The Student Room Group
University of York
York

Should I buy a freshers week wristband?

I'm leaning towards not buying a wristband for freshers week considering that

- £40 is a lot of money and could be spent on something more important and getting the money will be a challenge
- I don't drink and have no interest in going to any clubs or bars
- I can't go to some of the events I actually want to go to because my lectures start during freshers week

However I don't want to be stuck in the halls all my own the whole week and I want to socialise and get to know people. Can I still do that without buying a wristband? Do I need a wristband to get into every single event my college is holding? What can I do during the week without buying a wristband?
Reply 1
Seeing as though you don't drink, I doubt clubbing is gonna be much fun for you (speaking from experience), so I would say that getting the ticket isn't really worth it (seeing as though the majority of the events are drinking/clubbing events (which I personally think is wrong). There are however a few events (maybe more than I am aware of) that are less drink-y things, and I'm afraid that I don't know if you can get into those without the wristband (maybe you will have to pay separately for them).
My house quickly learnt and accepted that I would never drink much or go out so I wouldn't worry too much about being totally excluded from everything, just go down to pres with a bottle of Coke and you will be fine.

P.S--If you already know your accommodation, try to find a Facebook etc group for that (get to know the people you will be living with) and try to find your college tutor as they will likely be able to answer your questions on the freshers events. If you need any help with finding those, just let me know.
(edited 7 years ago)
University of York
York
I would say, hands down, buy the wristband. I didn't drink until I got to uni but decided to buy the wristband anyway. Of course you don't need to drink and no one will force you to drink but I'd encourage you to do so. Get to know your flat mates, socialise with them just have fun. Just for a week, leave your worries behind and just have fun. STYCs will be there to make sure you are safe and are having fun. Freshers week is still the best week of my life, got so many good memories from it. It's a once in a life time opportunity, please don't miss out on this cause of money.

As for day time event, you should be able to the them without the wristband, they are only really for getting into clubs. What lectures do you have in freshers week? I think they only have induction activities at the department in freshers week but I might be wrong. Either way, they are not that important.
Original post by l1lvink
Seeing as though you don't drink, I doubt clubbing is gonna be much fun for you (speaking from experience), so I would say that getting the ticket isn't really worth it (seeing as though the majority of the events are drinking/clubbing events (which I personally think is wrong). There are however a few events (maybe more than I am aware of) that are less drink-y things, and I'm afraid that I don't know if you can get into those without the wristband (maybe you will have to pay separately for them).
My house quickly learnt and accepted that I would never drink much or go out so I wouldn't worry too much about being totally excluded from everything, just go down to pres with a bottle of Coke and you will be fine.

P.S--If you already know your accommodation, try to find a Facebook etc group for that (get to know the people you will be living with) and try to find your college tutor as they will likely be able to answer your questions on the freshers events. If you need any help with finding those, just let me know.


Thanks for the advice this is what I'll probably end up doing! It won't let me rep you for some reason but just imagine I did XD
Original post by mikolv2
I would say, hands down, buy the wristband. I didn't drink until I got to uni but decided to buy the wristband anyway. Of course you don't need to drink and no one will force you to drink but I'd encourage you to do so. Get to know your flat mates, socialise with them just have fun. Just for a week, leave your worries behind and just have fun. STYCs will be there to make sure you are safe and are having fun. Freshers week is still the best week of my life, got so many good memories from it. It's a once in a life time opportunity, please don't miss out on this cause of money.

As for day time event, you should be able to the them without the wristband, they are only really for getting into clubs. What lectures do you have in freshers week? I think they only have induction activities at the department in freshers week but I might be wrong. Either way, they are not that important.


I do a nursing course so we're actually diving straight into the course (all the lectures are marked mandatory in red) and I wouldn't want to miss them either way since they're the whole reason I'm at uni :tongue:

I don't think I'll get the wristband considering I really don't think I'd enjoy that club and drinking environment especially since I can get into the day events free of charge, thanks for the advice anyways :smile:
Original post by imjustnotnormal
I do a nursing course so we're actually diving straight into the course (all the lectures are marked mandatory in red) and I wouldn't want to miss them either way since they're the whole reason I'm at uni :tongue:

I don't think I'll get the wristband considering I really don't think I'd enjoy that club and drinking environment especially since I can get into the day events free of charge, thanks for the advice anyways :smile:


Fair enough, that's a good attitude to have, I only went to about 10% of lectures in my first year and just barely managed to scrape by. Your lectures should be recorded so you can watch them later and all the materials will also be online.

