Recently, there have been conflicting opinions about making new students do a talent show at the HUFS freshman camp on the HUFS Seoul Campus Bamboo Forest Facebook page. Report #21240 said, “Forcing untalented students to participate in a talent show is such a violating and shameful thing. Do you think the newly enrolled students can dare to say no to seniors?” In the March Issue, The Argus met students who have different views about the freshman talent show and heard their thoughts about how this program should be developed or changed for the sake of students’ comfortable school life.

How is the freshman talent show done?
Generally, most departments put freshmen into groups to perform at the talent show. Also, they make every individual student perform a brief song or vocal mimicry on the bus on the way to the HUFS camp, which is called ‘Bus-pan.’ However, Bus-pan was banned from this semester due to the risks of moving in a running car.

Nowadays there is a heated debate over the talent show, but I want this program to be continued. When I was a freshman and heard that I had to perform something, I worried that I would look ridiculous in front of new people. However, when I did it, no one looked at me with any scorn or contempt, so those worries soon disappeared. Also, I could talk with my classmates for the first time and share thoughts with them while practicing for the show. Later, I became close with my classmates so I could have a more comfortable school life and share those memories with them. Of course, forcefully coercing students who do not want to do it is not reasonable, but it can also promote friendship and make memories, so I oppose cancelling the program completely. However, in order to improve this program, it should have more variety to show individuals’ diverse talents instead of limited fields such as singing or dancing. Also, it should have more flexibility in not forcing students who really do not want to participate.

I hope the talent show program will be included in the HUFS freshman camp. Although I am not that talented, it will be a fresh and fun time to make mistakes with others and laugh it off. I do not like forcing others who really hate performing in front of others. However, I want other students to perform if they are wondering over participation. This is because it will be meaningful to work together with others and achieve something. Learning how to cooperate with others throughout the talent show can also be helpful for participating in a club activity or doing a team project. Thus, I think people who do not participate in the program might lose this valuable opportunity. Nevertheless, it should not force someone who definitely says no, and should welcome those who are a bit hesitant, so they can participate in the talent show in a more comfortable environment.

I am opposed to forcing the freshmen to do a talent show. Even if the seniors are not that coercive, the younger classmen will struggle to adjust to group life, so it can make them feel oppressed. To be honest, when I participated in the talent show at first, I felt really uncomfortable and concerned about how I looked to others. From my own experience, I felt that the talent show was for the entertainment of the seniors, and the juniors were too nervous about what they had to perform instead of enjoying the program. Also, some seniors point out an individual student and make them show off his or her special talent, and this is usually for the senior’s own amusement. Instead of the talent show, which makes new students feel embarrassed, I want to have another program which is more recreational and memorable, and have more time to talk with others.

I am against having the talent show program because it is done under coercion. When I went to HUFS freshman camp, there were the stages in which every single freshman member had to perform. However, there certainly were some students who did not want to do it. Being on a stage and performing something special can be too great a burden for some students. HUFS Freshman Camp is a place for freshmen to ask seniors about campus life and make relationships with other students, instead of acting cute and becoming a laughingstock. During the last HUFS camp’s Bus-pan, new students had to come up and sing or dance briefly without exception. If the student would not do it, everyone in the bus would sing aloud and urge him or her to start performing. I felt that making any mistake at that moment would be the end of my school life. As such, the short talent show can be miserable to some students. Some people say this is a special memory, but what is a memory or a nightmare is decided by the individual. Thus, instead of the talent show, I prefer to have other events such as group games or instruction about the school system. 

Reporter of Campus Section