Cambridge students work hard in exam term. Bloody hard. With the start of exams looming ever nearer, many of us have taken up residence in the library, desperately trying to cram a year’s worth of work into a month fuelled by all-nighters and copious amounts of caffeine. This, coupled with Cambridge’s piss-poor standard of night life, means that we’re deserving of a break. May Week, a decadent week of non-stop partying and debauchery, seems to be the ideal candidate for this.

However, the luxury and indulgence of May Week comes with a hefty price tag. With even the cheaper June events going for around £80-£90 a ticket, it can hardly be considered an affordable ‘tradition’. And from my experience, it seems those who simply cannot afford to shell out near on a hundred pounds (not including the black tie attire) are forgotten about, disregarded. There seems to be a darker side to May Week that’s more than just mild annoyance at ‘Johnnie Wyvern’ sending you spam messages on Facebook every other day.

Of course, unlimited food and alcohol and chart-topping entertainment acts don’t come cheap. If anything, some of the balls are fairly reasonably priced, especially considering what you’d pay to see the likes of James Bay live in concert. Considered in isolation, the balls themselves aren’t ridiculously lavish. But for most, it doesn’t just stop at the ticket. It seems to be the social norm to go to at least two events, plus garden parties and a seemingly never ending amount of club nights.

Yes, the luxury of the parties we’ll be attending maybe warrants a high price tag. But at what point does this become excessive? Take, for example, Magdalene May Ball, which is compulsory white tie. Is it really necessary to force students to shell out for excessive suit rental, which will last them one night only? Now, imagine that Magdalene is your college. All your friends will be attending the ball. For those who aren’t so well off, the pressure to bankrupt yourself to keep up with your mates for one great party seems to be unreasonably high. Not to mention the fact that if you aren’t attending the ball, you get thrown out of your accommodation for the night. There seems to be an unfair assumption that all members of the college can afford to splash out on a pricey party.

With these astronomical costs, there's a lot riding on you having a good time. Really, a May Ball is just a glorified night out. But seeing as it costs £130 for a ticket (that’s if you buy it during general release, and not from an exploitative Agora seller), there’s a lot of pressure for you to have the Best Night Ever, and justify the money you’ve spent. Which immediately makes the night harder to enjoy. For many £130 would constitute around two weeks of standard living, and losing that on one night would be a lot to swallow if fellow-student organisers mess up.  

I’ve heard a lot of people saying that the ticket can be seen as a compensation for the lack of a social life during exams. This seems fair – not spending your student loan on swaps, Cindie’s and Jungbombs will definitely save you a bit of money, that will make a big blow out at the end of term feel well-deserved after weeks of self reservation and 8am starts. But for many less well-off students, even this might not be enough to cover it. This can lead to budget cutting even as early as Lent term – again, with a lot of people going without, just so they can feel like they can keep up with those with a bit more dollar.

I’m not the fun police, and May Week isn’t inherently bad as a concept. If anything, it is a wonderful reward – a beacon of hope getting me through hours upon end of logic and metaphysics. But it’s important not to take for granted that you can afford to go to the Wyverns, Medwards and two more balls on top of that, and that we remain constantly critical of the potentially overwhelming expense of one of Cambridge’s most well-loved traditions.

@millayayay