Listen up finalists, here’s your Durham Uni bucket-list of things to do before you graduate

I don’t want to scare all the finalists, but it must be pointed out that we are now in the final week of Epiphany term. That means we have about ten weeks left until we are forced to leave and become real functioning adults with proper salaries. In the real world, nobody is going to know who DJ Dave is, and they won’t care that you were in a secret society that drank pints out of dead fish.

So, third years, this is your final call to do all the uniquely Durham activities you can. Because if you do them after you graduate, you’re just going to look like one of those people that peaked at university (which we all did if we’re honest because Durham is the best).

Do a bar crawl of all 17 college bars

This one might not be the easiest or most painless on the list. As a Hild Bede student, I still am not fully sure where the Hild Bede bar is and, full disclosure, I don’t have a burning desire to find out. However, no self-respecting Durham graduate neglects this duty (even if it means they have to spend time in Hatfield).

Jump through Chad’s Tree

If you haven’t heard of this very strange and dangerous tradition, then prepare to be enlightened for better or worse. Outside Chad’s college there is a V-shaped tree. Since Chad’s students are creative and slightly mad, they obviously made a challenge where they attempt to jump through the tree. I can confirm it is possible and very fun, but if you do rise to this challenge, please bring a friend who you could stand to hang out with the A&E waiting room for hours afterwards.

Go to a ball or a formal

This one has probably been achieved by most people at this point in the year. It’s what we’re known for. If you picture a typical Durham student, they’re probably wearing a quarter-zip or a formal gown. I know I for one personally start getting withdrawal symptoms if I go too many months without dressing up to eat dry chicken and get tipsy off wine I can’t afford in a fancy hall.

Do an all-nighter

This is less of an aspirational milestone, but one that will sadly occur at some point naturally. The price of completing all these other challenges is that you’ll inevitably get behind in your actual degree and end up crying in the Billy B (a canon experience).

Go on the Durham boats

What is the best bit about Durham? Is it the world-class education? The two for one cocktails at the boat club? No, of course not. It’s the River Wear. Wear else could be better? If you’re leaving Durham, you’re going to need at least one picture of you in a rowboat before you leave. So, water you waiting for?

Swim in the river

Many a brave soldier has braved the cold depths of the Wear and lived to tell the tale (and has UTI medication to prove it). This one might be a health risk but can be achieved in the same day as the last item on the list if you lack coordination and rowing skills.

Go to Observatory Hill or the hill by MC

One of the more wholesome items on the list. If you’re leaving Durham, it’d be a crime to miss seeing the city’s best views. Both are perfect spots for picnics or deep late nights chats, and both have a beautiful view of the cathedral.

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Go to the beach

Both Seaham and Tynemouth are equally perfect options for a summer day out. It’s easy to forget how close Durham is to the sea, so when summative season is getting you down there’s always the option to go and do some British tanning or forget your deadlines and take to the sea.

Hang out on the cricket pitch when it’s sunny

You know it’s summer when the cricket pitch gets busy.

Have a night out in Newcastle

It is, admittedly, quite sacrilegious to divert students away from Durham nightlife in an article about Durham-specific bucket-list activities. However, Newcastle is consistently rated as having the best nightlife in the UK. So, if you can stomach the early morning train back, it’s a must-do activity.

Join a society you actually like

In the real world outside of uni, you can’t really just decide on a random Tuesday to write for a newspaper or start aerial arts or get initiated into a secret society. These last few months are the last chance you’ll get to easily learn skills outside of your degree. So if your career path in STEM falls through, it’ll be far more comforting to know you can fall back on the pole dancing skills you learned at uni.

Get your picture taken with John Klute

Some say you shouldn’t meet your heroes, but those people haven’t been to Klute.

Get kicked out of a Durham club

The nightclubs of Durham barely qualify as nightclubs really. Most are free entry and they’re typically not very strict. So, if you manage to get kicked out, it’s quite a feat. This is more an achievement you should have gotten in first year. If you’re getting kicked out of Jimmy’s at the big age of 20 or older then some self-reflection is needed. But nevertheless, it makes the list.

Write a Tindur or a Durfess

This one is especially relevant to all the avoidant students of Durham. If you have a Billy B crush, now is the time to make it known in the most passive way possible by writing the vaguest description with some initials and watching it get published three months later when you’ve already gotten over it.

Climb to the top of the cathedral tower

If you’ve been here three years already (and you haven’t failed your degree) you must not have already climbed to the top of the cathedral tower. It’s a long-standing Durham superstition that if you make the journey before you graduate, then you’re doomed to fail your degree. So does your degree even count if you don’t go up there on graduation day? Best do it just in case.

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