As the NTSU Exec Team elections are nearing, we got in touch with the three candidates running for the VP Postgraduate role to help you decide who to vote for.
The VP Postgraduate will lead on NTSU’s work around postgraduate provision and ensure that the work carried out at NTSU meets the needs of the growing postgraduate membership at NTU, specifically by leading the postgraduate Academic Representatives.
The Vice President Postgraduate will also work on employability initiatives, student enterprise and the development of Information Services for the benefit of all students.
Here is what this year’s VP Postgraduate candidates had to say.
Anna O’Hara, MA Media and Globalisation student
Why are you fit for the VP Postgraduate role?
I am fit for the role of VP Postgraduate because the skills I hold are vital for the role of an executive officer.
I have been a member of NTU for 4 years, I have extensive knowledge of NTU and postgraduate study.
I can use my own experiences of the transition from undergraduate to postgraduate study at NTU to know what students need from a VP Postgraduate.
Furthermore, I am dedicated to going above and beyond for this role.
As a current postgraduate student, I can deeply empathise with the requirements of current and prospective students, I understand that integrating students from all campuses is important and can use my experience and knowledge to allow for students to feel part of a community.
I am an approachable person, who students can feel confident in that their concerns, questions and feedback will be heard and acted upon.
What sets you apart from the other candidates?
When I wanted to do postgraduate study, I felt like I was part of an under-represented group, and it was important for me to receive additional funding so I could become a postgraduate student.
I have successfully researched and applied for funding and therefore hold extensive knowledge of the funding and application processes that NTU has.
Hence, I can use my own experiences to empathise with prospective students and help break the perceived financial barriers of postgraduate study and make it more accessible for all students.
How are you planning to make postgraduate students feel more included and represented within the NTSU and NTU community?
By actively engaging with postgraduate students, I will be able to help them feel that they are well represented within the NTSU and NTU community.
I want to create welcome events for both January and September starters, that are separate from freshers’ events and Freshers’ Week.
I want to host regular drop-in events across all campuses to allow postgraduate students to come and talk to me about any concerns or any questions they may have.
I will also host networking events to help integrate the January and September intake with each other, and work with course reps and school officers so that they can further integrate students, so they feel part of a community.
I also want to help students based off-campus to feel included within the community by hosting online events, drop-in sessions and talks so that travel does not stop them from taking part in postgraduate activities.
Furthermore, I want to have a focus on international and students who are new to NTU to allow their transitions to become easier and they can feel well represented within postgraduate study.
Finally, I want to work closely with VP Sports and VP Opportunities to increase the engagement of postgraduate students within societies and sports clubs.
Bhushan Srivastava, MA Marketing student
Why are you fit for the VP Postgraduate role?
I have been running for these positions in my country for a long time.
I also did my MBA in Finance and was part of the union.
All of those positions showed me what you need to think about before running for such a role and what really matters to students.
You are representing a lot of students and they have a lot of hopes, so you need to show them that you can be approached anytime when they have any issues.
What sets you apart from the other candidates?
I have been carrying out a lot of experiences in many industries and working for almost 10 years and also working for students’ unions back in my country.
This gave me an understanding of how these things work and what you have to do to set an example.
You have to take the lead all the time.
It is setting an example and saying “I am here for you”, so if any student needs anything, or if they have any problems, they can approach us.
Me and my team will make sure to solve the problem for you.
Sometimes it takes time but we will make sure we keep you updated.
How are you planning to make postgraduate students feel more included and represented within the NTSU and NTU community?
This requires a lot of planning, a lot of teamwork and you need to meet a lot of people to understand what they are facing, what they think would be better going forward, what can be changed.
Feedback for myself will let me know where I am doing good and where I am not.
If I get this opportunity, I plan to take everyone along with me.
I believe we are the people, we are the face of the people.
We represent the students in a lot of situations they come across every day, like accommodation and employment.
Not only NTU or NTSU, but any student facing issues in Nottingham can also approach us.
If they are confused about how to travel from the airport to Nottingham we can guide them, we can give them a solution.
I believe one more thing that is important for now is that we are here today and we might not be here tomorrow for the next coming year.
But we need to do something that motivates all the students for all the coming years, and NTSU and NTU remain as good as they are today, they need to succeed more.
Sydney Bell, MA Fashion and Creative Pattern Cutting student
Why are you fit for the VP Postgraduate role?
Graduating this year from an NTU postgraduate course, I can best represent the interests of PG students because I am one myself right now!
I also like to let my work speak for itself; I am a hardworking individual with a fantastic work ethic, I have always put myself forward to represent my peers, all the way back to being a prefect at school to having my work put forward for Graduate Fashion Week.
What sets you apart from the other candidates?
I am a creative person who will always find fun ways to be more innovative and exciting, which is what students want from their university experiences.
However, I am also able to cater to the more mature PG students as well as the younger ones, making me a dynamic and flexible person.
How are you planning to make postgraduate students feel more included and represented within the NTSU and NTU community?
My manifesto includes building an online platform to connect Postgraduates to each other, where we can share our individual projects and start building our individual networks and connect across NTU.
This platform would be available to employers to view and connect with us so that every PG student has a better chance at employment after education.
Also, this will help build a better community and let people discuss new ideas and share their thoughts with each other.
In addition to this, I guarantee that I will discuss everyone’s thoughts thoroughly to equally give everyone the representation they deserve.
The candidates’ full manifestos can be read here.
For more information about when hustings and voting will take place, click here.