The New Class is a web series which follows a group of new students as they experience Memorial University’s St. John’s campus throughout the 2016-17 academic year.

The series offers an insider’s view into the opportunities and challenges new students face during their first year on campus, and features 10 students from across the province and around the world.

Meet Rowan Fraser

Rowan Fraser is 29 years old, and comes to St. John’s, N.L., from Kentville, N.S. He has lived in St. John’s for the past five years. Rowan is studying sociology at Memorial, and is particularly interested in studying class, race and families. He lives in St. John’s with his wife. On YouTube, Rowan is known as Biggie Hauls, where he documents his latest comic book purchases and unboxes new comic merchandise.

The Gazette caught up with Rowan to get to know him a little better.

What are you enjoying most about university life?

I am enjoying being exposed to people with different backgrounds, experiences and opinions than my own.

What do you find most challenging about university life?

By now, people must think I’m joking, but it’s reading the text books! I was raised in a household that encourages getting in the gritty action of social issues and fighting them on a street level (i.e. protests, calls to action, writing, etc.).

So, to try and get myself to buckle down and read a text book, and realize that writing an essay or reading that text book can still help to further a cause I am fighting for, is a big barrier I still have to work on. I guess, now, I will have to just cause the ruckus in my studies and not just in the real world!

How is campus life (or life in St. John’s) different from what you’re used to?

I have gotten accustomed to St. John’s now that I have been here for five years. The weather, though – still not used to it!

What do you like to do in your spare time?

In my spare time, I am an avid reader of books and comics (collection at 4,500 and rising!). I am also a very big movie buff and collector of all things. I have a pretty massive Blu-Ray collection (comic book movies and horror are my main genres), and a large vinyl collection as well (focus on collecting movie soundtracks).

What are you hoping to accomplish at Memorial?

I feel most people answer this with “get a degree, get a good job,” etc., but to me, I really feel it is about the knowledge gained. I want to know I came away from university with more knowledge and skills to help society than I had coming in.

Watch the latest webisodes of The New Class on our YouTube channel at memorialuniversity.