Submitted by A.J. Wilby on Mon, 23/09/2024 - 14:42
Rob Kelsey from a brand new group - the Mature Student Society - has a message for all mature students:
"I am a 50-something history PhD student at Churchill and I'm launching a new university-wide society for the 2024-25 academic year: the Mature Student Society. The Society is embryonic, so open to suggestions regarding activities. Yet it has one aim and two functions. The aim: to bring together Cambridge University's growing band of older students who may be returning to academia after careers/caring responsibilities, or maybe finally fulfilling previously thwarted academic ambitions, or are maybe just a bit older than others on their course (or feel older!). No matter what college, degree or faculty, the idea is that we can benefit from being able to connect with each other.
As for functions, these divide into the social and the helpful.
The social: pub nights, dinners/formals, talks/research presentations, study groups, concerts, country walks, day trips, sporting attendance (e.g. Cambridge United anyone?), swimming etc, etc.
The helpful: advice, support and well-being as well as advocacy/representation with respect to inclusivity.
Although founded to fill a connectivity gap for older students, the society is open to all mature students and college staff looking for sociability and support from a more mature perspective. Globally, more and more Boomers, Gen-Xers and Millennials are returning to academia, so this is definitely on-trend.
Please email me, Rob Kelsey (rjk62@cam.ac.uk) to register your interest."