Freshers week

Hopefully I'm going to go uni this year (Insha'Allah) and one thing that's been on my mind a lot lately is freshers week. I don't drink or go clubbing or like being in that environment and I've heard that freshers week pretty much revolves around people going out to clubs to maker friends.

As a muslim I'm not that sure what place I would have at freshers week or what I would do.

Reply 1

KA_P

Volunteer Team, Clearing and Applications Advisor

Original post by Anonymous

I'm very sure that you won't be the only one. I've had a look and they should hopefully offer non-alcoholic beverages. I'm not completely sure, but I would doubt anyone would force you to go clubbing.

Reply 2

2022 g

You could join the islamic society. Were you could socialise and chill.

Reply 3

username5867389

Which uni? (If you don’t mind me asking). I’m also muslim so similar issue but I’m not really concerned in that sense I just want to try to meet as many people as possible and stuff InshAllah

Reply 4

AW_12

Most unis will revolve around that, unfortunately for you. There's not a lot to do in Britain...
Societies will be the best place to start to find like-minded people.

Reply 5

Anonymous #2

Drink non-alcoholic beer

Reply 6

Anonymous #1

Original post by 2022 g

You could join the islamic society. Were you could socialise and chill.

This is something which I am considering. I just don't have really have any muslim friends so am a bit awkward about joining a society where I won't know anyone at all at the start lol.

Reply 7

Anonymous #1

Original post by mystudentlife

Which uni? (If you don’t mind me asking). I’m also muslim so similar issue but I’m not really concerned in that sense I just want to try to meet as many people as possible and stuff InshAllah

I live in Glasgow, hopefully Strathclyde or Caledonian university Insha'Allah. I also want to try and meet as many people as possible, more particularly I want to be able to meet a group of Muslim friends in uni as we'll have the same kind of mindset and beliefs so it also makes socialising easier being in a muslim friend group in uni hopefully.

Reply 8

hallamstudents

Official Rep

Hi, not to worry, there are plenty of things to do that don't include drinking or clubbing during freshers week. Freshers week actually consists of a lot of freebie fairs (my favourite thing!), free dominos pizza at the freebie fairs, there will be society fairs, sports fairs, the students union will hold a lot of events, in person or online, games you can participate in, with prizes usually being some university merch! These are a lot of fun, definitely get involved inn them. The events run by the students union are also a good way to meet your students union officers A good thing to do is to invite/go with flat mates to these events, to the freebie fairs etc. It's a good way to get to know each other and have fun in a non-alcoholic environment without any potential awkwardness.

When freshers week is approaching, look online for your universities freshers week, they should have a list of events lined up, so you can see in advance which ones you want to go to and plan accordingly! Societies will also be hosting taster sessions, these are a lot of fun to get involved in, meet new people, and find societies you want to join long term.

I hope you have a fantastic freshers week, and that this alleviates some of your worries :smile:

- Rosie

Reply 9

username5800650

Original post by Anonymous

Hey, I was in the same boat so here are my 2 cents. Most of your friends you'll meet during uni is not from clubbing and I think this goes for a lot of people, but rather about your common interests (societies you've joined). One thing I was scared about is whether people will be forcing you to drink whether its late night parties or nights out, but in reality you'll be suprised. When all my friends do go clubbing, I usually only have a red bull or coke but I'm still able to have a good time do don't worry about that!

My advice is to join societies that interest you and you'll definately make friends that way :smile:

Reply 10

Anonymous #2

Original post by Anonymous

Don't go to fresher's week then if you don't want to

Reply 11

KirstinTM

At freshers I didn’t go to many events but there are lots of events without drinking. It’s just the big parties where there are drunk people, and most respectable people don’t go to them. I did visit the flats of some people in my building and stayed in the flat kitchen to socialise as we had a building group chat and there was alcohol available there but it was all optional and you didn’t get judged for sticking to things like soda and water instead of alcohol. I’m not a Muslim however there are lots of other reasons why drinking and parties can make people uncomfortable or be against their morals, so you won’t be alone in this. People you meet at big parties aren’t the type to be real friends with as most of them won’t even remember the party later on.

Reply 12

Uni of Southampton Students

Official Rep

Original post by Anonymous

Hi there!

Freshers week is usually a lot of club events and drinking, but there are also other events during the day and sometimes at night that are much more chilled, like movie nights, ice breakers, coffeeshop meetups, barbeques and pizza nights. Have a look through your student unions' fresher calendar and see what sort of events there are! And while uni life is usually a fair amount of drinking, it's not as common as you would think and I know a few friends who don't drink at all and still have a great social life.

