I love feeling part of a community and this has always been strong at Derby but seems to be less so for PGR students, and I think that should change.
By now I suspect you will have had an email from Maria suggesting a PGR social event. She is amazing at organising these events and I highly recommend attending. It is a great place to network and I promise; the more PGR students you meet, the more you feel like you aren’t alone and you are on track (because it definitely feels like things are wildly off track when you don’t have another PGR friend to tell you that they feel the exact same way... and we all do).
That being said, I want more. I love feeling part of a community and this has always been strong at Derby but seems to be less so for PGR students, and I think that should change. So here is a listicle of suggestions I have for socials. Please let me know what you like best or suggest new things in the comments or to edu.pgr@derbyunion.co.uk.
Picnic
Who doesn’t love a little picnic? And there are so many places that we could go around campus or in town. Derby is packed with secret greenery which is perfect for descending upon, en mass with food and kids. We could go to Markeaton, Elvaston, Darley Park or Derby Arboretum (or all of them, if we really set our minds to it). There are safe spaces for kids to play, picnics to be enjoyed, bikes to be ridden, and relaxing to be had.
Soft play
So this one isn't for everyone, because as cool as it would be for a bunch of PGR students to be swinging about around soft play, I was thinking about student parents/aunties/siblings taking our children here… so that we get 5 minutes peace for a cuppa.
The Library
Bear with me on this one… Who would be up for a PGR study group that met once a month in The Library? We could take over a nice corner and all do some work together. I know that I find working with someone else to be beneficial, even if we just run ideas past each other. It doesn’t matter if our areas differ vastly either, some of the most interesting chats I have had about my work have been with students from entirely different fields.
Cinema
I am so excited that cinemas have reopened, and I am looking forward to getting to one as soon as possible. How about a regular cinema evening (or day if we can all find a moment). We could all meet at the cinema, whip out our TOTUM cards (previously NUS card, because hell yes! we still get discount, just download the app to get your TOTUM card).
D&D or Warhammer campaign
Ok, so confession time… I absolutely love D&D and Warhammer, and I think that everyone should have a cheeky campaign at least once in their life! It is so much fun and although it might not be something you have tried before, it would be a real giggle! I dare you!
Classic pub crawl
We are still students after all.
Charity Event
Universities have been famous for raising money and fighting for good causes. We shouldn’t stop just because we are PGR students now. There can be some really fun ways to raise money or awareness. The Union has a few key charities every year that they raise money for, which we could have a bit of fun collecting for… or we could pick a cause which we think needs our attention and create a fun event for it.