However, the harsh truth is that pretty much everyone else is gonna go out so you'll be left on your own. I'd rather catch up on lectures than miss out. I had one flatmate that never went out with us and quickly became the outcast in our flat because whenever we had fun he'd just stay in his room.
Reply 6
Original post by mikolv2
Fair enough, that's a good attitude to have, I only went to about 10% of lectures in my first year and just barely managed to scrape by. Your lectures should be recorded so you can watch them later and all the materials will also be online.

However, the harsh truth is that pretty much everyone else is gonna go out so you'll be left on your own. I'd rather catch up on lectures than miss out. I had one flatmate that never went out with us and quickly became the outcast in our flat because whenever we had fun he'd just stay in his room.


Original post by imjustnotnormal
I do a nursing course so we're actually diving straight into the course (all the lectures are marked mandatory in red) and I wouldn't want to miss them either way since they're the whole reason I'm at uni :tongue:

I don't think I'll get the wristband considering I really don't think I'd enjoy that club and drinking environment especially since I can get into the day events free of charge, thanks for the advice anyways :smile:


I got the wristband last year just for peace of mind - knowing that I could do big events in the unlikely event that I felt like it. However I completely understand that you'd rather save £40 and just go to daytime events - and there will be plenty of them.

Remember that you'll find friends from places other than your house; most of my friends are coursemates and friends from societies. Also keep in mind that you may not be the only person in your house who doesn't enjoy the club and drinking environment.

I think in summary, if you don't want to buy it, don't, and you should have a great freshers experience regardless :smile:
Original post by leahdw
I got the wristband last year just for peace of mind - knowing that I could do big events in the unlikely event that I felt like it. However I completely understand that you'd rather save £40 and just go to daytime events - and there will be plenty of them.

Remember that you'll find friends from places other than your house; most of my friends are coursemates and friends from societies. Also keep in mind that you may not be the only person in your house who doesn't enjoy the club and drinking environment.

I think in summary, if you don't want to buy it, don't, and you should have a great freshers experience regardless :smile:


Thank you, this is very reassuring :smile:
Reply 8
Original post by mikolv2
Fair enough, that's a good attitude to have, I only went to about 10% of lectures in my first year and just barely managed to scrape by. Your lectures should be recorded so you can watch them later and all the materials will also be online.

However, the harsh truth is that pretty much everyone else is gonna go out so you'll be left on your own. I'd rather catch up on lectures than miss out. I had one flatmate that never went out with us and quickly became the outcast in our flat because whenever we had fun he'd just stay in his room.


Don't listen to this guy he only just scraped by first year. Do what you want.

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Reply 9
Original post by l1lvink
I wouldn't worry too much about being totally excluded from everything, just go down to pres with a bottle of Coke and you will be fine.


Hi,

I'm a nuub, what is Pres?
Original post by Alien8
Hi,

I'm a nuub, what is Pres?


Pres as in pre-drinks. Basically drinking before going out, usually to save money on buying drinks at a club/bar.

By the way I'm the poster of this thread and can say that I'm really glad I didn't buy that wristband since it was mainly for getting into clubs etc which I wasn't interested and I was still able to go to all the day events and socialise without drinking. In case you're wondering about getting the wristband and that's why you've landed on this page :smile:
Reply 11
Original post by imjustnotnormal
Pres as in pre-drinks


Thanks imjustnormal, I had no idea. I'm 54 and about to start my first year. Haven't a clue about freshers but can't see myself hitting the bars and clubs. lol
Original post by Alien8
Thanks imjustnormal, I had no idea. I'm 54 and about to start my first year. Haven't a clue about freshers but can't see myself hitting the bars and clubs. lol


That's great, best of luck starting your first year, hope you enjoy it!
pres means pre-drinks so the drinking session you have before actually going to the club

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