International welcome and continuing social activities

As well as the main University enrolment and induction events, International@CampusLife also arrange welcome activities for our international student body. We are currenly thinking about our autumn 2021 arrivals and how that programme might look. We will post here when we have further news about that!

In the 2020/21 year we are running mainly virtual activities but hope to add some in-person events (whenever that becomes possible under government guidelines) to welcome you to Swansea University and provide continuing opportunities for you to meet others!

Our ongoing social programme is available to view at our ticket booking website, Fatsoma.com There you can see what is coming up, have more information about each activity and reserve your space. We are currently hosting weekly online Q&A sessions for those in the UK, as well as social activities- which you can join in with wherever you are in the world. Weekly, in-person social events, taking place across each campus, have been planned with your safety in mind. 

You can find information on the many other events taking place via the new Swansea University App. Click here for more information!

We have been working to make sure we provide opportunities for you to meet people and build your sense of University community when you arrive in Swansea. Our social programme's aim is to provide you with the space and time to ensure that you are making those human connections which will in turn make your whole UK experience easier and more fulfilling.

Happy students are successful students, and you owe yourself the chance to do as well as you can here with us in Wales!

International@CampusLife run a packed and varied Social Programme of events under our GO! project umbrella. These are intended to help you make the most of your student experience - we love seeing you getting involved and hope that you will make every effort to do so! 

Check out our latest Go!News Spring 2021 Issue to see what has been happening and what is coming up.

Throughout the year we run a whole range of different trips, activites and social events we'd love you be a part of. This year we have been restricted to online events, due to UK Government guidelines, but we hope to build some in-person activities back in as soon as we are able. 

Our in person GO!Programme includes GO!Eat (a monthly Supper Club where we visit local restaurants offering cuisine from around the world), GO!Trips (where we visit local places of interest, such as the Gower or Cardiff, as well as travelling further afield to Birmingham, Oxford and other UK cities), GO!Social (which is a range of events such as quizzes, crafts or walks) and coming for 2021/22 we are hoping to have GO!Discover (as series of events helping you to make the most out of the local arts, culture and history of Swansea and our local area). We couldn't do all these exciting activities without help and so if you would like to help in devising and delivering our GO!Programme, why not join our GO!Team? Details can be found in the volunteering section of this page.

Getting involved as much as possible is a great way to meet people, feel part of the university community and settle into your new home. Our activities are always advertised across our social media pages so it's a good idea to join up in case you miss anything. Search CampuslifeSU on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to take a look at some of the stuff we have done in the past and what's coming up in the future!

Volunteering is a great way for International Students to gain skills to boost employability, make friends and feel part of their new community!

Swansea students are incredibly lucky as we have DISCOVERY Student Volunteering Service which is right with us on Singleton Campus. They offer the opportunity for our students to get involved in a multitude, and very varied range of volunteering projects. So whether you are interested in supporting children, offering digital skills, digging an allotment, using your sports skills, meeting older Community members or going into local Primary Schools as part our School Daze project- DISCOVERY will help you work out what project might fit in with you (and how much time you can offer) and will support and train you for the right placement. 

International@CampusLife, in conjuntion with DISCOVERY, offers a fantastic volunteering opportunity in the form of our GO! Team. The GO! Team are a special group of student volunteers from all over the world who help us deliver our packed social programme by giving up their time to run trips and activities throughout the year. We work hard to ensure our GO! Team's volunteer hours are correctly logged and recognised with a special award, celebrating their achievement, which they can take forward to future employers.

GO!Team activities include:

• Promoting and attending social activities aimed at engaging international students
• Welcoming new international students to the University on a year round basis
• Helping to deliver the International Welcome Day and ongoing induction activities
• Developing and producing a regular GO! Team Newsletter- promoted to all students
• Helping to run the ICL led social activities
• Participating in and promoting the DISCOVERY Student Volunteering Swansea
• Making webcasts and videos about the GO! Team project
• Setting up and maintaining a GO! Team members Facebook page and engaging with University wide social networking activities
• Working with other GO! Team members in developing and organising new, supported, social and cultural events and activities
• Writing short reports, and maintaining statistics related to, of activities undertaken under the GO! Team Project
• Building interest and momentum in the GO! Team Project to ensure ongoing success

The Internationla@CampusLife team are always looking for new GO! Team members. If you are interested and would like to apply then please fill out this application form. For further information why not download our GO!Team Volunteering Information.

If you are interested in volunteering while you study, Swansea University provides students with opportunities to get involved with a range of programmes via our Discovery Student Volunteer Service and Employment Zone.

Please be aware that the GO!Team Volunteer Scheme is a joint project with Discovery Student Volunteering Swansea so some of your details may need to be shared between ICL and DiscoverySVS.

There are many student societies you can join according to your interests or culture/nationality.

There is a full-time Students' Union Sabbatical Officer, nominated by students whose role is to promote the interests and support all international students on campus. Find out more about Swansea University Sudents' Union and what they offer here.

For details on the Sports at Swansea University, including the facilities and different teams, visit our International Students' Information Guide 2020/2021.

There are various parks with tennis/basketball courts dotted around Swansea that you can use for free such as Victoria Park (Brynmill, near the seafront) and Cwmdonkin Park (Uplands) - see the Swansea Council website for more.

You can meet local people and families in the community through English Corner (free to join and participate). This is an organisation run by volunteers from the local community and is a good way to meet people and  learn about local customs and cultures. EYST (Ethnic Youth Support Team) is a holistic youth support service offering free support and activities for ethnic males and females under 25 years old.

Volunteering is a great way of getting training and meeting different people in the community. Students can volunteer in different projects around Swansea through Discovery in the Students’ Union. Find out more from the Discovery Office (ground floor Fulton House).