What kind of topics and sections does The Boar cover?

The Boar covers four broad areas: news (mostly UK higher education, student life, and policy), features and comment (politics, society, university education, international experience), culture and lifestyle (film, music, arts, fashion, mental health, free things to do), and entertainment and sport (reviews, gig reports, and match commentary on football, tennis, and more). If you want student-press coverage of UK universities with a Warwick-centred view, it is worth reading; if you want specialist industry or research journalism, it is probably not the right source.

News: UK universities, students, and policy

The news section is where The Boar's student and graduate audience is most visible. From the site's own headlines and excerpts, recurring news themes include:

• Graduate employment and entry-level work — a Work Foundation study at Lancaster University finding "only one entry-level vacancy for every three young people."
• University finances — "UK universities face 'financial crisis' as international student numbers fall."
• Admissions and grades — "A-Level cohort faces unexpected rejections after surge in top grades."
• Student cost-of-living and local impact — for example, "Midlands farmers fear pumpkin shortage ahead of spooky season," which links a seasonal consumer story to regional producers.

The pattern: national education policy and labour-market stories, filtered through how they land on students. Dates on these items run through early and mid-September, so the news desk is active at the start of the academic year.

Features and comment: politics, education, and going abroad

Features step back from the news cycle. Examples visible on the site include:

• Defence and foreign policy — "Resignations, Russia, and reputation: The UK's defensive readiness in an era of change."
• Technology and teaching — "AI and the brave new world of university education."
• Student experience — "What we've learnt at Warwick (that wasn't on the syllabus)."
• First-person international writing — a piece written from accommodation in South Africa during a year abroad, opening with the question of banning smartphones in public spaces.

This is the section to read if you want argument and reflection rather than reporting, and it is the most likely home for opinion-led pitches about politics, education, or life as a student abroad.

Culture and lifestyle: film, music, arts, fashion, wellbeing

Culture and lifestyle is the widest section by volume. It splits into recognisable strands:

Note the range: a single section can move from a Soviet film classic to antibody engineering to TikTok fashion trends. That breadth is typical of student publications, and it means the section is best approached by topic rather than as a single consistent beat.

Entertainment and sport: reviews and match commentary

Entertainment overlaps with culture but leans towards criticism and event coverage — film reviews, album reviews, and concert reports. Sport is separate and focused on commentary:

• Football — "Refereeing decisions steal the spotlight in contentious Manchester derby."
• Tennis — "Djokovic's first Grand Slam opening round exit in 20 years raises questions about his future."
• Tributes and profiles — a piece addressed "To you, the one we love: Lionel Messi."

If you follow elite football or tennis and want a student-written take rather than wire reporting, this is the section to check.

How to decide whether it is for you

• Read it if you want UK student-press coverage of higher education policy, campus life, and cultural criticism, with Warwick as the anchor.
• Check the section first rather than the homepage: news and features are policy- and argument-led, while culture and lifestyle are review- and list-led.
• Consider pitching if your idea fits one of these four buckets and you can write to a student audience — the site's own output shows it accepts first-person international writing, opinion on education and politics, and arts criticism.
• Look elsewhere if you need peer-reviewed research, professional trade journalism, or coverage outside the UK student frame.

One practical caveat: the site's "Hottest Content" list mixes hard news with lifestyle and sport, so popularity on the homepage is not a reliable guide to what a given section actually publishes. Browse the section you care about directly.