card to arrive

On the flip side, you should go with a physical SIM card if

• Your smartphone doesn’t support eSIMs
• You don’t want to connect to the internet to activate your line
• You don’t want to go through the hassle of scanning QR codes
• You’re okay with taking the familiar route

We’d recommend opting for an eSIM if you have a compatible device. Here’s how you activate a Lyca Mobile eSIM + plan bundle.

Step 1: Purchase a Lyca Mobile pay-as-you-go plan.

Step 2: Look for the confirmation thank you email.

Step 3: Connect your smartphone to the internet (either cellular or Wi-Fi).

Step 4: Scan the activation QR code in the confirmation thank you email.

Step 5: Follow the prompts to complete the activation process.

Activating a Lyca Mobile physical SIM is super-easy. Once you have received your SIM card, just insert it into your smartphone and wait for the confirmation message. That’s it!

Campus Wi-Fi

Connectivity on campus isn’t an issue, as most top colleges and universities in the UK offer free Wi-Fi within the campus. All students usually get the login credentials during induction.

Coverage isn’t normally a problem, but you might run into issues, especially in older buildings.

Campus Wi-Fi has a few limitations. They are:

• Putting a speed cap on bandwidth-heavy activities during peak hours
• Coverage is limited to within the campus
• Quality can be strong in a few spots but weak in many
• Lack of alternative during maintenance or outages

This is why we recommend a mix of a mobile plan and campus Wi-Fi for connectivity. Use the campus Wi-Fi when you’re on campus and the mobile plan for everything else.

Must-Have Apps for International Students in the UK

Now that you have the gadgets and connectivity part all set, let’s look at all the cool tools that will make your life as an international student easy breezy.

Note that these are our recommendations. Feel free to do your research and pick a different one if you’re facing difficulties with our recommendations.

• Research & Referencing Apps: Researching and referencing your sources will be a critical part throughout the duration of your course. Tools like Zotero and Mendeley are very useful in this instance. Library databases like JSTOR and ScienceDirect are also handy.
• Note-Taking Apps: Apps like OneNote, Notion and Evernote are a godsend when it comes to taking notes during lectures. Some of these apps also come with a transcription feature that picks up audio and turns it into text.
• Task Management Apps: Calendar apps like Google Calendar and Outlook Calendar are great for scheduling events and staying organised. Apps like Todoist and Any.do are nice free recommendations.
• Video-conferencing apps: Zoom and Microsoft Teams are recommended for attending online lectures and group projects. You may also consider Google Meet based on what your class uses.
• Physical & Mental Well-Being: These apps help you focus and practise healthy habits that are important to maintaining physical and mental well-being. Apps like Calm and MindShift are great at fighting anxiety, panic and worry, while Headspace is ideal for practising meditation and mindfulness. The Student Health App offers useful advice about health problems.
• Financial Apps: Financial planning is critical for international students. Your first course of action should be to download the app of the bank you have an account with. On top of that, you can consider Revolut and Wise for money transfers and PocketGuard and Emma to track your monthly expenses and budget your money.
• Security Apps: Digital security is a concern, since you’re in a new country and are still finding your footing. Look for a password manager like Bitwarden that generates strong and unique passwords and stores them securely. Most laptops include a paid subscription for an antivirus. If it doesn’t have one, you could consider free alternatives like Malwarebytes. Some students might opt for a VPN for privacy and security if they use public Wi-Fi a lot. If that sounds like you, consider NordVPN or ExpressVPN.

You just went through an extensive list of all the tech-related things you’ll need as an international student in the UK.

Final Thoughts

This is by no means an exhaustive list. But we have covered ample ground on the essentials international students will need to get used to the new country.

Things might seem scary but do remember that every international student before you might have felt the same. And they have conquered their fears. So can you!

There are plenty of opportunities available, be it from an educational or social perspective. It’s up to you to make use of all the resources available and make the best of your time in the UK.

And don’t forget! You’re going to need a mobile plan for those long calls to your parents back home. And for that, it’s difficult to beat the convenience and affordability that Lyca Mobile has to offer. Get a Lyca Mobile PAYG plan today!