St Paul’s is the oldest college in Australia, and aims to attract the ‘cream of the crop’ to its corridors. We should all be concerned when men are encouraged to act as if women were lesser beings, with lesser rights. It should be shouted from the rooftops, loud and clear, that such attitudes to women have no place in our society, whether or not you count yourself among the cream of the crop. Rape is rape, whether it is two college students involved or not.

The College environment can be like a subculture, with its own rules and customs.

Student pranks seem common as our brightest brains set their minds to work on dreaming up schemes to make others laugh. The big lesson is being able to laugh at yourself when it happens to you, eg when everything in your room is glued where you left it: your toothbrush, toothpaste, sporting gear, books etc.

Some activities are harmless fun. One College at ANU has a ‘wig-off’ every year, where the male students don a wig and must not be seen outside their room without it. Consequently for weeks there are groups of lairy-haired students wandering around on and off campus; proudly sporting hairdos like green frizzy hair, multi-coloured mohawks or purple pigtails.

Unfortunately, it seems much of college life revolves around alcohol. Binge drinking is common, accepted and encouraged. However harmful to health and safety this may be, we need to remember that colleges would not be the only places in Australia where young people drink too much. A quick walk past any hotel or club at closing time will reveal young people from all walks of life who have had more than one drink too many. (I am not defending the practice, merely noting it is not just a college problem.)