How to Overcome Shyness as a Fresher in Nigerian Universities: Entering the university for the first time comes with plenty of mixed feelings—excitement, fear, curiosity, and sometimes shyness. Most freshers feel nervous when they arrive on campus and see thousands of new faces, new spaces, and a new lifestyle they have never experienced. If you have ever asked yourself “How will I cope with people?” or “What if they don’t like me?”, then you’re not alone. Many students in the Higher Institution had the same fears during their first week.
Below are practical and friendly tips on how to overcome shyness as a fresher in Nigerian higher institutions, it doesn’t matter if you are in the University, polytechnic or College of education, this article will help you especially if you want to make friends, socialize better, and enjoy your campus life without stress.
1. Start With Small Conversations (Say Hello First)
Overcome Shyness as a Fresher can simply so easy with just a conversation, if you think you must talk too much before making friends, then you’re missing it. Building friendship on campus can start with a simple “Hi” or a smile. No need to tell your life story. Sometimes the person you are talking to might be looking for friendship too. And that’s how it starts.
Let’s stay for example: a girl in UNN said she was quiet for one full week. One day, she just greeted her seatmate with, “Good morning, is the lecturer around?” That one sentence turned into a friendship that lasted more than two years. So, I will say this: start small. Say something. It grows.
2. Join Campus Groups That Match Your Interests
When it comes to overcoming shyness as a fresher in the Nigerian Higher Institutions, then joining the right groups matters a lot. Most universities or other higher institutions have fellowships, debate teams, coding clubs, music groups, sports clubs, entrepreneurship groups, tutorial groups and plenty more. You don’t need to join where you don’t fit just to avoid being lonely, just look for the one you mostly preferred and join, remember not to be over stressed, choose the one that won’t weigh you down with groups activities.
Let’s check it this way: someone who loves drawing will feel out of place in a drama group. But if that same person joins a graphics or art club, the confidence will show naturally because they feel at home. To build confidence in Nigerian universities, find people who share your interests.
3. Ask for Help When You Don’t Understand Something
A lot of students avoid asking questions because they don’t want to appear dull. But asking questions actually makes you smarter and increases your campus connection. I have seen many friendships that started with someone asking:
“Please where is this hall?”
“Do we submit today?”
“Do you have yesterday’s note?”
When you ask for help, people feel comfortable talking to you. Don’t shy away from asking, it only slows you down.
4. Stop Comparing Yourself With Other Students
It’s normal to see bold students on campus—those who talk in class loudly or walk like they own the school. If you begin to compare yourself to them, your confidence will reduce quickly.
Everyone has their personality. The confident ones, quiet ones, funny ones, calm ones—all of them survive on campus. Confidence has no single style. You don’t need to copy anybody before you’re respected.
5. Dress Neatly and Look Presentable (It Builds Silent Confidence)
Looking neat is one underrated way to control shyness as a fresher. You don’t need expensive clothes. Just iron your shirt, wear tidy shoes, smell fresh, and carry a neat bag. It makes you feel confident without talking.
Let’s stay for example: I have met a LASU student who said shyness left him the moment he started dressing properly. He didn’t become a talkative, but he stopped hiding because looking clean gave him confidence.
6. Avoid People Who Make You Feel Inferior
There are students who like intimidating others with their attitude. Stay away from them. If someone makes you feel less, you don’t need them around you. Build friendships with people who respect you and give you peace. Confidence grows faster where you’re accepted.
7. Answer questions in the Lecture Hall
Many at times a student that answers questions in the lecture hall draws more attention to his/her self and this also helps in overcoming shyness, I have tried this method before and it works, for the first and second time it might be difficult, but trying to answer questions frequently will make you bold and draws friends and respect to you from your course mates.
8. Try to reach others
If you want to overcome shyness immediately you arrive at Campus then you be of help to your course mates, by trying to lecture or explain some confusion topics to them maybe after the lecture has ended.
Announce through the class’s rep that you will be available for tutorials for those that didn’t understand the topic that the lecturer has taught, this will help you overcome shyness and draws respect and friends to you.
9. Face the Camera
As a newly admitted students, I urge you to fight shyness from the beginning, try to face the camera, start content creation be a producer, don’t only consume as someone that has a mobile phone you can start up a Facebook, YouTube or any other social media page and post your content there every day before you will know your consistency will pay. Your benefit are much, you will become popular, you Will be earning if your pages are monitised and you will overcome shyness.
10. Motivate yourself
Every shy person that later overcome shyness can not deny the role motivation play in his or her life, they say the best advice is the one given to one self. When you tell yourself enough is enough then you will see yourself coming out from shyness and boldness.
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Final Advice: Confidence Grows Slowly, Enjoy the Process
You won’t stop being shy in one week. Even final-year students still get nervous sometimes. What matters is that you continue improving, step by step. University becomes sweet when you find your people and do what feels natural.
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