Societies are a brilliant part of student life that will improve your university experience if you choose to engage with them.
Like many people at university, I have joined a society alongside my studies. There are a wide array of societies ran by the Students' Union, so no matter what your interests there will be something for you. This includes anything from Chess to BSL. If there isn't a society you like, you can always set one up yourself. Societies like them making up a big part of the social side of university alongside other events.
I joined the BSL society while on a BSL short course. I joined the society to further explore a interest in BSL. In the society, I’ve had conversations in BSL, shared BSL learning resources and gotten to learn more about the language and deaf culture. The society also host a meal following the course. The group events also allow me to meet other university students and teachers for a chat.
I have met so many likeminded people through the Society. Initially, I was nervous about coming on my own, but that didn’t last long. Everyone was friendly and welcoming, quite up for a chat in BSL or English. I was treated just the same as everybody else.
When joining a society, don’t be worried about going on your own because lots of people do it. Friendliness and being open to conversation is what counts. Everyone else will have been through the initial nerves themselves. There will also be people in the same position as you who have just started. As long as you’re up for a chat, people will be more than willing to talk.
Societies are full of people with a similar interest, so you know you've got something in common. Everyone at the BSL society is interested in BSL, so I ended up chatting about BSL and in BSL when I first joined. After getting over the initial nerves and chatting to people, I’ve become friends with several society members. Societies can be really good places to get to meet people outside of your course and to experience the social side of uni.
Joining the BSL society also helped me to practise what I’d been learning on the BSL short course and to expand my knowledge of signs and deaf culture even further. This is an invaluable skill that has also enhanced my CV.
