We went to UQAM initiations to see if it’s as “trash” as before

Initiators who make calls sexist, challenges with a sexual connotation, degrading moments… This is what was pointed out almost ten years ago in reports on the initiations of the Department of Communication of the University of Quebec in Montreal (UQAM) . Subway sneaked among the students for an evening to see how the party has evolved in a decade.

We will not go through four paths: the current initiations have nothing to do with those before, where “whores” and “pimps” were invited to the party. Now: guardian angels walk around to make sure to provide support and listening to people who feel the need for it, and the initiators and the arbitrators cannot have reconciliations with the initiates for avoid any abuse of power.

Programming loaded

As during each week of initiations at the start of the school year, a busy schedule awaits new uqamien.ne.s. For them to socialize and develop a team spirit, a week-long friendly competition dotted with many challenges (which will be mentioned below) is organized. They must collect points so that their team (and therefore their program) reaches the podium at the end of the festivities.

From 8 a.m. Tuesday morning, the kick-off was launched. There followed a time to complete the list of challenges and the Olymbrosses (watered Olympics) in the evening.

Wednesday, Subway joined the activity where it usually stirs the most: the pub crawl. In total, 15 bars around UQAM are visited in 3h45. Academics stay an average of 15 minutes at each location, drink, play games, and finish it all at Cafe Campus.

At times, it could have gone wrong, but…

Evening anecdotes

• At Pub Le Sainte-Élisabeth, during a game during which the initiates had to answer questions from an initiator, two people had one thing in common and an academic – advanced in drinking – shouted: “Frenchez-vous!” The initiators immediately said, “No, that’s not correct.”

• At Café Campus, despite the crowds, each student had his bag carted and searched, and had to empty his bottles of liquid, even the water bottles. We even checked the containers of Advil.

• The rare stalls observed were initiated by the most thirsty drinkers. For example, around 11 p.m., an initiate stalled her raspberry Smirnoff Ice under the encouragement of her new classmates. Position: kneeling on the dance floor. Consent: yes. And no barrel with a dunnage tube like in American movies.

• The songs were worthy of the Dance Hit List from Spotify. The soundtrack went from I Gotta Feeling of the Black Eyed Peas line dancing to Shania Twain. Classics, what.

Thursday and Friday, a lipsync battlea wacky skit named “Fuck de Gros”, which requires creating a short performance with a given theme, dinner and podium are on the menu.

Light challenges and fun

In the list of challenges to be completed during the week to win the gold medal, there is notably a photo challenge. Some examples: take a photo of you sitting in a basketball hoop, a photo with Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois, cross the entire orange line taking a photo at each station. Each photo is worth 300 points.

Up-and-coming image pros also received video challenges. The trashiest: getting the FESTI COMM logo of the 2022 initiations tattooed. The others were more soft, such as “make a video of you cross-country skiing in Saint-Denis” or “give a presentation on how to use a condom in an original way”. Five hundred points are awarded to the team, per video.

Bring objects to whom it may concern: an Olivier trophy, a firefighters’ calendar, a pear ball. Six hundred points per item!

And other challenges such as: convince six people to follow such person on Instagram and take a scooter ride. A successful action is worth 1000 points.

We leave ourselves on the last words of a young initiate in cinema a little drunk, who greeted our departure of the evening with these wise words: We remain careful, always. We had to fun.”