Graduation

We were first greeted by the Scots Pines of Memorial Court, and welcomes from our college families and staircase neighbours. After frantic bicycle searches, these initial meetings led to evenings of underground music, cellars shifts, buttery chats, and cinema screenings with ice cream and pizza in the Master’s Lodge. We later experienced the cacophony of laughter during formals in the Great Hall and lunches in the beautiful River Cafe. We learned from the events and fun created by those around us, sparking new perspectives, interests and knowledge.

Rounding the corner into Old Court’s embrace, we traversed throughout the year over Clare bridge, and were greeted by daffodils of spring along the avenue. At weekends we planted our own contributions, sported our college colours and chatted about books in the pub.

Study breaks in the FML were accompanied by beautiful melodies from the music practice rooms. Scholars’ and Fellows’ Garden plays led us laughing into the return of May Week at Clare, nights of fun we all did not want to end and planned to never forget. After years of peeking through the avenue to see what might be revealed, the Fellows’ Garden reopened in our final Easter Term. We have witnessed the transformation of Old Court and ourselves throughout these years.

There is no single way to encapsulate all our experiences here. As we embark upon the next stage of our lives and leave this unworldly place, I am reminded of words of a Clareite couple who I happened to meet en route from Ireland to my first day at Clare: “Clare stays with you forever.”

Constanza Meade, Law

Our matriculation into Cambridge and Fitz came off the back of an incredibly strange Sixth Form experience, replete with two lockdowns across two years.  Our hope was to have as normal and complete a university experience as possible, and we are lucky to have had just that. In-person lectures (with masks) took place from Week 1 of our first Michaelmas and brought us crashing back into the reality of real work!  And despite the strange phases of talking to people through windows during self-isolation and helping Dina run makeshift brunch around College, we were blessed with relatively smooth sailing.  That same year saw a Sunken Realm, our first Fitz ball, with the Ferris wheel and buttery roller skates forming a slightly bizarre experience, all ramped up by our desire to flee the library.

Second year saw a lot of people enter the interior design marvels of the Fitz houses and negotiating our personal touches with housekeeping!  Success came in football for both women and men, continuing our stellar reputation across the university.  Ewan and Fleur managed to take us back to the height of Lindsay Lohan before reminding us why we should have stayed in the EU. 

Standing here, we doubt that final year needs much recollection, but we hope that whether staying another year or heading off, we can reflect on these years together as packed full of new experiences that equip us well for the future.  Fitz graduates of 2024, good luck and billy love! 

Philip Harper & Sarah Anderson , JCR Presidents 2022-23, Classics

It is the 29th of September 2021, surprisingly warm, and you are full of determination as you load an IKEA bag onto a porter's lodge trolley. You follow the number on your key up four flights of stairs, unsure about the lifts, and there you are in your creaky West House room. You are home! 

That was the day that started our journey at Cambridge, and three years later, here we are. We had a great freshers' week. We saw the likes of Revs and Lola’s for the first time, did a scavenger hunt around college and were the last year group to experience matriculation in the Great Hall. We started in a post-covid world, still seeing its effects in household testing and self-isolation (kettle included). We were luckily able to still experience Cambridge as normal, attending HUS run bops, and having our lectures in person. 

We have enjoyed a plethora of themed formals each year, and along-side them a plethora of Simon’s infamous speeches! We’ve had incredible visits from famous faces, including the likes of King Charles, Reverend Al Sharpton and Naomi Campbell. We have seen change in Homerton, with the opening of the New Dining Hall and Buttery. We’ve also made change, with members of our year creating or revitalising several societies, such as BME Society and Vampire Society, just to name a couple. We’ve celebrated the success of two amazing May Balls, and of our blues sports players winning big in rugby, rowing, and football. Collectively we have tackled the whole Cambridge experience, ranging from our sports successes to great theatrical and political endeavours also. 

We have been the year group to stand up and represent student voice, uniting on issues that really matter, that will surely have an impact on generations of Homertonians to come. 

Lizzie Banner,  Communications Officer, Homerton Union of Students. 

