Arab and North African Society: Media Lead

One of my core values is knowing who you are and being proud of it. Being a member of UCL's ArabNA society has been a highlight of first year. I have had the opportunity of being a sub-committee member for the Media team. Not only has this opportunity developed my media skills, but I have also made irreplaceable friendships. I have been able to explore my culture and mother tongue on a scale I have never had access to. Growing up in a predominately English area, I didn't feel connected to the Arab community but this society has changed that. As Media Lead I will make sure students are informed of what the society has to offer and how to participate. 

As Media Sub-committee member I learned how to make promotional posts tailored to the audiences for each type of event our society offers. I hope to use these skills to create engaging social media pages, as I have previously done when managing an Arab catering company's socials. I will make our platforms more interactive for the members by doing interviews, quizzes and giveaways. Increased engagement and cultural exploration will allow you, the members, to directly contribute in making our content to increase your sense of belonging. My goal is for our society to collaborate with other London ArabNA societies on a regular basis to enhance your UCL and city-wide experience. This would help members to connect with their roots and tap into the pride this society has made me feel! 

At school, I was always part of a predominantly English friendship group, so I was really excited to come to UCL to be in an environment where I'm surrounded by Arabs, and this society has done exactly that.

Being the only Arab on my course helped me realise the importance of this society, and as media officer I aim to reach those who are in a similar position as I was. I enjoyed attending events such as the meet & greet, and inter-uni 7afla, but I felt that our community wasn't reaching its full potential. I think these events lacked opportunities for interaction, and this could be fixed by changing the way that we market and present them; for example, by using different templates to post about different events to avoid a repetitive looking feed.

Hopefully if I become media officer, I will help this society to thrive even more than it already has, giving people the opportunity to create valuable friendships just as I have.