Students take fresh approach to university life

Freshers Week has long been celebrated in universities across the country.

Renowned for its outrageous behaviour and drinking games, it has been seen as a great way of easing in to student life, making friends and getting to know the 'in' places to meet, drink and be merry.

The word Freshers is a shortened version of the American term Freshman meaning someone in their first year of university and conjures images of drunken students falling out of nightclubs and for some this will be part of the university experience.

But for others, it appears that things are changing. A number of universities have changed their stance on the best way to welcome students in to their hallowed corridors. Instead of Freshers Week it is now widely known as Welcome Week.

And Generation Sensible is shunning alcoholic excess. Figures from the Office for National Statistics three years ago revealed the number of under-25s opting for total abstinence from alcohol had leapt by 40 per cent in eight years, with young people overtaking the elderly as the most sober generation.

Hull University has scrapped freshers week entirely, changed one of its campus bars into an ice-cream parlour and reduced the hours of its nightclub because of a lack of demand. Others are offering “café crawls”, quizzes, plant-potting workshops and quiet rooms for meditation.

Retro Gaming

At University Centre Shrewsbury, there are retro gaming and rock climbing to choose from and this week there was Feel Good Thursday ,which aimed to show the new recruits how to stay physically and mentally well during their stay in Shropshire.

Rachael Jones, Student Union development manager at University Centre Shrewsbury, said the institution made sure students had a range of activities to choose from during Welcome Week.

She said: “From our experience at UCS, students still go out but a lot are more interested in social activities rather than just going to bars and clubs and drinking.

“For instance, welcome week this year includes laser tag, NERF wars, retro gaming, and rock climbing, and is focused more on afternoon activities rather than evening events which traditionally centred around alcohol.

“This is to bring people together in the first instance, and to allow them to choose whether they want to continue after the event and head to a pub or bar.

“There is also a strong commitment from universities to help students with their well-being, and that is a big focus here in Shrewsbury.

“Our Feel Good Thursday event during welcome week is aimed at providing our students with techniques to maintain good mental and physical health whilst they’re in university.

“We have run similar events, usually later in the academic year, and they are always very popular.”

Adam Riglar, head of communications and events from the University of Wolverhampton Students’ Union, said: “We have a diverse student population so offer a range of activities during Welcome Week to introduce people to the University.

“On Thursday we held a StartWell Fair, which featured things like free massages, social sports and support services all on campus to help students StartWell at University.

“We have the annual highlight of Welcome Week, our Freshers’ Fairs, which took place at Telford Campus on Tuesday, Walsall Campus on Wednesday and yesterday (FRI) at Wolverhampton. This is a great way to introduce people to the clubs and societies we have on offer and also to the wider business and retail community in the Black Country.

“We held a Freshers’ Comedy night at the University’s Arena Theatre to introduce students to the comedy and theatre we have on offer here.

“We also partner with Cool It Events Wolverhampton, who are the SU’s official partner for club nights. Wolverhampton was recently ranked as one of the top ten student cities for events in the UK and our campus is in the heart of the city centre, so there are also plenty of opportunities to take in gigs and other nightlife.”

A report this week revealed Britain has recorded Europe’s biggest fall in teenage drinking, with regular alcohol use down 80 per cent since 2002. The World Health Organisation suggested more time on social media, greater health consciousness, better parenting and a backlash against the drunkenness of previous generations as possible reasons.