Our first year began excitedly, with lockdown almost fully eased up, and the majority of our freshers’ activities held in person. We were able to experience bops, meet the rest of our year, join societies and start our integration into college life. By Lent Term most things were back to normal, and we dived into the full Cambridge experience. Easter Term saw the return of the first May Ball since Covid – and we all got the chance to live through how the Ball gained its extravagant reputation. With life back to normal we were able to enjoy traditions like punting, try out the various restaurants, sights, theatre performances and more around the city, embark on walks to Grantchester and enjoy the river. First year also saw some exciting moments like the repatriation ceremony and dinner for the Benin bronze, Okukor – a proud moment for the college.

In second year, our Old Hall re-opened and we finally saw college dinners in their full grandeur. Traditional college events were held back in the Hall, like the eventful Halfway Hall and Second Year Lunch, and we had more opportunities to come together as a year group. Student-led events like FNJ and JCSU events were revamped, and entertained us all.

In third year, we once again triumphed against Oxford in Jesus-Jesus Varsity, and celebrated with our college community. With lots of other opportunities thrown in, like supporting numerous college members in the Half Marathon, enjoying the wide array of musical talent in JBar, and the continued appearances of the college deer – it’s been a year to remember.

We’ve loved our time as Jesuans, and we’ll always hold this community proudly in our hearts.

Esther Anthony-Ajileye, Land Economy, Former Vice President, JCSU (Jesus College Student Union)

After three glorious years, Lucy Cavendish is waving goodbye to its first all-gender undergraduate cohort. In September 2021, nearly 140 of us turned up to bridging week beady-eyed and, admittedly, slightly bewildered. Forever and proudly a college of access, over 80% of us hailed from the state system, and stumbled into this mysterious and at times overwhelming realm of academia on the back of a pandemic, exams fiascos and an array of uncertainties. This didn’t stop us from staking our claim, though, and a few ‘illegal raves’ later, the class of 2024 have set Lucy down an exciting new road.

It has been a period of immense accomplishment and new beginnings for us Lucians. From the beautiful creations of Lucy Cavenstitch to the distinguished guests and debates at Lucy PolSoc, a plethora of new societies have blossomed from our cohort. Lucy’s sports presence has never been more extensive thanks to inaugural men’s teams and mixed squads (Yeah Lucy!). Alongside a brand-new JCR, Lucy events have become centre-stage, and I’m personally thrilled to see Live@Lucy enter its third generation of showrunners. Together, we’ve established a Lucy community with more breadth and depth than ever before. Long may it reign!

Ask anybody across this university, and they’ll say it’s the people that define your college experience. From the staff to the students, Lucy’s reputation as a warm, welcoming community (or, according to Camfess, ‘chaotic good’) is, if anything, understated. This unshakeable, underlying feeling of ‘welcome’ has perhaps been one of the few constants in our time as Lucy students. From Hallowhinside to Hallowolfson, our sense of community has remained tethered to our collective kindness. These fundamental qualities don’t disappear easily, and I know that regardless of where we go next, our time as Lucians will never be forgotten.

Live, laugh, Lucy Cav!

Tom Carr, Psychological and Behavioural Sciences

With the pandemic scuppering any real chance to visit before applying to Cambridge, many of us chose to apply to Pembroke for two reasons: firstly the food, and secondly its reputation as 'the friendly college'. Leaving comments on the former to avid ‘Pembroke Food for Thought’ posters, throughout our time at Cambridge Pembroke has certainly lived up to the latter.

Though we hadn’t yet shaken the effects of the pandemic entirely during our first year, we as a year group had no trouble settling in (and I’m sure the Porters would agree). We enjoyed countless quizzes, formals and bops (even if some were in a marquee) at our busiest times, but also the beautiful views of the Pembroke architecture (and, of course, did some work) during the quieter moments.

Second year then saw our year group lean even more into college life, not least because a number of us got to experience the joys of (college) parenthood. From the revival of the Pembroke Players, to domination of PCNC, there was not a single society nor sports team that we were not a part of (yeah, Pem). During this year, we also got the opportunity to all come together for a bittersweet ‘Halfway Hall’, with awards that I’m sure some of us are proud of to this day.

As we approach the end of our third year then, we have already begun passing on the reins of the Pembroke community, but I have no doubt that we have left a legacy of warmth, passion and dedication for generations of Valencians to come. Whatever our futures hold, I know that every single one of us will navigate life with that same friendliness that brought us to Pembroke in the first place.

Ffion Griffith, President of Pembroke’s Junior Parlour Committee 2023, Law

The past three years have been eventful – the weekly group PCR tests may have been one way of socialising back in 2021, but they cannot come close to plethora of scenes we’ve seen at Queens’ since.

