Students having their #BestNightEver by staying in

Traditionally associated with heavy drinking and late nights, Freshers Week is being targeted by a new campaign designed for sober students 

 

As everyone who has gone through the experience well knows, Freshers Week at a British university is not for the faint-hearted.

Late nights, heavy drinking, questionable decisions - across the country it’s an entire week dedicated to an often overwhelming spiral of trebles rounds, traffic cone stealing and early hours debauchery.

But what if all that’s not really your scene? Or what if, after five or six nights out on the trot, you just need some quiet time to yourself?

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Peer pressure has regrettably always come hand in hand with university club culture, meaning students are made to feel uncool if they’d rather stay in and relax in front of Great British Bake Off, than be out drinking until 4am night after night.

Recently, university student unions have responded to accommodate new freshers who’d rather take it easy in the evenings, with many offering alternative activities including quiz nights, dance classes and trips to the theatre.
Leading the charge is Student Minds, a mental health organisation founded in 2009, which has links to over 30 universities across the UK. The charity has, this week, launched a campaign titled “#BestNightEver”, the idea of which is to encourage students to have a great night in and not give in to the pressure of the clubbing scene.
Significantly, the campaign is aimed at “reclaiming social media”, according to its mission statement. It is specifically targeting Facebook and Twitter feeds by attempting to trade club snaps for ones of takeaway pizza and board games.
“We’ve heard a lot from students about the polarised view that you get of life on social media, and how when they log on they expect to see only positive sides to people's lives,” says Nick Klein, campaigns and communications officer at Student Minds.
“What I see as most important about #BestNightEver is that it empowers students to not feel restricted to feeling that their student experience has to be a certain way. Hopefully through this campaign we can change student opinion about what a 'best night ever' is and see a lasting effect on people proud to share what they most enjoy about student life - that drinking and clubbing are not essential.”
The struggle for socially-conscious students is real. At the start of the year, researchers from the University of Missouri identified that “surveillance use” of Facebook could be a root cause of depression in the young, particularly if teens are immediately greeted by photographs of their friends having a good time as soon as they log on.

"What I see as most important about #BestNightEver is that it empowers students to not feel restricted to feeling that their student experience has to be a certain way."

Nick Klein

As a student who has suffered with her mental health in the past, Ellena Pullen didn’t always feel like following the herd out to the nearest bars on a nightly basis. The second year history student from Swansea University needed nights in to recoup, and knows many others who feel the same.
“When I started university I was fearful of the pressure of having to go out all the time... it was not something I felt able to or wanted to participate in,” she says. “I am glad Student Minds have identified this as a cause of stress or exclusion for some students, the drinking culture associated with university does not help. My best piece of advice to students is to do what makes you happy, and not others!”

With more alternatives on offer than ever before and the percentage of teetotal 16-24 year olds up by more than 40 per cent since 2005, according to the Office For National Statistics, we could be witnessing a new era of the club-shunning student.
“Sometimes it really is the small things in life that students should keep a closer eye on,” argues Sórcha Haverty, vice-president of welfare at University of Derby’s student union.
“Taking the time to have dinner with the flat mates, or watching a film, or having a catch up with old friends - these are things that students turn down in favour of standing in a noisy club all night. It’s important to claim them back, that’s what this campaign is all about: letting students know they have a choice.”
Already, the hashtag is picking up attention on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, with students up and down the country getting involved.
“For now, #BestNightEver is only lasting for the week, but if we see it has a positive impact for student wellbeing then we would be very motivated to run a similar campaign next year to last the entire Freshers Week period,” says Nick.
“The main thing is that students should never feel guilty for not getting involved. That’s the perception we’re really trying to change.”