So this time last year I remember reading one of Jess’s first posts entitled ‘The best two weeks ever’ as a college student. The concept of being perpetually drunk for two weeks seems like a big ask but here I am on the other side to tell you about it! Just to clarify I haven’t been drunk for the past two weeks, and if I had I’m sure I’d be typing this from a hospital bed rather than my sofa.
UCB’s Freshers’ lasts two weeks (which does seem like a lot) and includes a variety of daytime and nighttime activities. It takes place on both enrollment and induction week meaning classes haven’t started (otherwise I don’t think I would have coped).
All through these two weeks students are moving in, meaning some are moving in on the first Saturday and some two weeks later right before classes start. This can mean a mismatch in energy as those who have been partying for two weeks straight are normally dead by the time classes come around where as the new arrivals are all raring to go at the start of their uni experience.
So coming to college at UCB did give me the small advantage that I did already know a few people moving in so I didn’t feel completely alone. Also, the fact I had actually been to the Malting’s once before meant at least I knew where the sports hall was. But really, I was as nervous and in the dark about moving in as everyone else especially as I seemed to be one of the first in my flat to move in meaning there was no one really around for at least the first week.
Did I let this stop me going out almost every night for two weeks? (That was a rhetorical question but the answer is no it didn’t). So where did I go? The places included Walkabout, Snobs, PRYSM, Indie Bar, Pop World, Bel Air (Belfry Sutton Coldfield) and the Be At One bar. As I’m from Birmingham I’d been to a number of these clubs already, but everywhere was the busiest I’d seen during fresher’s.
So what happened on these nights out? When I go on my nights out, my friends normally call me problematic as I’m good at getting myself into trouble and just being a general terror. During Freshers’ I seem to have been able to be on generally good behaviour overall. I had some really fun nights out and if I’d been able to ‘hack the sesh’ a bit better I might have been able to have a few more.
One of my favourite nights out had to be the society’s social night. One thing I’d really recommended is joining a society and this is advice you’ll find from literally every Freshers’ handbook, every ex-uni student and literally any random information you can find about uni life in general. It’s the advice everyone gives because it works! I decided to check out cheerleading since it’s something I’d never tried before but there are so many other clubs to join as well.
A great way to find out about the societies is the Freshers’ Fayre where all the societies set up stalls to get freshers to sign up to go along to taster sessions and try out their sport.
Some of the UCB sport societies include…
• Cheerleading
• Zumba
• Netball
• Rugby
• Football
• Pole dance
• Basketball
• Jujitsu
• Dance
However, sports aren’t the only societies you can join because UCB has an LGBT society and a Christian union.
The Freshers’ Fayre was also great due to the £1 delicious Domino’s pizza which was probably my favourite part of the day.
One of the great things about UCB societies is that there is an option to be a social member rather than a team member, which basically means you can go to nights out without having to partake in the sport. I’m looking at hopefully doing team and social to get a full experience but you can pick one or the other with a lot of the societies.
Freshers’ is a really great time to meet and mingle before classes start and you get depressed by assignment overload. But just beware of Freshers’ flu. Before I came to uni I was like ‘there is no way I’m going to get that!’ Three weeks in I’m bundled in blankets, hot water bottle filled, have all Boots’ over the counter medication on my table and living a diet of Lemsip. It’s fair to say it’s real.
So I hope all the other Freshers have had as much fun as me, getting used to living away from home, being responsible for household chores ( the washing up – ughhhh) and trying to live on a diet of anything but pasta (everyone in my flat has seen my result to frying salad out of pure laziness) and spending all the student loan on late night kebabs.
So, next year’s Freshers be prepared to be the tiredest you’ve ever been and party with people you met three hours ago!
R.B
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