Our yearly formal halls have been a pleasure – from cutlery connoisseurs in first year to coin enthusiasts in third year, we’ve certainly had some lovely dinner…chat. Informally, Queens’ joviality continues through the many societies hosting fabulous dinners…I hope the person who had to dress up as wave-particle duality had fun at the Natsci mahal.

Queens’ students have also been showing off their musical talent through the various endeavours. The musical whiplash between a chapel choir and a spirited group karaoke performance of Wonderwall in QBar was unexpected, but very welcome.

Queens’ remains a force in the theatre scene too: BATS has flourished with shows like And Then There Were None and Black Is The Colour Of My Soul making use of the wonderful Fitzpatrick Hall. Queens’ talent has also excelled in wider university shows, both backstage and in performance. It’s always a special day when you’re allowed to stand on the Cloister Court grass and yearly Shakespeare performances have been wonderful.

Queens’ sporting prowess has gone from resilient cupper’s performances to national level competition, with many people competing in Blues sport! From football to dancesport, climbing to netball, Queens’ has made its collegiate presence known. And of course, QCBC continues to make waves. Never will I forget crashing headfirst into another boat in one of my first outings, so I’m glad to say I’ve made a permanent mark on the club at least.

The Queens' May Ball returned with a bang and was absolutely splendid – I never thought I’d see a barbershop quartet in Old Hall, or a Waltzer outside Plodge, but wow am I glad I have!

Good luck to everyone as we move on to the next part of our lives – I’m sure I’ll see some of you in Queens’ puffers in years to come.

Anna Fitzpatrick, JCR President 2023-2024

It seems strange to think about how quickly the last three years have gone by. Household testing and matriculation dinner in the freezing cold marquee on Old Court feel like a distant memory, swiftly replaced by the revival of Selwyn bops and packed formal halls. However, some comfort can be found in the continued support from staff and fellow students that has surrounded us throughout our time at Selwyn – that, and the 5am fire drills (we love you, Helen).

Selwyn has always had a profound reputation for being the friendliest college; having been part of it for the last three years we can confirm it does indeed live up to this. From the dulcet tones of the Choir that fill Old Court week on week (bringing particular joy during Bridgemas festivities) to the rollicking sounds of the rowers after a Boat Club Dinner, the community at Selwyn is unmatched.

Studying at Cambridge often feels all-consuming, from relentless supo essays to never-ending practicals, but somehow it is not those that we will remember. For us, it will be all the moments in between. Time spent lounging in the gardens, midnight runs to Jack’s and the infamous Snowballs are just some of the memories that we are sure to be recounting for years to come.

We cannot begin to express our gratitude and love for Selwyn and all the people here. It has been an absolute privilege to have you all as our peers during our time at Cambridge. We are so excited to see what everyone goes on to accomplish, and we will always be wishing you all the absolute best.

So, for one last time... YEAH SELWYN!

Elina Smith, President, Selwyn College JCR, Theology, Religion, Philosophy of Religion & George Ponton, Vice-President, Selwyn College JCR, Law

Our time started with the classic Cambridge matriculation: wheelie bin-filled tent and COVID measures aplenty. Gingerly we began the classic small talk: ‘what’s your subject’, ‘I’m also from London’ etc. As first term passed, we silly freshers began finding friends and rekindling Revs’ infamous Catz Corner. Fast-forwarding past some epic bops and sporting performances, and some less successful marriage formal speeches, our time at Catz now feels ephemeral.

At this crossroads I’m confident the wheel will be ever-present. I’m immensely grateful to be a tiny brick amongst Catz’s large red walls, and the roots created here, and memories found within it, will only grow past this point of graduation. Each friendly smile, flaming microwave and Hobs party are vital spokes in a wheel that continues to spin faster and faster.

This community spirit was exemplified when organising Freshers’ Week 2022. June and I found ourselves overloaded with support from all sides of college. Mary’s unparalleled encouragement, Lauren’s generous chauffeuring and Omeet’s autocratic car park instructing were all crucial in welcoming new faces to this vibrant community. This community spirit has been vital in building a college that not only excels academically but socially and sportingly. This year's cuppers wins in football, hockey, skiing, badminton and impressive performances in rugby and rowing are remarkable.

