October alumni newsletter 2023
Welcome to your October alumni newsletter. As autumn finally arrives on campus, York St John is already settling into a new term with students back on campus after the summer break. This month there’s plenty happening on campus, including Black History Month events, Open Days and a PGCE Open Evening.
It’s also a busy month for us in the Alumni Office. After months of work, your annual magazine 1841 will be sent out to all of our alumni. We are also planning ahead and preparing for some exciting upcoming events, releasing our first webinar of this academic year, and highlighting Free Wills Month. In between all of this, we’re excited to continue our ongoing work to promote our alumni community on Alumination, and continuing to share your stories with our community.
Black History Month
This Black History Month, York St John is holding a range of events for our community to get involved with, including a Community Celebration Event. You can browse our upcoming events on Eventbrite.
You can find out more about how Black History month is marked around the world in a BBC article from last year, available on their website.
International Pronouns Day
On Wednesday 18 October, we’ll be marking International Pronouns Day. Stonewall sums up what a pronoun is very simply:
“Pronouns are words we use in everyday language to refer to ourselves or others. They can be an important way to express your gender identity. ‘I’, ‘me’, ‘she/her’, ‘he/him’ and ‘they/them’ are some examples of pronouns.”
Everyone uses pronouns in their everyday lives, including using ‘they’ as a singular pronoun. In fact, we do it all the time!
- Find out more about pronouns and how people use them on the Stonewall website
- Find out more about York St John’s trans inclusive framework
Upcoming postgraduate events
No matter when you completed your course with us, you can get 10% off your fees for eligible postgraduate courses. This includes PGCE courses and most of our taught and research courses.
One of the best ways to learn more about our postgraduate degrees is by attending an Open Evening. During our Open Evenings you can talk to subject tutors, learn more about applying and discover more about our postgraduate community.
- Join us on Thursday 12 October for our PGCE Open Evening
- Join us on Wednesday 1 November for our Postgraduate Open Evening
You can find out more about our Postgraduate Open Evenings on our website. You can also browse our range of postgraduate degrees on our website.
Halloween
Since it’s Halloween this month, we thought we’d share two spooky happenings caught on CCTV recently. Although York is known as one of the UK’s most haunted cities, it’s not often spooky activity is captured on camera.
In September, local news outlets reported on two such activities. The first was a bike seemingly moving itself in Shambles, followed by a book trolley behaving mysteriously in York Explore library. Are ghosts to blame? We’ll leave that up to you!
Luckily, some of York’s other ghostly figures have an easier explanation. Launched in 2021, Ghosts In The Gardens brings York’s past to life with spectral figures haunting our city centre. This year there are over 40 ghosts, including an archer defending Clifford’s Tower, a highwayman and a Roman Centurion! If you’re in York before 12 November, you’re bound to see them. You can find out more about this installation on the York Bid website.
Walmgate in old photos
York is a city brimming with history. But some of it is more obvious than others! The York Press recently posted a short article looking at Walmgate’s past as one of the poorest areas of York at the start of the 20th century.
You can read more about this and see archive photos of the area on the York Press website.
Free Wills month
This Free Wills Month, we’re excited to share more about how to create Your YSJ Legacy. Leaving a gift in your will to York St John is a way to create a lasting legacy by supporting our future students. Plus, did you know you can write your will for free this October?
In 2017 we received a legacy from an alumnus who studied with us in the 1950s. He decided to create a YSJ Legacy and specified that he wanted to support mature students complete their PGCEs. His YSJ Legacy is supporting over 40 mature students complete their PGCE with us.
- Find out more about leaving a gift to York St John on our website
- Learn more about Free Wills Month
- Read why other alumni are leaving a YSJ Legacy on our website
This year, we’re also excited to promote our Law Clinic. Our Law Clinic provides free legal support whilst providing our law students vital work experience. One of their services is will writing, which is offered for free to all ages. If you’d like to enquire about a will writing appointment, please email lawclinic@yorksj.ac.uk .
Magazine
This month we’ll be revealing our annual magazine! All UK based alumni will receive their free copy in the post, and all alumni living outside the UK (or who have opted out of a physical copy) will receive a digital version by email.
We can’t wait to share this year’s magazine with you!
Webinars
This month we’re releasing our first webinar of the 2023/24 academic year. Over this academic year, we’ll be releasing seven new webinars across a range of industries and from alumni at different stages of their chosen careers.
