Societies Award winners 2025

Rangeela 2025 was the largest and most ambitious cultural event ever organized by UCL Hindu Society, setting a new standard for society-led events at UCL. With a production value exceeding £18,000, this year’s event featured over 200 performers in 10 diverse acts, showcasing everything from Kandyan (Sri Lankan national dance) and Garba (Gujarati folk dance) to Bollywood, Hip Hop, and Bhangra. Other acts included Hindustani and Carnatic classical music fusion, South Indian street dance, and Bharatanatyam and Kathak classical dance. Held on the second largest stage in London, the event was attended by 700 people and marked a significant milestone with the inclusion of the largest music act in Rangeela’s history, featuring 11 musicians and 5 singers, showcasing instruments like tabla, sitar, basuri, ghatam, and more. Over 1000 hours of rehearsals went into perfecting the performances, providing an opportunity for students across different years and degrees to come together.

This year School of Pharmacy Society focused on creating a well-rounded environment where every event served a purpose — whether cultural, athletic, academic, global, or social. Their vision was to ensure every member leaves with more than just memories — but with transferable skills, new passions, and expanded networks. This vision led them to grow their society’s membership to 218 students and increase profits from £3.8K to £10.1K in just five months. They also boosted student engagement by ensuring our events were diverse, meaningful, and tailored to all corners of student experience. They launched STEM talent, spotlighting student creativity beyond academics, enhanced their sporting presence with TeamUCL, introduced a Charity Officer role, hosted a full-scale ball for nearly 180 students, hosted a Cultural Day, delivered a collaborative career event, and led global health awareness campaigns.

The UCL Public Speaking Society provided a wide range of consistent, high-impact opportunities for both personal and professional growth. Some event opportunities include: Weekly Speech Workshops, Competitive Speaking Competitions, Collaborations with Experts, Career Workshops, a Postgraduate Career Supercharger, a Speech Mentorship Programme. They placed a strong emphasis on making all opportunities accessible, regardless of experience. From beginner-friendly workshops to advanced competitions and tailored mentorship, every member was given space to grow. Their consistent attendance and high engagement across diverse activities reflect the supportive, empowering environment they have built.

Gender and Feminism society has shown a steadfast commitment to championing intersectional feminism, amplifying underrepresented voices, and creating a truly inclusive space for all students at UCL. GenFem and its events clearly not only include, represent, and display the issues of marginalised groups, but make them a core part of their activism and events. Intersectionality is GenFem's core feminist belief, and the society firmly believes no feminist discussion is complete without acknowledgement of the intersections between gender, race, sexuality, disability, and more. Intersectionality and inclusivity are not add-ons to GenFem's events - they're at the core of them. GenFem also insures that members of various groups feel included by representing them in the committee, only hosting events in accessible venues, and providing welfare hours with the welfare officer, as well as a consistently open line of communication if members ever have complaints or suggestions.

Through wide-reaching and well-executed events, Chinese Students and Scholars Association Society has made a lasting impact on both Chinese and non-Chinese students alike through their creativity, commitment and deep cultural impact. CSSA’s sold-out Spring Festival Gala in Bloomsbury Theatre as a joyful celebration of Chinese New Year with professional-level performances that brought hundreds of students together. The entire event is student-led showcasing incredible teamwork and dedication. Apart from the Spring Festival Gala, CSSA put on a Chinese New Year Temple Fair held outdoors at Gordon Square, which transformed the space into a lively cultural experience, complete with traditional games, calligraphy workshops, music and food all open to the entire UCL community free of charge. Their Golden Autumn Cultural fair in Term 1 offered a more relaced and reflective experience highlighting the beauty of seasonal traditional through interactive cultural booths and art displays. And importantly, CSSA runs Free Mandarin Lessons throughout the year, taught by student volunteers.

Financial Literacy Society is the UK’s first financial literacy university society and in just the first year of their launch, they’ve delivered groundbreaking events, such as a Money Mindset workshop and Money made Simple event, that provide unique opportunities for students at UCL and beyond. Starting as a one-person team and expanding to three in December, they grew to 80+ members and 180+ social media followers. They secured £830 in sponsorships and formed partnerships with Warwick, Bristol, KCL, and UAL, expanding their impact nationwide. Over 67% of their event attendees were women and have made a strong commitment to accessibility and inclusivity. They’ve transformed financial education for students in the UK, creating unique opportunities for their members to take control of their financial futures.

