By Jack Holmes
Manchester is home to the largest student population of any city in Europe with over 90,000 students coming to study here every year. Yet with so many different people, it can seem like an intimidating prospect trying to find other students with mutual interests. Never fear says MMU as the second day of Freshers’ Fair kicks off, and dozens of passionate and varied societies come to show off what they have to offer.
The final day of totally free fair fun focuses on the dozens of student run societies that the University offers. Ranging from religious beliefs, sexual orientations, hobbies and political movements, the Freshers’ Fair is physical proof of just how varied MMU’s societies are. The creativity involved with the stalls is just one opportunity societies took to draw in some potential members, the Gamer’s society even held a Mario Kart time trial throughout the day.
This isn’t to say they’re the only ones who attended, fresh food vendors from around the city are there to greet you as you enter, as well as offer out some tasty samples. From free domino’s Pizza, Kukoos Indian Cuisine and Reds True BBQ. Even the Welsh society made some cookies, while the Languages Society brought country themed buns.
Some of Manchester’s best known nightlife brought some pretty enticing freebies as well. 42’s, Bierkeller, Venue and Black Dog Ballroom, to name just a few, brought offers from free entries and loyalty cards. So whatever you’re feeling for your next night out, it’s going to be that little bit cheaper.
Talking about making things a little cheaper, representatives from major national brands such as Virgin Media, NHS and Street Cars where offering memberships and exclusive student offers. Little Voucher Book.com where even handing out their pocket sized student saviours, packed full of offers for pretty much anything you can think of.
President of the Student Union, Jordan Stephen also praised the Freshers’ Fair as a “great opportunity to show off the new building”, which opened its doors for the first time in October 2014. The new building allows the fair to be spread across two days, rather than trying to pack the hundreds of stalls, clubs and venues into one room, for only one day. President of the Vague Roleplaying society Corey Davies acknowledged this as resulting in a particularly successful year for his society stating, “Splitting the fairs worked really well, we’ve actually managed to find the people our society targets this year.”
With the Freshers’ Fair now over it’s all about attending those first handful of socials and meetings throughout the week, and deciding which societies have earned your membership. Whatever you choose to do in Manchester over the next year, the Freshers’ Fair has helped make it a little cheaper, and even introduced you to some like minded people to enjoy University with.
If you want more info on any of the societies that attended this year’s fresher’s fair you can find a full list here.
Freshers’ Fair 2015 Gallery
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