FAQs

We’ve collected the most common questions that we get on this page. If there’s something we’ve missed, don’t hesitate to ask by filling out the field below, or contacting us directly!

If you have any questions, message us on any of our social media accounts and we'll answer you ASAP

We get this question a lot. Like, A LOT. Yeah, it’s a bit wacky and confusing, but that’s why we love it! The official story (which at this point has turned into a myth) is that when the society was established back in 2002, the University of Southampton’s logo was a dolphin inside a square (see below). The people that initiated our society thought that was funny and that it looked like a fish on a piece of toast. Hence, “Fish on Toast”! Anticlimactic? Probably. Funny? Maybe a little. But we’ve been rocking it ever since, and we don’t plan on stopping anytime soon!

We hold regular speaker events at least once a week, usually on a Thursday. Sometimes we might have more than one event, or attend a joint event with another society or organization (we’ll still post about it to let you know). Of course, the COVID-19 pandemic has shaken things up a bit, so we might miss a week or two, but we’re trying to get as many events to you as possible, so keep an eye out for them on our website, social media, and emails. You can check out our upcoming events here .

Our speakers range quite a bit, from first-time student founders, to CEOs and leaders of organizations, to experts in technology, engineering, and science. One thing they all have in common is their love for entrepreneurship and desire to help students at the university in succeeding with their endeavors (which is why most of them are very open to connecting and supporting outside of events as well).

A lot (but not all) of our speakers are part of the on-campus startup ecosystem, such as founders from the Future Worlds accelerator, owners of companies based in the Southampton Science Park, or just student founders with enough experience and a desire to share it with others.

All of our events are free! We encourage everyone to get Eventbrite tickets beforehand, but they are always free of cost for students, staff, and anyone outside the university.

Anyone can come to our events, no matter their background. You don’t need to have any experience with startups whatsoever, and it doesn’t matter what course you’re on — all you need is a desire to learn more. All of our events cater to first-time founders or wantrepreneurs, and our Business Basics series is particularly well-suited for people with absolutely no background knowledge.

You can sign up for membership on the SUSU website.

Memberships, like all of our events, are completely free of charge.

The society is run by an enthusiastic group of students who love talking about entrepreneurship, are always open to helping students, and usually dabble in their own projects and startup ventures. You can find out more about the current committee here .

If you want to get involved as part of the committee or help us in some part of running our society, don’t hesitate to get in touch! Come talk to us before or after any of our events, contact any of the current committee members directly, or email us at president@fishontoast.co.uk.

Yes, we are always open for collaboration with other societies at the university! We often promote other societies’ events, and in the past have done joint events, socials, and shoutouts. If you are a member of another society and think we might be able to collaborate on anything, give us a shout at president@fishontoast.co.uk.

Startup-concepts-related questions

Starting your own business, or even thinking about doing it, can be very overwhelming at the start, especially if you have no prior experience. There are a few simple things that you can do very early on, such as writing down your idea, doing some research on your competitors, and talking to others about it, but even those can be very difficult for a fresh entrepreneur. That’s why we’re here! If you have an idea and don’t know what to do, or you’re not sure how to do it and who to talk to, don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We have all been in that same position, and we are here to help. Reach out to any of us directly, or if you prefer, you can email us at president@fishontoast.co.uk.

This is a big topic, so we have dedicated an article to it.

Hustling is the ultimate goal and worship of any startup founder. It is the way for any self-respecting entrepreneur to reach global success and essentially win at life. Jokes aside, the term ‘hustling’ invokes conflicting reactions in some people, but in essence it means putting the work in. It means being smart about what you do, noticing and taking opportunities, and most importantly doing anything it takes to make things happen. Being a ‘hustler’ is associated with startup founders because they often have to put in a huge amount of work and find both innovative solutions and practical workarounds to a lot of obstacles if they want to see their idea become successful. Some people also associate the term with cutting corners, playing unfair, and being successful at the detriment of others, or on the contrary, becoming a workaholic and putting a lot of effort into things that don’t matter. This highlights why hustling requires careful balance, but it is nonetheless vital for the success of any startup. At Fish on Toast, we promote a healthy hustling mentality that helps you get the right things done!