Elle Tashdijan
Making the most of your student experience – UofG Sports
At UofG we boast an incredible number of diverse student societies. However, whilst I’ve had a great experience being part of SRC societies related to my degrees, my student experience couldn’t possibly have been what it was without the UofG community that I found in GUSA (the Glasgow University Sports Association). As I’m beginning to finish up my student experience at UofG, it’s become super clear to me how important student sports clubs, particularly the Lacrosse Club, have been to me. If you’ll indulge me for a few minutes, I’d really like to try and demystify the student sports experience, in the hope that you can benefit from the incredible community I’ve been a part of! (Disclaimer: although I love a bit of UofG sports this is not an ad for GUSA, just my own ramblings!)
My Experience:
When I first arrived, despite having been part of some sports teams at school, student sport at university seemed like something so out with the realm of my abilities. I saw university level sports through the lens of Olympic level athletics, where only real athletes would be taking part, in - what I imagined - were highly competitive sports leagues. Importantly, assuming that most of you reading won’t know me, a really critical part of this reflection piece is that I’ve by no means ever been described as an athlete. With this in mind, I saw no chance of making a team or fitting into these spaces and quickly put the idea of joining a sports club to rest.
After what I’m sure we can all agree is a very intense first semester of uni, I was feeling burnt out and experiencing my first real wobble since arriving. Despite finally getting to grips with what university learning looked like, I felt like something was missing. I’d made a couple of good friends through my student halls, but I knew I hadn’t really done the hard part and put myself out there to meet new people. To put it plainly, I felt like I’d very much missed the fun train, having not gotten involved in much on campus at the start of the year.
Luckily, I came to uni equipped with a go-getter type of friend, who pushed me to go to the Refreshers Fair and try out some sports sessions. Despite my preconceptions, one of the great things about sports at UofG is that as well as there being loads of opportunities for competitive sports, there are also plenty of opportunities for students to try out new sports and play recreationally. There are opportunities to attend ‘taster sessions’ at the start of the year and to try out sports again in semester two – my point being that it’s never too late to join in! We contacted a few clubs via their social media accounts and were always invited and supported in taking part. This experience gave me a lot of hope that maybe sports at uni weren’t the exclusive experience I’d thought they were.
One of the clubs that stood out to me, mostly because of my love of ‘Wild Child’ (which if you haven’t seen I highly recommend), was the lacrosse club. Honestly, we just went for a laugh to see what it was all about and perhaps channel our very own Poppy Moore (yikes), but now, almost five years later, I can confidently say it lived up to every expectation. It became clear to me very quickly that everybody in the club just really wanted to have a good time and make friends. I was surprised at how little anybody cared about my sheer lack of athletic ability, which didn’t see me any less involved than anyone else.
At my first lacrosse practice, it’s fair to say I was really showing off my lack of athleticism, dodging passes left and right and honestly just a bit feart for my life – but ultimately so was everyone else and really that was the fun of the thing. It turned out that most people who join lacrosse (and many other sports at UofG) haven’t ever played before. Very soon afterwards, my entire flat was getting on the GUSA bus to the Garscube sports complex every Tuesday to run around and have a laugh.
Five years later I can confidently say I’ve put myself out there and reaped the benefits, I’ve learnt a new sport, held three committee positions to develop a club a love (also great stuff for the CV), and most importantly made some friendships for life. I’ve experienced wins, an entire season of losses (honestly a highlight that brought us all closer together) and taken part in a fair few memorable nights out.
The Main Takeaways:
Everyone’s sports experience at UofG will ultimately look different, but I guarantee you that if you ask anyone from any GUSA club we’ll all agree on a few things:
- Sports at UofG are for everybody, regardless of athleticism, background, or experience.
- It’s ultimately all about having a good time. Whilst the competitive wins are great, my lacrosse team are proof that the losses forge some pretty excellent friendships.
- The GUSA community offers you such a great opportunity to get involved on campus, making sure your degree experience is more than just your learning! Whether that’s through attending trainings, making memories at sports Wednesday nights outs or getting involved more formally on sports committees, there’s something for everyone (A great example being that I leave just next week for a five day holiday in Spain with the lacrosse club!)
Resources:
I mentioned earlier that I tried out some sports clubs through the encouragement of an existing friend. This was really something I would have deeply struggled to do alone – but luckily GUSA now offers some great solutions to make that first sporting experience a little less terrifying that I’d really recommend you check out. Likewise, don’t be afraid to be that friend, take someone with you whilst you try out!
GUSA Buddy Schemes:
At the Freshers Fair you can visit the GUSA welcome stall, where freshers helpers (in yellow T-shirts) will show you around and point you in the direction of any clubs you might be interested in!
Similarly, throughout the year there are also opportunities to take part in the ‘Active buddy programme’, which will see you paired up with a student volunteer as you start to explore the gym.
Recstravaganza:
During term GUSA also host their Recstravaganza sessions (Fridays 1pm-2pm) in the Stevenson building gym on main campus.
This is an opportunity to get involved recreationally playing a rotation of indoor sports such as volleyball, basketball, and badminton to name a few! Check out the GUSA Instagram or Facebook pages to stay updated on which sessions are running!
Reaching out/Joining Clubs:
If in doubt it’s always possible to reach out to clubs directly through their social media pages or their club emails which you can find on the UofG sport website.
This was something I did when I was trying out new sports and is a great way to ask any questions you might have.
Each GUSA club has an organising committee of elected student volunteers whose role is to make sure all new members are supported in having an amazing time – they’ll always be more than happy to help out! Don’t be afraid to go along to sessions even just once to try it out – this is really common and encouraged!
Parting Advice:
These are just a few of the many resources and support programmes that UofG Sport and GUSA offer! Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or reach out to any of the GUSA team, whose contacts can be found on the UofG sport website!
With that I leave you with my parting advice. Take every opportunity and leave no stone unturned during your time at UofG, whether that’s sports or not, I guarantee you’ll not regret it!