When I tried to explain the concept of being a Frep to my friends at home, I was met with confusion and some concern: ‘You mean you’re not getting paid?’. It’s not hard to understand this reaction – to those unused to the concept, being a Frep sounds like two weeks of unpaid labour, long hours, and very little reward. However, I found the process so rewarding and came out of Fresher’s Week with new friends, unique memories, and a genuine appreciation of just how many people are involved in the experiences that made my first year at Durham so special.
As a fresher, the first people we meet in Durham are not other freshers, but the Freps. I still remember the Freps that moved me into my first-year bedroom, even though the rest of my Freshers week was such a blur, the importance of these student volunteers cannot be overstated. It would have been hard to miss the controversy surrounding the fiasco that was ‘Feed the Freps’, and despite being at a college that was not actually affected by this change (John’s), it was made clear just how important student volunteers are for the running of colleges. Only a fellow student could answer a fresher’s question about circuit laundry (shudder), or the best takeaway after a night out (Pizza Uno, hands down). The importance of the Frep team extends far beyond Fresher’s Week, as freshers come to recognise and even become friends with us. In light of this, three meals a day for a week and a half seems marginal, and it was hard not to be frustrated at hearing a story of one college president cooking seventy Freps pasta in her kitchen because she had promised them a hot meal. The issues between the colleges and the university go beyond Fresher’s Week, of course, and that’s not what this article is about – I am simply trying to demonstrate how essential students are in the running of events, and the community that forms between them.
One thing I didn’t realise was that being a Frep gives you insight into all kinds of knowledge you otherwise wouldn’t have had. For example, I learned about ‘trophying’, stealing the banners from other colleges, a fun tradition that comes with a set of guidelines so that Arrivals Weekend isn’t disrupted. I wore my college mascot costume that had apparently never been washed (obvious from the smell), and I got to entertain freshers with the juiciest gossip from my year. I also got a closer look at the inner workings of my college’s JCR, which made me more appreciative of all the work these students do on top of their degrees to ensure a smooth, successful running of events. As a second year, I still feel like a silly fresh, and I have plenty of stories about my mistakes as a fresher. It is both reassuring and scary to realise that the Freps that seemed so knowledgeable in first year didn’t really know what they were doing, just as I didn’t (although I pretended otherwise). The inside jokes, memes, and shared agony over being sober in Jimmy’s results in a tight-knit community that comes as a result of working for two weeks with students from all year groups in college.
Image: Mira Kothari
As an international student, I was part of the team that welcomed international and early arrivals freshers before the ceremony of Arrivals Weekend, and as such was often working longer hours with a smaller group. One of the most gratifying moments of the whole week was witnessing freshers from all over the world connect, both with each other and with the home students the week after. It would be foolish to deny that there is some level of divide between international and home students in the UK, so to see such easy communication between freshers reaffirms the work we did. It’s a hard thing to come to a new country for education, with a different language and culture, and some aspects of Durham can seem equally bizarre to international and home students. Matriculation, for example, can feel like unnecessary pomp, but is an important reminder to celebrate the achievements of new students – with music blaring and pots clanging, we set the freshers on course for the next three years of their lives. Throughout this Fresher’s Week, I got to relive my own first week of Durham, and though I am a silly fresh no longer, helping to start students on their journey to get a degree makes me both sentimental and excited for the rest of my time here.
Featured image : Keira D’Lima