The UCL United Nations Association has expanded its digital presence and content offerings significantly during the academic year, using online platforms not just for event promotion but as an active space for student-led media, policy engagement, and inclusive participation. They launched their first Press Committee, the first of its kind in the UK Model UN circuit which produces a range of content all hosted on a dedicated online platform. UCLUNA members also founded Polaris, an online student-run Sustainable Development Goals policy journal. In addition to media-focused projects, they continue to engage with their community through online training materials, delegation resources, and recordings of select speaker events. By creating long-form, student-led online content and building digital platforms that support meaningful participation outside of in-person events, UCLUNA has expanded its reach and created sustained opportunities for digital engagement, making online engagement a core part of the society’s long-term engagement strategy.

UCL's Quiz Society has excelled in fostering the development of UCL's quizzing culture, with a variety of support and activities both on and offline. This care has extended across audiences and levels of experience, from puzzles on Instagram and pub quizzes open to all, to promotion and support for UCL's team at the QuizBowl championships. It is particularly well-demonstrated by the society's commitment to University Challenge, screening games from the previous year in UCL bars, and supporting the current year's team behind the scenes. While, for example, UCL's participation in University Challenge preceded the Society, having a central hub for those interested in quizzing within UCL has been important for connecting the different related activities within the university, and for creating smoother transitions between activities for quizzers of different levels of experience. Looking ahead, UCL Quiz Society has a strong foundation, an engaged membership, and a committee dedicated to keeping quizzing welcoming and fun. For its impressive first-year achievements, and clear vision for inclusivity and growth, UCL Quiz Society is deserving of the Best New Society award.

Adam’s been involved tremendously in many, many societies and has left a positive impact on nearly all of them. He has engaged with every activities zone, even before he got the role as an activities representative. He’s a committee member on 4 committees this year (Public Speaking, BSL, TEDx, Taylor Swift) and a dedicated member of much more, like Shakespeare, Stage Crew, Drama, and more, and is well known within performing arts and all societies in general. He has a really good working relationship with the SU. He’s integral to and beloved in many societies, and is known as someone who is endlessly giving, compassionate, and who’s involved in a bit of everything.

Malaysian Society helps members feel more at home even when they live miles away. They hosted four cultural dinners, celebrating the diversity and inclusion in Malaysian. Organised UCL MNight, a Bloomsbury theatre production selling over 700 tickets all to share the beauty of Malaysian culture to Malaysians and non-Malaysians from the wider community at UCL. They hosted an Asian Food Fair collaborating with 4 other societies to showcase our food to UCL students of all backgrounds. They held a massive welcome picnic with over 300 attendees, raised over £450 for the Turtle Conservation Society of Malaysia through a charity event, organises socials such as sport and painting and scavenger hunts to build a sense of community, held a theatre trip. On top of this they helped with their committee’s development by running a junior committee training programme to give members guidance and freedom to run their own events.

Christopher has excelled throughout his three years at UCL. In his first year, he served as a student representative, organising events with more than 100 attendees. In his second year, while teaching rowing and freediving, he boosted the Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering (MPBE) Society’s online engagement by 120% as Social Media Manager. Now, in his final year, he has led the MPBE Society as President, growing it to the third largest departmental society at UCL and 14th overall. Under his leadership, the society has offered a wide range of events that have delivered real value to students, both socially and professionally, making an outstanding contribution to the wider UCL community.

George has consistently demonstrated exceptional leadership, initiative, and dedication to enriching the student community across a wide range of domains. For five consecutive years, George has served as an course representative. During three of these years he has served as a faculty representative for Faculty of Medical Sciences and Faculty of Population Health Sciences. He has shown commitment advocating for student concerns at a course and faculty level, as well as being an active member of the union education zone. As the founder and committee member of UCL Skate Club for three years, George has helped cultivate a vibrant and inclusive community for students. His exceptional efforts towards growing the club were recognized through his achievement of Sports Colours.

Beyond Skate club, George has been a dedicated member of the Parkour Society, Juggling and Circus Society, and the Baking Society, where he has contributed to fostering connection and creativity among peers. He has taught Juggling and Circus members how to use the diabolo, developed collaborations between Skate and Parkour, and made suggestions towards themes and awards for Baking society events. He has twice won 'Star Baker' at baking society. George also contributed three written pieces as well as layout design for the RUMS Review magazine. Recognising the importance of peer learning, George, with the support of the Institute of Cardiovascular Science, organised and led a series of teaching sessions tailored to support iBSc Cardiovascular Sciences students. The sessions provided students with valuable resources and guidance at a critical stage of their studies, including support on dissertation writing, poster presentations, and exam skills. In every endeavour, George has exemplified a deep commitment to student life. His involvement in Representation, Clubs and Societies, and Teaching initiatives makes him a truly deserving candidate for Honorary Lifetime Membership to Students' Union UCL.