Students from different groups or cliques are not mixing

As you know, people naturally gravitate to people they feel are similar. In your situation, however, is this occurring because of past incidents and ill feeling? If hostility has not been aroused, consider whether you really need to encourage more mixing for its own sake, or whether people are happy enough to be left as they are.

For Muslim students in particular, this can be a controversial issue and Muslims are given different guidance by different faith leaders and traditions as to whether and how people from different religions can interact in social settings that may be perceived as creating conflict with faith demands. Different social contexts can make things difficult for Muslim students.

There are also different religious orientations that can make the advice or the practice quite different from one person or community to the next.

It may be that the Muslim students concerned would be happy to mix more with others, but certain conditions make it impossible for them to become involved, such as the provision of alcohol or the nature of the entertainment; for Jewish students, for example, there may be issues over the food or the day of the social event. It may not be an issue over contact with 'non-Muslims' at all, but the conditions of the events. In this case a range of options become possible, such as for example making some events alcohol-free or more conducive to all students' participation.

Enlist support from knowledgeable students or staff to understand what the nature of the problem might be before deciding on a course of action, if any.