I Returned To Uni For Freshers’ Week 20 Years After Leaving. Here’s What Has Changed

As a freshman at the University of Glasgow in the fall of 1997, I was a British-Indian 18-year-old who was eager to explore the world. Following the Labour landslide and the tragic demise of Princess Diana, I was anticipating the start of a new adventure in an unfamiliar city. However, as a Londoner, I was unaware of anything beyond the city limits. North of the Thames was all that existed to me. Yet, there I was, traveling on a train heading to Glasgow on the west coast mainline.

At Euston station, my parents bid me farewell, but I have no recollection of that momentous occasion. By the time I arrived at Carlisle, I thought I had crossed the border, and by Motherwell, I felt like an adult. Once in Glasgow, I viewed the gothic spire towering over my cab as the cathedral; however, the cab driver corrected me and explained that it was my university. I wondered to myself whether I had even seen the prospectus.

Fast forward twenty-two years, and here I am again, but this time I am not as cocky or ignorant of the world as I once was. I am heading back to my alma mater, but this time, as a 40-year-old, with a scratched-up Samsung A5 and a feeling of nostalgia.

I am on my way to meet some freshers and spend time with them, getting to know the 2019 version of university life. My expectation is that these students drink less, work more, and participate in more social media interactions than socializing, which can lead to flu. They carry a burden of financial strain, an unstable job market, rising rent costs, a prevalence of sexual harassment on campuses, a climate crisis, Brexit, and political unrest. I feel that these young people have more weight on their shoulders than I did. Many of them haven’t even voted yet but find themselves dealing with the most tumultuous period in British history since before their parents were born.

Freshers’ week is as chaotic and busy as ever. It’s filled with Domino’s advertising (free pizza is given out at the entrance), tinny beats, and crowds of both friendly and intimidated faces. The fashion is typically jeans, check shirts, trainers, and blue- and pink-dyed hair, reflecting an ’80s and ’90s throwback style. The university newspaper reports on the university’s investments in the arms trade, headline news about tackling Glasgow’s bad reputation, and where to get cheap cocktails. University Avenue is filled with people handing out free bibles, Socialist Worker newspapers, and flyers for pole-dancing classes.

When I reach room 243 after struggling to comprehend the perplexing directions "between cloisters and south front," I meet with the four freshers that I will be hanging out with. Nina Smith, 17, from Paisley, just six miles down the road, tells me that her first day was frightening but that it was a lovely place to get lost in. She studies German and music and works part-time at Ikea, where she typically works 16 hours each week, often rising to 25 hours. All of the students I meet have a part-time job or are actively seeking one. When I was a freshman, tuition fees had not yet been introduced in the UK, and I only worked during the summer to have spending money. However, Smith wasn’t sure that she would even apply to university. She considered taking a gap year, working full time and saving money. Ultimately, she recognized that if she took a year off, she may not return to university.

Rachel Christie, a first-year undergraduate student at Glasgow University, is the sole member of her group of four peers to reside in the university’s accommodation. She cites that Perth is too far away from the campus. However, she admitted that the halls’ rates were steep and that private options would have suited her better. Even though she enjoys cooking, maintaining the kitchen is a challenge. No one tidies up after themselves, and her oven is dysfunctional. Nevertheless, she concedes that it provides a great opportunity to meet new people. After attending an Iyaz concert, she can attest to the social advantages of living in halls.

Three of the quartet are part of the Widening Participation project, aimed at attracting people from specific postcodes, people who have been in care, those who possess caring responsibilities, disabilities, or estranged family members. Christie and Hannah became the first in their respective families to pursue higher education, and Murrin Duggan, fifteen years old, from the Port Glasgow area, is one of only a few teenagers enrolled in the Portuguese, French, and Spanish language course for first-year undergraduates for 2019. The age of sixteen is unusual among freshers, and Duggan expresses anxiety at the prospect of Brexit, which could impose university fees, regardless of whether new students begin their studies before or after the agreement’s implementation.

Scottish students receive free tuition, but the university has a high percentage of international students, 6,500, and 3,000 students from EU countries. Although this may change after Brexit, EU students currently do not have to pay tuition fees. Rachel Sandison, vice-principal at the university, notes that this policy enabled them to welcome talented European students into STEM courses. The fallout from a no-deal Brexit would be immense.

Freshers’ Week evokes nostalgia in the writer’s memory. The current number of students who abstain from drinking (36%) is considerably higher than when the writer was a student, where excessive alcohol consumption was typical. "Pre-term drinking and entertainment extravaganza organized in your honour" is how the week was promoted in a 1997 guide, complete with amber, green, and red themed parties. Meeting people who refrained from drinking was unexpected but welcome for Murrin Duggan.

Duggan has found solace in online interaction, which has made starting university less daunting. Through group chats on Facebook, she already has acquaintances before attending lectures. To take her mind off stress, Duggan produces YouTube videos. The university’s YouTube campus tours have also served to calm her nerves. She finds starting in new places unnerving, which is why she found the tours helpful.

Hannah adds that the importance of safe online practices has been implanted in them since primary school. It is ingrained in the same way as looking both ways before crossing the street.

The freshers’ fair is an event that could be a fantastic experience or a sensory overload depending on one’s personality. One can find all kinds of organizations, from Women in STEM to the Grim Reapers Quidditch Club. "Student experience" used to mean sex, drugs, and alcohol. That’s no longer the case. It now means mental health and wellbeing, among other items.

When the author was an undergraduate, people would mask their feelings with bravado and drunkenness. The situation was hushed up if it became too severe. However, with a rising number of students with mental health conditions, more students seek help. "Unprecedented pressures on children and young adults that are flowing into universities," says John de Pury. He’s the assistant director of policy at Universities UK. Providing exceptional care and inclusiveness is essential. In Glasgow, four freshers said that they would feel comfortable telling someone if they were struggling, and their waiting time for assessment was 9 days, compared to the UK average of 52.

Dr. Vassiliki Kolocontroni is the author’s old lecturer whom they track down. When asked about how students have evolved, Kolocontroni said that students today face much more stress. Everything is more quantified, and students today are more prepared to grasp what is going on in the world. "The level of engagement in politics is much greater."

When the author was at university, no one had to pay tuition fees, and no one worried about the future. The author was free to contemplate, explore, and have copious amounts of fun. None of the freshers he spoke to voted, but all of them were willing to do so. Regardless of what it was, they were ready to vote, march, and make their opinions heard, whether it was on Scottish independence or the European Union.

There are vouchers to collect, events to attend, shifts to work, and arrangements to make for the night out. Duggan and Christie are attending a language cafe, where students from all around the world are conversing in more than 20 different languages. Smith has to work, Hannah has to prepare for the night ahead, and the student experience continues. The author leaves for the train station, feeling hope for the future as the youth have the potential to create a better tomorrow.