What will I miss the most? Probably just bumping into someone on Main Court and spending hours bonding over shared deadlines, night-out debriefs and tea@3 withdrawals, maybe over a sandwich or two if allowed…Oh, and hearing ‘Oh St Catharine’s’ bellowed on a Wednesday night. Because, St Catharine’s, you truly are wonderful.

Sebastian Porter

While many of our friends from home had set off at least a month ago, we had all patiently waited - biding our time. October 2021. The tone was swiftly set for three years of fun. Fresh-faced and newly matriculated, we donned our best costumes at the ‘Dress as Your Degree’ Ent. Three years and many costumes later, we reminisce fondly about ending our nights singing "Angels". The iconic marquee, now a distant relic, hosted our karaoke nights and study sessions alike. Evenings often ended with kitchen debriefs and watching the stars upon the roof. We waved goodbye to the last remnants of COVID and enjoyed our first summer in Cambridge: the June Ent, punting on the Cam, and watching Rudimental at John’s May Ball! 

"It only feels like yesterday that we first entered John’s and began our awkward introductions with one another, blink, and it’s been three rollercoaster years. From the en masse turnouts at sporting fixtures, the chaos of ents, and taking every opportunity to mention to anyone and everyone that we go to John’s, its been a privilege to be a part of such an amazing community. Thank you to everyone for making the past few years truly unforgettable." - Alex Clarke & Jack Murfitt

Second year gifted us the new buttery and more importantly Saturday brunch! Michaelmas saw a surge in Junction raves and cultural trips to the Fitzwilliam Museum. We bonded with our four-legged Johnian, Folly. Watching Cuppers’ for cricket, hockey and rugby alike provided respite in the sun. Some of us were doing all-nighters in the library. Others? in Lola’s.

"I will always look back fondly on my years at John’s, as it is here I met some of my dearest friends and was privileged to have experiences I could not have elsewhere, in Cambridge or otherwise. From starting rugby again with the Redboys to captaining the volleyball team (for a brief stint!) to leading the Palmerston Society, I have flung myself at every opportunity in John’s. It is these experiences that I will look dearly upon, even if sometimes I felt as if I had too much on my plate. I guess this is one of the reasons why I was voted most likely to become Master of St John’s! I will certainly miss John’s and Cambridge, and maybe in the future I will end up here again someday." Kerem Mumyakmaz

Now, two glorious years of John’s May Ball! Bouquets of spring flowers and surprise sprays of prosecco marked the end of a year brimming with memories. 

 "I'll miss picnicking on the backs, hearing the chapel bells chime, walking through New Court at night and meeting friends easily without scheduling plans in advance because everyone lives so close. I probably won't miss almost falling asleep on Lord Sales's shoulder at a law dinner, the all-nighters or waiting ages for the Cripps laundry machines to free up. And I'll never forget the mix of horror and awe of first-year May Ball when we learnt as committee we'd set fire to one of John's most beloved trees. It's been a wonderful three years; I couldn't have asked for anything better <3" - Pearl Ng

“It goes fast”. And don’t we know it. Hearing this from every older year never quite prepares you for just how alarmingly true it is. Michaelmas was a flash. Monday bar quizzes, buttery-work days, Balliol sports swap, our last ever Bridgemas. Lent - a blur. Hazy ents and hungover roasts, any opportunity to dress up in a theme disguised as birthdays, house parties and sports swaps. Then, before we knew it: the final leg. The sidge trips, and lab days; the diss deadlines and exam crackdowns. We worked hard, and played harder, with May Week sending us off with a bang. 

"Essay crises aside, my time at John’s has been pretty perfect. It has been particularly marked by singing with the wonderful SJV, navigating recurring ceiling tile drama on JCR, and recently deciding that exam term was the perfect time to take up tennis… Cambridge has been so much more than just academics; I will always treasure memories from May Balls, ents, formals, Friday night bar, cuppers finals, zorbs and frisbee on the backs, punting, and even the occasional half-decent Revs or Lola’s excursion. Thank you all for making these past three years so special. I can’t wait for the reunions :)" - Catalina Taylor

It has been an absolute pleasure and a privilege to live in this beautiful place with you all. John’s was and will remain home to us all. So here’s to surviving, thriving and graduating.

Oh, and our future as Cantabs… 

Souvent me Souvient