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The holiday season means one thing when you’re a student: holiday parties! Instead of throwing a run-of-the-mill party, though, why not use a holiday theme? It’s a great way to say goodbye to friends until next year and ensure it will be a party everyone remembers.

1. Ugly Christmas Sweater

Ask all your guests to arrive in the ugliest Christmas sweater they can find. Then, all of you should vote which is the ugliest — it’s best if the winner can receive a prize. There’s always a chance that two people will come dressed in the same sweater (especially if some of you shopped locally), in which case you can have an additional Who Wore It Best contest. To improve your own chances of winning, add extras to your outfit like tinsel, bows, fairy lights, and foliage.

2. Cookie Competition

Another competition-based party requires everyone to bake a batch of cookies (enough for at least one per guest). You then try them all and vote which is best. You could have one prize for the tastiest and another for the best decorated.

3. Cookie Decorating

An alternative that still involves cookies is a baking and decorating party. This is ideal if some of your friends live on campus and are unable to bake cookies at home. Pick out a favourite recipe or two and prepare the cookies together.

4. Dress-Up Bar Crawl

Give a regular bar crawl a holiday twist by dressing up as Santa, an elf, or something else festive. Use the opportunity to discover new spots around the city. If you prefer to stay in, you could create your own bar crawl in your apartment by asking guests to prepare holiday-themed drinks for others to try.

5. Secret Santa

Instead of buying gifts for all your friends, have a Secret Santa. Use an online name generator to randomly assign everyone a recipient (this will eliminate the risk of people picking their own names). Then, set a price range and give friends a chance to buy gifts before the party. It will be fun opening the gifts together and guessing who gave which present.

6. Holiday Movie Night

Put a spin on your regular movie night by watching just holiday classics. You should find there’s plenty to choose from. Get cozy with some hot chocolate and plenty of pillows.

7. Tree Decorating

There are various options for a tree decorating party. For instance, you could all decorate a full-size tree or you could purchase supplies to make your own decorations for trees of all sizes. If some of your friends don’t even have a tree yet, you could make your own miniature ones.

8. Holiday-Themed Karaoke

There’s no need to have a karaoke machine to throw a sing-along party — all you need are YouTube videos with lyrics and some decent speakers. To stay in the holiday spirit, set a rule that all songs must be festive.

You’ll be able to throw a party in your own apartment if you live at Arcadian Students. Our off-campus Georgian College residence has a clubhouse where you can hang out with friends and spacious suites with plenty of room for entertaining plus a 42-inch wall-mounted TV. Apply now before all the rooms are taken.