And don't worry about making friends, the friends and people you meet in clubs are usually never the people you would be friends with; everyone's drunk and no one remembers each other 5 minutes after meeting, let alone the next morning. You'd usually make your stronger friendships with people on your course, halls or societies. I went to one club even during freshers week and discovered I absolutely hated clubbing and never went to any of the other events, and I still met loads of people (everyone is always eager to make friends wherever you are) and my good friends came from my course.

You can also look into joining a society! Unis have loads so check your uni website and see if they have an Islamic society and you can consider joining. I see from your other responses that you're worried about joining a group of people and not knowing anyone, but don't worry! That's what societies are for and they are friendly and welcoming, especially if you're on your own and they are from your walk of life. I'm from the Caribbean and joined a Caribbean society despite not knowing anyone, and knowing they are people you identify with is a big factor to making you feel comfortable. And as a member, I was always excited for any new members who joined and wanted to make sure they felt welcomed and comfortable. Plus, since you would all have similar lifestyle choices, it would be easy to go to any events or socials they have as it would be tailored to your needs.

Best of luck with going to uni, you'll have a great time!

Jade :smile:

Official University of Southampton Rep

Reply 13

The University of Law Students

Official Rep

Original post by Anonymous

Hi,
I understand that many peoples belief is that freshers week is all about drinking and clubbing. While there is that aspect to it, it's also about meeting the people at your uni and on your course and making friends early. Most uni's will hold a freshers fair where there is information about the uni, courses and any possible clubs and societies to sign up to. There are usually also other events such as quizzes and food nights etc that may be more suited to you.

All the best
Kasey - ULaw Student Ambassador

Reply 14

Lancaster Student Ambassador

Official Rep

Original post by Anonymous

Hi,

From my personal experience, there were lots of other activities outside of clubbing/drinking. Things such as coffee mornings, mocktail nights, campus tours, and sports days just to name a few. Not to mention, you often have academic things to go to during the week as well.
I would highly recommend going to your freshers fair. Not only do you normally get free things (and lets be honest who doesn't love that), but you can also find societies straight away to join, and many may meet during freshers' week. You can also organise other things to do with your flat such as exploring the area or have dinner together.
Also, a key thing to remember is lots of people do not meet their close friends during freshers week, many make them throughout their whole time at uni.

Wishing you the best,
Kat

Reply 15

ChichesterStuRep

Original post by Anonymous

Hey!

I completely understand your concern as I feel freshers has a big reputation for everyone getting drunk! However, from my experience, freshers doesn't have to be like that at all! Freshers week at every uni is a bit different! However, it definitely doesn't have to involve drinking or clubbing! Our uni had lots of different activities during each day for example going dog walking, sporting activities, yoga and various activities like that! Then there was some evening events in which some people chose to drink but as I did not know many people I went but chose not to drink. There are definitely so many more ways to make friends at uni that don't involve drinking and people should be respectful of your decision to not drink or go clubbing. I have some friends that don't drink so they just get involved in other activities and have still managed to meet so many people! There will be lots of people feeling the same way as you!

I would recommend just doing the activities that you feel comfortable with!

Best of luck with everything,
Abby, University of Chichester, First Year Student Rep

Reply 16

University of Portsmouth Student Rep

Official Rep

Hi,

It’s great to hear that you are attending University this September.

As a mature student, I was really worried about freshers as I felt too old to attend the parties and had work and other responsibilities so thought if I did not attend this would be my only chance to fit in and make friends but that was wrong.

During the day at the fresher’s fayre, I could look around and sign up to a few societies of interest and speak to some of the people in the society. Whilst they had nights out which would involve alcohol and going to various clubs they also ensured that they had nights for non-drinkers and that these were just as interesting and fun for everyone.

I think there are a lot more people at University nowadays who don’t drink whether a choice or for cultural or religious reasons or other reasons, so Universities, work hard to put on different events and activities for people who don’t drink that are just as much fun as the nights out for those who do.

I still managed to make many friends and attend some great events in my first year that I have just finished, all without a drop of alcohol. Some of the great things I got to do was an inflatable assault course and playing with puppies to de-stress during exam week which I would choose over a nightclub and hangover any day!!!!

Luke – Portsmouth Student Rep