We hope you enjoy watching these fantastic webinars over the next few months! You can read more about this year’s webinar participants on Alumination.
Read more about this year’s webinars on Alumination.
This month, we’re pleased to release Martin Roberts’ webinar. Martin graduated in 1984 with a degree in Film, TV and History and now works as a Senior Cameraman at the BBC. His webinar will go live on Monday 16 October, and can be accessed using this link.
Alumination
Did you know you can browse Alumination to find out more about our alumni community? Whether you’re looking for career inspiration, want to see what other alumni do after leaving York St John or are just excited to learn more about our alumni community, make sure to check our Alumination. We have a range of alumni snapshots to look through and are still accepting more!
Submit your snapshot on our website. Browse our snapshots on Alumination.
Food, glorious food
From having to bow to the head table if you were late to meals, to protesting some of the interesting meal combinations offered, food is an important part of student life. Although we no longer offer catered accommodation, food at York St John is still an important part of our current student experience.
For the past few years, Neo Pizza has been the big name on campus with mini pizza deals a popular option for students. In fact, so iconic was their meal deal that one of this year’s pin badge entries was inspired by it! But all good things must come to an end, and over the summer Neo Pizza has been refreshed into Panda Mami’s, offering pizza and pasta options for the on-the-go students.
But some things remain the same. Our stalwart canteen is still the hub at lunchtime offering hot meals and grab and go options. The formal dining arrangements are long gone, with staff and students mingling together as they queue for their meals.
For students (and staff) in search of a hot drink, campus has three coffee bars. Although Costa and Starbucks once had space on campus, we have brought these outlets in house and use local coffee suppliers to support other local businesses. With a range of drinks available at student friendly prices, next time you’re on campus, make sure to have a look!
What’s your favourite food related memory from your time studying with us?
YSJ London
Just as our York campus welcomed new and returning students, our fantastic London campus also welcomed new and returning students to campus. In this year’s alumni magazine you will be able to find out more about our newest campus, its postgraduate courses and its plans for the future.
Students were welcomed to our London campus with a range of events, including a Job Fair to help students network, find part-time employment and enhance their CVs.
News from YSJ
A recent study led by York St John has looked at burnout in students post-pandemic and the best ways to support them. You can find out more about this ground-breaking study on our website.
This summer, York St John students teamed up with York City of Sanctuary in ‘The Backyard Project’. In this project, students transformed a dilapidated backyard garden for a Ukrainian refugee family to help with their Occupational needs. You can read more about this project on our website.
On Wednesday 4 October, York St John is welcoming two of our Honorary Graduates back to campus to talk about their careers in screenwriting. Renowned screenwriters Mark Herman and Lisa Holdsworth will share industry insights and discuss their journey so far. You can read more about this upcoming event on our website.
Upcoming events
There’s plenty happening on campus this month and in November. Including York Centre For Writing Events, a panel with Honorary Graduates and musical performances, if you’re looking for something different to do this month, make sure to look at our upcoming events. Here are four exciting events you might want to attend:
- On Wednesday 4 October join us as we welcome Honorary Graduates Mark Herman and Lisa Holdsworth to campus for an evening discussing their screenwriting careers. This is an event not to be missed! Learn more about this event on Eventbrite.
- On Thursday 12 October, join us for a special, free performance as part of the School of the Arts ‘In Concert’ series. ‘In Two Minds’ by Duo Menurida explores the dynamic variety and forces of the natural world and the visual arts. Book your free tickets on Eventbrite.
- On Wednesday 18 October, join us for a panel about writing children’s literature. The York Centre for Writing will be joined by alumnus Alasdair Beckett-King, and Creative Writing lecturers Dr Liz Flanagan and Dr Andy Parrot. Including author readings, a panel discussion and a Q&A, find out more about this fantastic event on Eventbrite.
- On Thursday 2 November, join us for The Virtual Imperative, a one day conference held at our London campus about the future of VR and AR. Find out more about this conference on Eventbrite.
Browse our other upcoming events, including inaugural lectures and our Ebor lecture relaunch on Eventbrite.
BUTTON- https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/o/york-st-john-university-1088934555
York Restaurant Week
York Restaurant Week is back this October. From 9 to 15 October, enjoy some of York’s best dining experiences at a discount with exciting offers, and exciting set menus. All you have to do is download the voucher and book a table if required. If you’re planning a trip to York this month, this isn’t a week to be missed! Find out more on their website.
