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The Third Degree

Freshers - student link up

‘Heart pumping, pulse racing, horizons expanding, attitudes shifting, knees knocking, temptation gripping, soul searching, life-changing...’

Sound-bite for a low-budget thriller? Perhaps. But this heady cocktail of emotions could also be a good reflection of what life as a Fresher is like during the first few weeks of term.

The ‘Freshers experience’

Little can prepare an 18-year-old, riding high on the wave of freedom, for the actual reality of university life. It is impossible to describe a definitive ‘Freshers experience’ as every new student will cope differently with the pressures, temptations and opportunities. However, experience shows us that patterns are often set in those first few weeks. This is their chance to define themselves by what they say and do, by how they spend their time and who their friends are.

Kicking off with ‘Freshers’ Week’ itself, most students are, from day one, immersed in a hedonistic culture, which lives, works and parties by the premise that ‘anything goes’. The desire to ‘fit in’ will be a powerful motivator for any student, leading many to live, speak and act in ways which may be completely contradictory to anything they have ever lived or stood for previously.

‘Despite starting university with a strong Christian faith and a desire to make Christian friends, I didn’t know how to respond biblically to the temptations of Freshers’ Week. My naivety quickly led me into situations that I never expected to be in. A better biblical understanding of my identity in Christ would have helped me to fight against conformity, stopping me from getting into situations I later regretted’ (Manchester graduate, 2004).

A breath of fresh air

As well as reaching out to those who have never heard the gospel before, UCCF wants to equip students who are already Christians, giving them a great start and a solid foundation to their time at university. A great way of doing this is the UCCF Christian Union student link up scheme:

* Introduction to the CU

Student Link-Up gives new students the chance to be personally welcomed by their CU. New students can sign up through our website at http://www.uccf.org.uk/newstudents and get in touch with a representative of the CU, making the first visit to the CU much less scary.

* Free FRESH pack

Free FRESH packs are available for Freshers. A series of Bible studies based on Colossians are designed to help students think biblically about where their identity lies, and the impact this will have when they start university.

* Contact with a local church

Many CUs encourage Freshers to try out different churches during their first few weeks at university by running ‘church crawls’, with an emphasis on helping students to find a local church to join.

If you’re a new student or know a student who’s going to start university in September, go to http://www.uccf.org.uk/newstudents to link up with a CU and receive a free FRESH pack. If you’re a youth leader why not order free FRESH packs online for all the soon-to-be students at your church? Also, do pray for young people in the next few weeks as they take exams, receive their results and head off to university.

Jema Ball,
Development Officer,
UCCF: The Christian Unions

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<< June 2008 >>