Being a member of St Chad’s College allows you to experience Durham University in a completely unique way. Everybody that you speak to will tell you that their college is the best – well, St Chad’s is certainly the most fun!
St Chad’s College
St Chad’s is one of only two fully independent colleges in Durham, so life is certainly different. It is fully catered, with three very delicious meals a day – the breakfast choice especially is the best thing to get me out of bed in the morning!
We have formal meals (known quite creatively as formals) twice a week. These are amazing fun – I get dressed up with my friends, enjoy a fancy meal and engage in some entertaining traditions. The fact that they occur so often means that I can attend when it works best for me, or when there is a theme that sounds particularly exciting. A highlight for me this year was the Burn’s Night Formal!
At Chad’s, there is a chance you will have a roommate in your first year. Although an intimidating prospect, I personally found it a great experience. It introduces you to an immediate friend, and guarantees that you are never alone in what can be a very overwhelming time.
Why did I choose St Chad’s?
Initially, I was very much drawn to the small community to St Chad’s. It is Durham’s smallest college, and coming from a small secondary school, I was really keen to be in a close-knit community. I definitely found it. At St Chad’s, you can easily know everybody in your year, as well as meet others in the years above and below!
The small size of St Chad’s means that it is really easy to try out new things, with zero judgement involved. Sports are an excellent example of this. It is very casual, allowing you to show up to practices with zero commitment, and the small college size means that you have a greater chance of representing St Chad’s in matches! However, this doesn’t mean that the support isn’t there. On the contrary, during competitions, it is not uncommon to hear a large, enthusiastic crowd cheering you on.
However, outside of sports, I personally love to get involved with the other fun opportunities that St Chad’s offers. If you’re a big fan of planning social events, then there is the Social Committee or the Candlemas Ball Committee.
Personally, I enjoy getting involved in volunteering, so I joined the Charity Committee! As a member, I have organised volunteering trips, planned a ball and made plenty of new friends. This has really pushed me out of my comfort zone and I am so happy it did!
Why the community is so great!
Above all, the student support available at St Chad’s has been second to none. As the community is so close, it is really easy to approach others with any worries or problems that you have – especially the well-being team.
However, my favourite thing about St Chad’s by far is how many opportunities we have to come together and enjoy ourselves as a community. Most recently, we had our ‘Chad’s Day’. This began with an early start at 5am and involved a whole day of fun activities such as competitions, an inflatable assault course, and a whole lot of wearing green!
However, the fun happens all year round – frequently we have balls (including our ball of the year ‘Candlemas’, that takes place every February) as well as ‘bops’ (which are just massive parties!)
In all, I hope you have learnt a lot about life at St Chad’s and why despite being small, we are so mighty!
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