Intervarsity
As a society, we are committed to expanding the capability of our members to express themselves and expand their skillset. Through our weekly sessions, we train our members in British Parliamentary style debating, hosting seminar-style skills sessions as well as lecture-style topic sessions. The newly elected intervarsity team are proud to continue our tradition of not only training members in the format of British Parliamentary style, but also in its application.
Keep up to Date
Keep up to date with our upcoming competitions, and stay on the line with our social media to access the information from our sessions!
Workshops
With all the fantastic benefits that debating skills bring you, we are committed as an Intervarsity team to helping our members develop their abilities at whatever stage they are at. Every Monday night we deliver a 45-minute seminar-style workshop, which teach a variety of topics - from the basics of British Parliamentary debating to in-depth explorations of specific motion types and subject matters. These workshops are tailored to all our members’ abilities, with useful teaching for complete beginners and veteran debaters. Followed by practice debates, members are offered the opportunity to try out the techniques they have learned either as a speaker, or observe the skills in action as a judge. The low-pressure environment of practice debates gives members the chance to put what they have learned into practice and receive active feedback. And of course, this is followed by a trip to the pub to continue the debate, informally, over a drink with friends! Our workshops give you the perfect opportunity to further your skills with experienced teaching, regular practice and no pressure or expectations. Some examples of debates we have held at workshops in the past include:
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This House Would impose a BBC-style impartiality for all news platforms
This House, in times of emergency, Would co-operate with terrorist organisations to distribute aid
This House Believes That there should be different legal systems for rich and for poor people
This House Believes That factions within the feminist ideology are a threat to the movement
This House, as Santa, Would engage in union busting
This House Regrets the United States of America
Competitions
The University of Exeter Debating Society is the only society on campus that provides the opportunity to attend national and international competitions - as well as hosting our own! As a society, we are committed to maintaining a diverse and inclusive environment; with the majority of competitions we enter being available for both novice and professional-level teams. The Exeter Open is an annual, nationally recognised event where both novice and professional teams travel across the country, and sometimes across the world, to compete here in Exeter. As well as this, we host the well-renowned Exeter Wookey Hole Competition, an internal comedy competition held exclusively for members of the society, and are aiming to host an Exeter Womens and Gender Minority (WGM) Competition this Spring.
We are also the only society on campus that trains and competes in British Parliamentary debating, the style recognised in Parliament and across the county and the world at a competition-level. Over the years, we have attended many British Parliamentary competitions at universities across the UK, including Imperial College, UCL, LSE, Southampton, Bristol, Cardiff, Warwick, Oxford and Cambridge. We have an excellent track record, and in the last year alone we have had 14 teams and multiple judges break to the finals. We are the reigning champions of the South-West competition Severn Cup and are hosting the competition again in October 2023. As well as this, we attend the European University Debating Championships every five years, a highly prestigious and competitive event for teams across Europe, and hope to enter again in 2024.
An Impressive Résume...
14
Teams breaking in open competitions to finals, including 4 Gold Finals wins and 2 Pro-Am wins.
23
Judges or Chairs breaking to Gold or Silver finals in the last academic year.
3
Competitions hosted on campus, with two being internal and novice-friendly.
Cordelia Thompson
Competitions Officer
"With the wide range of competitions offered not only externally, but also hosted here in Exeter during my first year, it was easy to see what a huge role Intervarsity plays in the society. Taking on a more organisational role in the running of intervarsity teams this year, I am excited to host more competitions that let members engage more in the national community that university debating has created; helping to broaden the skill-set of all participating teams.
Eleanor Middleton
Intervarsity Officer
"The Intervarsity department helps members to refine their debating skills in an inclusive environment which caters to all abilities. Both in the competitions we attend and those we host, we aim to provide both speakers and judges with the ability to develop at their own pace. With our recent successes in teams breaking to finals at the majority of tournaments we’ve entered this year, we hope to prove that a diversity of ability and talent is the key to success."
Scott Lockie
Training Officer
"Having committed to training for the last three years, I am confident in benefits that Intervarsity debating can give to members. It allows people to grow in confidence, developing public speaking skills and letting members express themselves in an open and free environment. From members who attend socially, to those who attend avidly, every lesson provides individual benefits that cannot be underestimated,"