Hello new Hatfielders, 

Welcome to Durham and to Hatfield College! I’m Melody, a third-year PhD student in Sociology and your Middle Common Room (MCR) President for this academic year. 

Being President means is I oversee the running of the MCR and act as a representative of the interests of postgraduate students at Hatfield College. I also direct the MCR Executive Committee (“Exec”), an entirely student-led committee which exists to enrich the experiences of Hatfield postgraduates. Have a look at the ‘Meet the 2024/25 Exec’ section in your guide for an introduction to the other officers. We have a number of roles opening for applications soon (Welfare, Academic, Events and Secretary) – if you’re interested in joining the Exec, we’d love to hear from you! 

The upcoming Postgraduate Induction (“Freshers’ Fortnight”) is supported by a wonderful team of student volunteers (Postgraduate Freshers’ Representatives, “PG Freps”) who will be available to welcome you to Hatfield. You’ll know who they are from their badges and lanyards! We really hope your experience of PG Freshers’ Fortnight will motivate you to continue participating in MCR activities throughout the year. I also want to take this opportunity to encourage you to make full use of all the opportunities for personal development and networking at Hatfield College. Take a peek at what we did last year (2023/24 Year in Review) as a sample of what to expect. As a taster of the sort of events we run throughout the year, the vast majority of our Freshers’ Fortnight events are absolutely free to attend. We would greatly appreciate your support through payment of the MCR Levy which allows us to run an exciting programme of activities – you can find more information about the Levy later in this guidon our website and in the induction guidee. 

#AllOneHatfield is a movement geared towards celebrating diversity and ensuring all postgraduates feel welcome and part of our community. Hatfield has students from all around the world, from many different academic disciplines and backgrounds. We truly hope you will find the MCR and wider Hatfield College to be a comfortable and supportive environment. We also appreciate feedback on how the MCR can continue to improve – please feel free to reach out with any comments and suggestions. 

If you have any specific enquires or simply wish to know more about the MCR and Hatfield College, you can write to us via email hatfield.mcr@durham.ac.uk.

Follow us on social media, or contact us via the form on our website:

https://www.hatfieldmcr.co.uk/.

You can also write to me directly at: hatfield.mcrpresident@durham.ac.uk. 

We are excited to meet you in September and wish you an enjoyable time in the lead up to your arrival in Durham! In the meantime, we advise you to keep an eye on our social media and website to get an idea of what’s to come! 

Kind MCRegards, 

Melody Bishop