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President: Education February/March Update

Monday 15-04-2024 - 15:43

President: Education February/March Update

By President: Education - Dola Dada

Hi everyone,

It’s been a busy couple of months, loaded with activities; from Refreshers Fair to opening of the new Your SU @ Riverside space at St Peter’s and followed closely by Your Elections. As President: Education, I have been involved closely in some activities which I will talk about below in more detail.

President: Education Dola Dada, with the Wearmouth Bridge in the distance

President: Education Dola Dada

Campaign Updates

The survey to assess student awareness, opinions, and responses to the Fit to Sit policy went live in December 2023 and finally closed in February 2024 with 1,257 responses (1,011 complete responses and 246 more comments which were only partially completed, but they nevertheless provided insightful information). 36% of the participants said they were familiar with the Fit to Sit regulation, while a higher percentage (64%) said they were not. This indicates that there is a significant awareness gap regarding the policy among students. 79% of respondents are supportive of changing the policy.

The survey results were analysed and used to prepare a report which was presented to the Joint Executive Meeting, comprising of University senior leadership team and the Students’ Union management. The high engagement of students on this campaign as seen in the large number of respondents is highly commendable and provided good grounds for working with the University on this.

Induction Talk

I had the opportunity of speaking with the February student intake for MSc International Business Management as I delivered an induction talk to the class. It was a good opportunity to chat about the Students’ Union, starting or joining societies, SU events, volunteering, elections and the benefits of being an active member of the SU. We also talked about academic support offered by the SU and where to access other support services offered by the University as I answered questions from the students. It was an interesting and engaging session with over 40 students present.

NUS FGD International Officer Focus

In March, the NUS (National Union of Students) organised a focus group discussion as part of an ongoing survey to understand opinions, thoughts and experiences of being an international student officer. It was interesting to share experiences with other officers from about seven other SUs from across the UK. Discussions ranged from officer inductions when resuming office to cultural differences, student expectations and job satisfaction and fulfillment. We learnt a lot from each other and took back some good practices to share with our SUs while waiting for the official survey report from the NUS.

Meet Your Chancellor

The SU organised an event for both staff and students to meet the new Chancellor, Leanne Cahill, and get to ask her questions. I had the privilege of hosting the event and it was fantastic, as the Chancellor answered questions honestly and with a lot of humour. Leanne is an alumnus of the University and it was interesting to hear about her academic journey that brought her to the University of Sunderland and her fond memories of the school and the city. She has a passion for diversity and inclusion and her business expertise as the CEO of Bravissimo are great qualities which will assist in her vision for the University.

Categories:

Featured, Officers

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