So you wanna be a student rep? Or maybe you’re just interested in what it involves…

Student reps are voted for by their peers and spend the year representing the voices of the class, usually a ratio of 1 rep to 15-20 students. I was voted as student rep for my second and third year by my peers and this involves regularly organising meetings. You’ll go to a day’s training (plus you get free coffee and biscuits- which as a student is always a bonus), informing you of the set expectations and get to meet other reps… Plus, you’ll get a fancy purple hoodie.

Being a student rep is important for the uni, as without us no one would know what’s going well and what needs to change. Change happens through opinions being voiced and you get to be that person that can help make that change!  Being a student rep looks great on the CV, but the best thing about being a rep is knowing that you were responsible for some of the biggest and best changes around the university!

At BU, you as the student rep or even students themselves can use the online system called ‘SimON’; Feedback can be about anything you as a rep and your fellow students think is important! The software generalises feedback into categories, asking what is currently good at uni, what is negative and asks how to improve. I’ve found this great to use when talking to the class as it engages them and asks for them to offer the improvements anonymously.  ‘SimON’ works online, offering instant feedback when submitted; this is a great way to quickly get the information to SUBU.

You’ll go to group meetings with your course leader to express the opinions and then meet to discuss with the whole faculty and implement change. Not only this, but you can also get involved in extra events. I got involved in ‘Speak Week’, going round the campus and collecting feedback from students. It was great fun and I met loads of interesting people that I normally wouldn’t talk to.

So basically, why not stand and get voted to be a student rep, get the hoodie and make changes!

By Robert Wallace