Successful night to welcome Freshers

On Tuesday the 3rd of October, a social evening was held at 29 Park Place for Welsh-speaking students at Cardiff. The main purpose of the night was to welcome first year students to Cardiff and give them more information regarding the countless opportunities available to them in Welsh, both academic and extracurricular.

Among the evening’s guest speakers were Sian Morgan Lloyd(a lecturer with the Coleg Cymraeg at School of Journalism), Liam Ketcher and Aled Russell (co-founders of Cyfryngau Myfyrwyr Cymraeg Caerdydd (Cardiff Welsh language Student Media), Elliw Iwan (Coleg Cymraeg School and College Liaison Officer), Sara Vaughan (School and College Liaison Officer), Osian Morgan (President of UMCC), and the committees of the Gym Gym and Cymdeithas Iolo.

Elliw Iwan, one of the organisers of the evening, said: “The opportunities are here for you in Welsh. Use them, celebrate them, have pride in them. "

Opportunities in Welsh

Some of the aforementioned opportunities include the opportunities to be an ambassador to the University and the Coleg Cymraeg, the opportunities to contribute to Cardiff Welsh language Student Media, opportunities to gain a Welsh language skills qualification, and opportunities to study modules such as Journalism in Welsh. There was also ample opportunity for the students to ask questions and discuss with staff and students in the second and third year.

Sarah Vaughan, School and College Liaison Officer, added: “It gives me great pleasure to welcome so many enthusiastic students to this brand new event. Here’s hoping that we can foster a stronger relationship with the University’s Welsh-speakers so that we can promote the language in our University”.

She stressed that there are many advantages to being an ambassador, including making connections, developing public-speaking skills, gaining a variety experiences, and being able to work around your own hours and earning a generous wage.

She was corroborated by Aled Russell, one of the editors of Taf-od ac a Welsh-language coordinator with Xpress Radio. Regarding the evening’s success he said:

"The evening was a successful one. There was a lot of interest at the end of the night. People are keen to write and to contribute to the Welsh Students’ Media, and that is a good thing. It is good to see that our attempt to establish Welsh media platforms are being appreciated and that they are triggering new interest.”

But listening and discussing weren’t the only thing in the agenda, of course: there was pizza and a pint as part of the deal.

“The fact that we had to order more food and drink halfway through the evening proved how successful it was! It was a privilege to meet and students from almost every academic school within the University. Thanks to the development of UMCC, Cymdeithas Iolo, the Gym Gym, the Coleg Cymraeg, and Cardiff Media and more, it is very exciting time to be a student at Cardiff University.”

And it augurs well for a similar evening around Christmas time.

More info

For more information on becoming one of the University's ambassadors, please contact Sara Vaughan. Information about being an ambassador to Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol is available on their website. You can register to gain a Tystysgrif Sgiliau Iaith.