Heri Busquier Cerdan
Hi everyone! My name is Heri and I’m running to be the next SRC’s Vice-President of Education!
I’m an international 5th year student of Physics with Astrophysics and the current Undergraduate Convenor for the College of Science and Engineering of the SRC. This has been my second year as a council member, having previously been School Representative for Physics and Astronomy. Throughout my years as a student, I have been in contact with many different aspects of university life, both academic and non-academic. For instance, I have been part of the Spanish society committee for 4 years, as well as having attended and been part of other societies.
Furthermore, I have sat on Learning and Teaching committees at School, College, and University level. I have also taken part in a University Periodic Subject Review and will be participating in another this March.
Enough about my experience, here is how I hope to improve yours:
- There is no current policy protecting students who do not want to take part in certain activities as part of their studies, such as animal testing or working with military-involved companies. I will work to establish an Ethical Objection Policy, so that students whose views are contrary to those practices are not discriminated against and an alternative assessment is offered to them.
- The University has many areas where things work very well, whether it be paid opportunities for their students, a great placement system, or a student experience forum. However, these practices are often restricted to one school. I will help staff share good practice so that it can have a positive impact on students all around the university.
- In the current cost of living crisis, the University must offer as much support as possible for students. In this context, I will push for the elimination of hidden costs in degrees, such as transport fees for students with compulsory placements.
- I will also work to ensure the university upholds its current pledges, such as the 15 by 30 pledge. Furthermore, I will advocate for an increase in the funding for scholarships such as the Sanctuary scholarship for students with refugee status.
- I will strive to strengthen the SRC’s presence in other UofG campuses such as Dumfries, Chengdu, and Hainan to ensure their views and needs are accurately represented in the University community.
- I will push the University to divest from the arms and fossil fuel industry, supporting the work done by the Divestment Working Group and ensuring that the outcomes have the desired effect on the academic community.
- I will continue the review of the Good Cause System currently underway, ensuring that it results in a more transparent, accessible, and standardized process. I will particularly push for the system to be more respectful of confidentiality to ensure anyone can come forward when they need to.
For more information on my campaign and on how to vote, go to my insta @heri4vped
Vote Heri #1 VPEd!
Niamh Mary McLaughlin
I am a final year psychology and music student. I am looking forward to graduating this summer and beginning my career but first I would really love the opportunity to give something back to the university by representing the students still here.
My time at university has seen me experience online learning from my bedroom, commuting hefty distances onto campus, living on campus, and even the experiences of being both a local and international student (thanks to my year abroad). Safe to say, a fairly unusual experience. My extracurricular involvement in the university has culminated in me sitting on the SRC as a School Representative this year; a role which I have thoroughly enjoyed and has given me valuable insight into the workings of the SRC and the university.
My headline goal is to work to improve the equity of service regarding academic support across the university. Too often student experiences of receiving support are drastically different dependant on which degree programme or subject they belong to which is simply unfair and unacceptable. Joint honours students find themselves with incredible support with various options available in one subject whilst being left unsure where to turn to in the other. This unfairness needs to be addressed.
Relatedly, I would like to work with the Student Learning Department to expand and develop the peer assisted learning provisions across campus. In the earlier years of my degree, I gained much assistance from the peer assisted learning project in the psychology department and then in more recent times I have been able to give back of the knowledge and experience I have now gained in order to help others. This valuable service was only available to me as a psychology student; not in the music department. I would love to see this expanded and rolled-out on a wider scale.
I have noticed and discussed with staff the ongoing problems of attendance in classes which I think is having a negative effect on the academic experience. I am currently working within my School to try and target this difficulty by finding out what makes students regularly miss classes and what could be changed to help this. I would like to be able to expand this work across the university to look at patterns on a wider scale and investigate whether a best practice can be found in order to provide the best academic experience for students.
I have been fortunate enough that my time at university has been relatively smooth without any major problems regarding housing, good cause or health difficulties however, I recognise the impact these unforeseeable difficulties can have on students so if elected I will work alongside the other executive officers and the rest of council to hold the university to account about problems facing the widespread university community.
Ultimately, I hope to be a good representative and advocate for you, the students at UofG so that your experience and time at university is a positive one you can remember fondly.
Hugh Southall
Hello! I’m Hugh Southall and I’m running to be your next Vice President of Education.
I have sat as the School of Engineering representative for the SRC for two years, and through this I have gained valuable insight into learning and teaching at the University. I have seen the university change in the last 5 years, and as VPEd I will seek to ensure that the student experience is adapted to fit this.
Goals
- Fighting for greater support for students with jobs. An increasing number of students work while studying due to the cost-of-living crisis. There is an expectation for students to dedicate all their time to their studies, without understanding that many students need to work. This disproportionately affects working class students, a group the university is increasing recruitment from. They need support throughout their studies, not just at the start. If elected, I will hold focus groups and listen to students with jobs to find out what support they need.
- Push the university to embrace Artificial Intelligence (AI). AI is a rapidly evolving area which has the potential to transform education and workplaces. AI is seeing increasing use among students, but support and guidance for the use of AI, to inform them of the benefits and drawbacks, is lacking. Additionally, I will advocate for the university to purchase a subscription to more powerful AI tools.
- Continue advocating for fair assessment. Even a few years after the pandemic, the format and communication of assessment types in some schools and colleges have been unclear, placing undue stress on students. If elected, I will advocate for assessment to be better suited to the content.
- Examining the experience of international students. As a school representative, I have often seen international students fall through the cracks with regards to appeals. This is symptomatic of a wider problem with support for international students. Part of this is language, as it is difficult enough for native speakers to navigate all the processes and rules at university. If elected, I will push for selected materials to be translated into commonly spoken second languages. I will work with the wider international student support network to identify issues.
- Lobby politicians to sustainably fund higher education. High tuition fees are charged to international students to subsidise tuition for Scottish (including me) and UK students. This is often a transfer of wealth from a developing country to the UK, which is against the values of many students. If elected, I will lobby politicians, the University and the Scottish and UK Governments for fairer and sustainable funding.
Experience
During my time at university, I have:
- Chaired Staff Student Liaison Committees
- Represented students at workshops and on committees, engaging with stakeholders
- Deputy team leader during the SRC’s Welcome Week
- Been on the committee of the GU Scottish Country Dancing Club for two years
- Spent a summer in industry at a structural engineering firm
If you want a VPEd who will do what is right for students - Vote Hugh for YOU!