When I first started University, I was very keen on making as many new friends as possible. During fresher’s week, way before Covid-19 existed, I went to the different Society Stalls and signed up to as many as I could. I ended up being apart of the Harry Potter Society and the Salsa & Bachata society. I was looking more for dynamic society rather than a “watch movies” kind of society therefore I stuck to Salsa & Bachata society during my foundation year.
I brought along with me some of my housemates who were keen to join. Every Tuesday and Thursday I would go and dance in couples which was a nice way to laugh and create an ice breaker when things got awkward! It was definitely a very interactive society with very friendly students of all ages. When I say “all ages” I mean undergraduates and postgraduates aged 17years and up.
The year was split into two parts, one for salsa and the other for Bachata. We were lucky enough to have a professional Cuban dance instructor come and make the lessons more fun and jollier!
The second part of the year was dedicated to Bachata which is a more intimate dance than salsa and involves a lot of partner work. Throughout the year, those who were keen were invited to participate in dance competitions which give the society that extra bit of *special* to it 😊 If you are a keen Salsa & Bachata dance student or just a university student looking for a fun and interactive society, this one is a must try!
In my first year, I did not join any societies, and rather utilised the Sports park swimming pool and went swimming twice/day with my housemate! As you can tell, we are very keen swimmers!! However, I was very lately encouraged to try out the Powerlifting and Weightlifting society. It was only until my second year that I decided to join the Powerlifting society. This was by far my best society experience!
I was very welcomed and included by everyone within the society. Sessions were running on Tuesdays and Thursday, if I remember correctly, and there were two professional instructors to safeguard and ensure everyone was performing with suitable form to avoid injury. Furthermore, I participated in their Christmas Lift where members were put into teams and whichever group obtained the highest points, would win a prize! On some nights, pub quizzes and monopoly nights were organised as a social event to get to know people a lot better and give ourselves a break from all studying. This society, and the people who brought this all together, were such supportive and kind in making University a very happy place for me during the harder academic years at University.
Societies are definitely something that I would recommend as part of University life because that’s probably one of the easiest ways to make friends, especially if you have that phobia of making friends with someone in a lecture theatre with 200+ students.
Even though I have not been a part of any societies during my 3rd year, because covid-19’s around, I still keep in contact with the friends I made in societies!
Thank you for reading, I hoped you enjoyed it and have a lovely day!
