YUSU Fairs’ mixture of virtual and face-to-face events has lead to a 45% increase in membership for student societies.
Patrick O’Donnell, President of YUSU, told Vision: “We were delighted with the success of both the online and in-person YUSU Fairs”.
“This shows that our students are eager to get back to meeting friends and spending time doing the things they love, but crucially to do these in a Covid-secure way, where we can look out for each other.”
The most popular societies by sign-ups were Outdoor Society, Dog Society, Badminton Society, Feminist Society, and Yoga, demonstrating what Patrick describes as “the enthusiasm of students to both get active outdoors, as well as to stand up for the issues they care about on our campus and in our City.”
One society that has seen a particular rise in membership is Sing Song Society, an inclusive, student-run choir, who have welcomed 25 new members this year.
This means that their paid membership has nearly doubled, and this is a result of their ability to advertise themselves both online and in person.
Martha, Sing Song Soicety’s Press and Publicity Officer said, “I think virtual events have been more successful because they are more accessible and less daunting”.
“You don’t have to physically walk to a meeting place so you can easily squeeze many events back to back. Also, if you are not enjoying an event you can sneakily leave a virtual event which you can’t really do in real life!”
Sing Song Society is just one example of the “high levels of student engagement” that Patrick O’Donnell hopes “will continue throughout the year ahead…despite the challenges we all face.”
If you would like to join any societies (including York Vision), click the link here.