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4_times_college_dropout _trying_to_be_a_Programmer 51 months ago
Second year student need to make a conscious effort to socialise with first years. While they did in the first few nights, it later ended up with second years staying in their groups. Efforts from first years to join their were not very welcoming often not saying hello and continue socialising with the second years without inviting the first year to join in.
This led to first years feeling rejected and split the squadron up. At camps the second years got offended when the first years didnt sit next to the second years at dinner in the mess. A second year confronted us while eating dinner and in front of current serving raf personnel asking why we didnt sit next to them, saying we hurt the girls feelings. These were people who made no effort to talk to first years, ignoring them and making the first feel rejected, uncared about and split off from them. After a 15 minutes of the second gear berating us he said that this wasnt over.
We were then told that the head senior students, 4th years, to decide who needs disciplining. The second years attitude was threatening and hostile, and the first years were left worrying about being expelled from the squadron.
During my turn to see the senior 4th year the he was calm and as I told him what happened he implied the whole thing was a farce, a power play to force first to sit with them and he called it ridiculous.
When we sat with the second years I thought they were finally going to talk to us and make us feel part of the group and less split off. They didn't even make an effort. Frustrated I tried to talk to them but the conversation died after a minute of awkwardness. They just didnt try or seem to care.
The second year pranking first year, faking an oppertunity flight in a fighter jet and askng first years to write a letter of why they should be chosen. There was no flight in the fighter jet. The second years took the letters and started reading them aloud to other second years, mocking them and laughing with their group. Private information was read out, including personal secrets like being abused as a child and fighting mental health problems like suicidal thoughts. They broke people, their most personal information now know by people you didnt want to share. Many first years cried. They faced no punishment. The staff knew - highly ranked officers - and played it off as caring too much about a little fun.
There was a second year who got bullied by other students. Three students who he told me he hated, picked him up from in front of the whole squadron minus the staff, he kicked and punched trying to escale, but was restrained grabbing his arms and legs. 3 of them took him outside and threw him into a deep water fountain. Soaked all over with clothes drenched, I approached him feeling that needed someone to be there for him. Looking soul destroyed, embaressed in front of 30+ people. He told me his £700 iphone was broken. I walked him to the dorms and hung out with him in his room. He told me they had always bullied him. Not one person reported him. He told me they just dont care. He ordered train tickets to go home by himself, I thought about going too but didnt. He told me they have done worse.
2 days later 5 of us first years wanted to watch a huge boxing match planning all week. That night the squadron made night out in a nearby town. They said it wasnt mandatory. We didnt go and went to a local pub to watch the boxing match and stayed till the pub closed. When we came back the second years confronted us, saying by going out to the pub the same they did was offensive and hurt their feelings. We told them we went to see a boxing not available at their night out. We were then told the senior student needs to talk to us. At this point we were all despondent and even more split off from them.
There is also a class difference, with working class first years mocked by middle class second years for not knowing references to drama plays and told "what kind of school did you to, third world uganda?".
I was overall disappointed by the social aspect of ugsas, poor.