Welcome to Warwick JSoc!
“Welcoming”, “Homely”, “Community” – when we asked our recent graduates to describe JSoc in one word, these were the three that came up time, and time, again. We’re incredibly proud of this (and promise it wasn’t staged!)
Seriously – we’re all so grateful for the thriving Jewish live we’ve built for Jewish students in Warwick over the past couple of years. Especially when we won JSoc of the Year at the UJS Student Awards in 2024!
At Warwick JSoc, our mission is clear – to enable you, the Jewish students of Warwick Uni, to engage positively with your Jewish identity in whatever way is most meaningful for you. Moving to university is an exciting opportunity to take ownership of your Jewish identity, and we’re here to support you as you make this transition by providing a warm, friendly, home-away-from-home environment.
But what do we actually do?
There are two staple events in the Warwick JSoc calendar – they happen every week, and will hopefully become framing events that structure your week in the same way they do for us!
Firstly, our Friday Night Dinners (FNDs) happen every single week. Organised by our brilliant Shabbat Officers, they are delicious! FNDs are a fantastic way to meet people, relax and spend quality time with your friends at the end of a busy week. We’ve also started doing Kabbalat Shabbat services before FNDs – led in an inclusive and tuneful way, it’s quickly made its way onto the list of weekly events.
Our other weekly event is ‘Bagels with Fishel’, hosted on Wednesdays by our fantastic Jewish Chaplain Rabbi Fishel Cohen. Travelling from Birmingham with a car-full of bagels, cold meats and Kosher treats, Rabbi Fishel is an integral part of Warwick JSoc. His bagel lunches are a chance to check in with your friends mid-week, and stuff yourself with all the food (please be responsible) – this is another event not to be missed!
Building on this foundation, we have a range of other events throughout the term. We host regular social events: from circling (you’ll learn what that is) and pub crawls to sober quizzes and games nights, there’s something for everyone. We’re grateful to have strong interfaith relations in Warwick, and host termly interfaith FNDs that are always a sell-out. Contributing to wider society is also a core value of Warwick JSoc, and we hold foodbank collections at local supermarkets to volunteer on Mitzvah Day. Our Women’s Officer organises special events for our women and non-binary members. And for the sporty among you, this is an exciting area of growth for JSoc! JSoc’s official football team – the Warwick Matzahballers – has been founded, so make sure to secure your spot in the starting line-up.
Celebrating Jewish festivals together is another core aspect of Jewish life in Warwick. Over the past years, we’ve hosted: services for Yom Kippur, events in our Sukkah for Succot, Chanukah candle-lighting on campus, Pesach Seders and a Shavuot evening programme. Don’t worry, we didn’t forget about Purim – Birmingham JSoc kindly host us at their legendary Purim Party, which we travel to together each year!
How can I keep up to date with everything JSoc does?
As you can see, we’re quite an active JSoc – so it’s important to keep yourself up to date with everything we’re doing throughout the term to ensure you don’t miss out. Here’s what you can do:
- Follow us on Instagram
- Register with JSoc on this website to receive our weekly newsletters (it’s completely free!)
- Join our WhatsApp group
How can I get involved with JSoc?
We’d love for you to get involved with Warwick JSoc – the best way to do so is to come to our events! What we’ve mentioned on this website is by no means an exhaustive list, though. We’re keen to keep growing and evolving to meet your needs and interests, so if you have an event idea or a tip on how we can improve, don’t hesitate to reach out to an exec member.
At JSoc, we’re also here to support you as Jewish students at Warwick. If you have any concerns, there are plenty of people you can turn to: any exec member, but especially our dedicated Welfare Officer, and our Jewish Chaplain Rabbi Fishel Cohen are here for you. The University and SU are also always available if you need support.
Looking forward to seeing you at one of our events soon!
JSoc FAQs
What if I don’t know anyone before I come to an event? Will I be able to make friends?
At Warwick JSoc, we pride ourselves on being a warm, welcoming and diverse community. But what does that mean? It means we have members from across the UK – the bigger communities in London and Manchester, yes, but also members from smaller ones in Preston, South Wales and Dorset. Warwick as a university has lots of international students too, so JSoc does as well. This means our members come from a range of Jewish backgrounds and experiences – all coming together to create that special community atmosphere we love.
If you’re nervous about coming to your first JSoc event, that’s completely natural. We’re sure you’ll be welcomed by smiling faces when you arrive, and you’ll have had a fantastic time once you leave. If you have further concerns, though, please do reach out to an exec member – we’re here to support you.
I’m not religiously Jewish. Will I be welcome at JSoc events?
Absolutely! As we said above – we’re a diverse community, and that’s also reflected in the religiosity of our members. Whether you’re Orthodox or Reform, secular or Masorti; whether you’ve come from a Jewish school or a non-Jewish school, we have it all in Warwick JSoc. We’re a non-judgemental community – we hope that in hosting such a wide variety of events, you’ll be able to find one that speaks to you.