Club Development Officer Nicola Keenan had decided when she started Uni she would like to join a club but ended up joining a lifesaving club, which hadn’t previously occurred to her.

Find out how Nicola became a member of a lifesaving club and how for her it enhanced her University experience.

When confirming that I would be going to University, I knew that I was undoubtedly going to have a fantastic time. However I never contemplated that I would be spending many a weekend travelling across the country competing in a sport I had never heard of, running a club of over 50 members, being part of an RLSS UK trip to Iceland, captaining a team to Champions in the BULSCA Nationals, gaining new qualifications and now organising other competition trips oversees, to name but a few of the opportunities that I have been lucky enough to be involved with over the last four years. None of which, I am sure would of happened without being involved with my University Lifesaving Club.

Previous to University I had played county-level Netball, and fully expected to join the Netball Club, but after two full days of trials, I was thoroughly disappointed to not even make the fifth team! In a rush still to join some sort of club and being a Lifeguard, I reluctantly joined the Lifesaving Club, (I say reluctantly, perhaps the guys in red Speedos might have had a small part to play).

It was a complete fluke that I ended up joining the Lifesaving club, yet perhaps the best misdemeanour that has happened to me. If you are looking at going to University in the near future I can only strongly encourage you to go and find out about your University’s Lifesaving Club, as I can guarantee your experience at University will not be the same!

If you do want some extra information about BULSCA or University’s Lifesaving clubs then please don’t hesitate to email me at [email protected]

I have met the closest friends ever through Lifesaving and the best thing is, I know that I will never be able to shake them off!

If you would like to find out more about lifesaving clubs visit BULSCA’s website (British Universities Life Saving Clubs’ Association).