The harsh reality of being a frep at Durham

You might remember freshers' week as one of the best weeks of your life. However, for freps it is arguably one of the worst weeks of their lives.

It's one thing getting bevved down at the college bar dressed up in a toga, and it's another living off the free fizzy drinks watching people get bevved, hoping they won't be the ones you'll have to look after at 2am.

Trying to dance and look happy on four hours sleep is a difficult task that only the best freps can master, and there's only so much smiling and saying "ha ha, no, we don't get paid and well we don't need alcohol to have fun" you can do before the truth comes out.

To find out more about what it's like being a frep we asked some of them about their experiences, and here's what they told us:

Worst Moments:

Helena, 19

"Trying to deal with a particularly hands-on fresher who decided to grab every girl that moved. In the end we just had to kick him out of the clubs."

Josie, 19

"Having a 20 minute nap on the street outside Fabios and waking up with a pizza box over my head."

Lauren, 19

"Having a fresher who couldn't move on the Newcastle night; we had to call an ambulance and put him in the recovery position, he had to be taken back to his room in a wheelchair."

Helen, 20

"Having to carry a girl home and stay with her for two hours because she was passed out and being sick."

Joe, 19

"The fire alarm going off during the icebreaker game show and having to evacuate all the freshers."

Hannah, 19

"One of the freshers hitting on any frep he could get his hands on."

Best Moments:

Hannah

"Two un-named freps getting with each other outside college and being nominated for cutest couple by the freshers."

Raphael, 21

"The best moment was definitely when none of the freshers turned up to the Bake Off showing, so all the freps got to sit and watch Bake Off and eat a tonne of cakes."

Emily, 20

"Being more pissed than the freshers at the finale. Freps gone wild!"

If you were lucky enough to have a great frep team then you essentially spent two weeks living with a huge group of friends and partying.

A matter of fact is that freps do learn some very valuable skills during freshers' week, like how to be champion nappers, and how to walk next to groups of freshers pretending not to walk them home so they won't shout abuse at them.

And most importantly of course, you'll learn all about fancy dress. Whether it's Tarzan, the Joker or even the iceberg from the Titanic, the freps always kill it with the fancy dress. Now that's an important skill to have.

Names may have been changed in order to protect the privacy of those interviewed.