Mark Gibbard: Yes
Subsidising bars on campus makes sense because there is more to university than a degree. The social aspects of university life are some of the most important interactions people take part in, and for many equate to the transition between their teen and adult persona.
Subsidising campus bars would display the University’s commitment to this socialisation, by providing an economically viable option for the cash-strapped student. Rather than leaving students to their own devices, the University would show that it takes social development seriously, by catering to those who wish to do so in a bar environment.
Since the tuition fee increase a policy of subsidised bars makes even more sense. Many students are suffering from a reduction of expendable income, as they are devoting more money to their course. If the University bars were subsidised then this would increase social access to those who aren’t able to spend at will. This would show true University provision for those from less wealthy backgrounds – the social opportunities that can be found in campus bars should be available to all.
Furthermore, with the cost of university now at £9,000 it is only reasonable for students to demand more for their money. This includes the capacity for a student to have an affordable night, without having to resort to some of the seedier taverns in town. This should be a part of the University’s attitude towards facilities provision, rather than turning a blind eye to alcoholic socialising, the University should provide suitably priced arenas for this.
I see no difference between offering cheap sports facilities and offering cheap social facilities. This would be a mature approach to encouraging student socialising on campus.
The subsidising of campus bars would also act as a selling point for the University, which arguably loses many potential applicants due to the reputation of York’s nightlife. If the campus bars were subsidised and offered an acceptable alternative to town then this may encourage a wider variety of people to apply to York. It would also encourage current students to utilise the campus more, which would result in a more enjoyable student experience. The money paid for university is not just for a degree, it is for the whole package. The University should be run for the students, and not for greater profit.
Agnes Chambre: No
There is that one fortnight in a lifetime, where one can douse themselves in neon face paint, chant their college songs and end up in the flatmates bed covered in someone else’s vomit. Freshers week. In this two week abstinence from life, new students are swamped with encouragement to ‘have the time of your life’ in events both organised and sponsored by the university. Obviously university is a time for fun as well as academics, but in this instance the fun should be initiated by students rather than encouraged by the university.
We should revel in the freedom of being independent and having a student loan. Whilst we can spend that problematically free-seeming money on whatever we choose, we are fundamentally at university to learn, and as such the money being spent by our establishment should prioritise welfare, employability and research, rather then supplementing cheap boozing.
The University of York should encourage their students to settle down, spend time in the library and join societies. By pumping funds into subsidising alcohol, financial stimulation that could be used for more fruitful endeavours is frittered away on bleary-eyed debauchery. If the University wants to spend money on something to make our three years here more rounded, then it should be societies. Sports, media and drama are all worthwhile reasons not to be concentrating on your degree. There is nothing, and should be nothing called “Drinksoc”; a way to while away the hours at the University’s and your liver’s expense.
Now that students have been coerced into paying £9,000 fees for their six hours of contact a week, there needs to be more than an education to reel in the prospective students and to make us feel like the experience is worth our money. Should this be experience predominantly consist of booze filled nights out? Definitely not. Why should the prospective liver and coronary diseases be subsidized by someone else? That hangover and walk of shame should be self induced affairs and not blamable on“50p shots at V bar.”
If the University is going to subsidise something in the catering industry then it should be the library café or cafeterias in colleges. If those paninis didn’t cost £3.10, perhaps I could legitimately spend more time in the vicinity of the library rather than sitting in V Bar nursing a £1.50 diet coke and vodka.