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Election
Category
Candidates
In my role as Hall Representative for Endsleigh Gardens and John Adams hall I have worked with UCL Estates to ensure that the student's voice has been heard in issues of accomodation. For example, I have
- Successfully passed policy with a member of my halls to the SU Executive regarding increased security for all halls on UCL campus
- Communicated clearly with SRAs on ways to improve Flourish activities and work as a team to ensure the safety and security of our halls
- Pragmatically communicated the needs of UCL students in over 4 hall rep forums to UCL Estates in a diplomatic and calm way
Accomodation is extremely important at university and helps shape your student experience. As Accomodation and Housing Officer, I will seek to work with UCL Estates to improve student satisfaction whilst holding them to account on failed promises and lackluster improvement efforts. I hope to
- Address recurring issues in maintenance and upkeep caused by UCL Estate's outsourcing model, e.g Circuit Laundry
- Work with the SU to urge UCL Estates to freeze rent in the face of rising inflation
- Fight for further student representation in all accomodation decision-making processes
In light of the current financial crisis, I understand the pressures in finding accomodation for all years of study. I also understand the stress for newcomers (international and national) and the gamble we go through before starting our courses to get an accomodation place.
As Accomodation & Housing Officer, I will continue to work with UCL Estates to find pragmatic solutions to student accomodation crises and ensure that student experience is prioritised in all decision-making. Furthermore, I will work hard so that students will have the best halls experience possible.
Communication - I will not hesitate to speak my mind in a diplomatic manner, to generate discussion and brainstorm solutions. Management will not intimidate me, I'll make sure to be blunt, yet respectful.
Problem Solving - I will focus on tangible, real solutions to problems students face. Rather than promise some lofty goal, I will focus on marginal, concrete solutions to issues.
Experience - Being a Hall Rep has equipped me with the knowledge and skills necessary for this role, the active discussion required, and the logistical/bureaucratic hurdles that have to be overcome.
Create a sense of community in halls:
1. Involve clubs & societies with halls, allowing them to run events nearby/in Halls. This cooperation would benefit societies by acquiring members and getting space, and students, as they can be involved in fun activities with students.
2. Refine Flourish. Rework it, edit it, provide frameworks, whatever is needed, in order to ensure that the Flourish program is working as intended, and students actually feel involved, and want to attend the events provided.
Thirdly, small maintenance or logistical inefficiencies, to be fixed.
I have the experience necessary for the role, by being Hall Rep. I am an active participant of discussions, and am unafraid to speak up and out, and provide constructive criticism. I never criticise unless I can propose an alternative, which requires problem solving, and coming to terms with what is truly feasible.
Community is important to me, which is why it would be my focus in this role. When I commit to something, I commit fully - you can count on me to give this my all. I would also focus on being an amplifier for YOUR voice, and ask questions/surveys to ensure I am representing you.
The main thing I can bring to the role and to the student union is my high level of positivity, this refers to my own positive attitude when encountering difficult situations, but also my ability to be able to spread that positivity to people around me. In my previous job of working as part of the student accommodation team of the University of Essex, I have improved my team working and communication skills, which really compliments my the role of the accommodation and housing officer, also my experiences of working in accommodation previously really makes me a great candidate for this role.
The main thing I would like to achieve in this role is to make accommodation life more interesting and accessible for everyone. During my time living in halls, I found that sometimes people live on the same floor, but they rarely talk to people in their halls. This is important, because apart from spending time in university hopefully studying what you enjoy, most of the time you are going to spend time in halls and having a chance to be able to talk to people who might study something completely different to you is an unique experience that will make your uni life unforgettable.
The reason I want to join the student union is because I want to be able to make students in UCL enjoy their time in Uni as University is once a lifetime experience that will stick with you for a long time. The reason I specifically want to become the accommodation and housing officer is I want to make housing more affordable and accessible to people who might be struggling to meet the housing standards in London, because everyone deserves a chance to be able to express their needs and I want to be able to represent them and help them in every way I could.