Last year, if people wanted to hear the unfiltered opinions of their fellow students on anything and everything, it could be done by eavesdropping over a warm pint of fosters in the clubhouse bar or by reading the creative scribbles on the stalls of the Newman toilets. As lectures and tutorials now go online, the nosey and curious among us have to look elsewhere. Fortunately, a new Twitter page taking the platform by storm comes in handy.
The name ‘UCD Confessions’ speaks for itself. Anyone is invited to make an anonymous submission, guaranteeing funny and wholesome content in equal measure. The page has been enormously successful, gathering over 1,000 followers to date and getting hundreds of submissions every week. We recently spoke to the founder of the page, Mint (not their real name) to get their take on the success and inspiration behind the page.
Confession pages like this are nothing new, so Mint ‘wondered why there wasn’t one for UCD.’ However, the potential for a really popular page was obvious as hopes of in-person teaching evaporated and the realisation of a semester of remote teaching dawned on students. Stuck in front of a laptop screen and devoid of their usual busy college social life, students looked elsewhere for the college gossip.
The pages success has revealed the curiosity of UCD students about their peers. Mint shares this inquisitiveness, and they enjoy ‘hearing other people’s story’s and thoughts on everything UCD related,’ adding that ‘UCD students sure love posting a ton of confessions.’
In fact, students were so eager to share their thoughts anonymously that Mint couldn’t keep up with the number of messages. After three weeks, Mint brought two more admins on board, going by the names Silver and Pepper. Speaking about the popularity of the page, mint says they ‘didn’t expect it this quick,’ but added that they ‘knew people were interested in a UCD confessions page.’
So, what is it that UCD students are sharing on the page? As expected, there is a fair share of students swooning over a certain philosophy lecturer and plenty of people eager to weigh in on the STEM vs arts rivalry. The huge range of responses reflect the diversity of UCD students, and many have quite eloquently used it as a platform to express their struggles with college life at such a difficult time or their frustrations with UCD authorities.
Mint agrees that the page is both a source of entertainment for students whilst also being a platform for students to share their honest, unfiltered opinions. Mint adds that the page is ‘meant to be light-hearted and fun.’
Of course, we all look forward to getting back to campus and returning to our normal social lives. Whilst nothing can replace the banter with our friends, a scroll through this fun Twitter page can, in a strange way, connect us to fellow students and allow us to continue to relate to each other in these strange times. So, when you need a break from your mind-numbing lectures and tutorials, grab a coffee, sit back, and delve into the minds of your fellow, albeit socially distanced students.
Conor Paterson, Features Editor
