Stay away! These are the unis where the most students are infected with Freshers’ Flu

It’s been a couple of weeks since Freshers’ Week now and the dregs of Freshers’ Flu are still clinging on for dear life. Lectures are still hellish with just a chorus of coughs every single time the lecturer says anything remotely useful. It’s the point in term when freshers are still going out four times a week living on a diet of VKs, Lemsip and cheesy chips whilst frantically Googling “how to get rid of flu?”, “how long does flu last?” and “Freshers’ Flu symptoms”.

Well, Vegetology has officially worked out the most unwell universities in the UK by studying the number of times flu-related searches such as symptoms, remedies and advice are made every October. On average in all UK uni cities, searches have risen just over a third every year.

The Russell Group students that are the least snotty and are the most healthy are Exeter students, with only a 22 per cent increase in flu-related searches, closely followed by Nottingham and Liverpool. But the Russell Group students who are most unwell are Oxford, closely followed by York and then Glasgow.

So, here are officially the Russell Group unis where the most students are infected with Freshers’ Flu in 2023:

17. Exeter

Exeter is officially the healthiest Russell Group with searches only increasing 22 per cent this year.

16. Nottingham

Exeter is closely followed by Nottingham where flu-related Google searches increased by only 28.4 per cent in October.

15. Liverpool

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Students in Liverpool were searching for Freshers’ Flu cures and symptoms 28.5 per cent more this year.

14. Edinburgh

Edinburgh had an increase in flu-related queries of 28.8 per cent this October compared to last year.

13. Newcastle

At Newcastle, students have been Googling how to get rid of Freshers’ flu 31.2 per cent more than last October.

12. Manchester

Manchester has had a 33.2 per cent increase in flu-related searches compared to last October.

11. Leeds

Just 2.1 per cent more than Manchester, Leeds students have been searching questions about the flu 35.3 per cent more this October.

10. Birmingham

At 10th, students in Birmingham have been Googling about the flu 35.9 per cent more this year than last.

9. London

Obviously home to many unis, searches in London are actually surprisingly low on the list with London-based students Googling flu-related questions 36.2 per cent more this Freshers’ Week than last year.

8. Glasgow

In Glasgow, students have been searching for flu remedies around 36.3 per cent more than in October last year.

7. Cardiff

Students in Cardiff have been Googling cold and flu-related questions 1.5 per cent more than students in Glasgow this year with a 37.8 per cent increase on last year.

6. Sheffield

Students in Sheffield have had an increase of 38.9 per cent in flu-related searches compared to last October.

5. Southampton

In Southampton, students have been Googling flu-related questions 40.7 per cent more this October.

4. Cambridge

They might rank lower in most of the uni rankings than Oxford, but Cambridge students are a lot less ill with searches increasing 41 per cent in October compared to Oxford’s 45.8 per cent.

3. Bristol

In Bristol, searches related to colds or flu were up by 41.4 per cent this year compared to last October.

2. York

Just beaten by Oxford, York students are officially the second snottiest students in the UK with an increase of flu-related Google searches of 42.8 per cent compared to last October.

1. Oxford

Topping yet another uni ranking, Oxford is officially the most unwell UK university with average searches for flu symptoms and cures up 45.8 per cent this October. Oxford students are not only some of the cleverest yet insufferable students but also have the most Freshers’ Flu. Good for them.

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