Current Postgraduate Officer, Sid Singh, takes you through his experience in the role.
Ahhh, I don’t know where to start! It seems like only yesterday that I ran for this position, and I was introduced to the Students’ Union.
When I got elected as an Officer, I couldn’t believe it and I was so excited, but at the same time I was very anxious because all my studies had moved online and I had no real interaction with anyone from the UK, so I didn’t know if I would fit in or not. But on the contrary, after starting in my role it has been really great, thanks to the Voice Team (Charlie, Ben, Amy, Callie, Tom, Ryan, Tim, and Chloe), the Activities Team, Marketing Team, Advice and Support team, Deputy Chief Executive, Mandy, Chief Executive, Nicky, and especially the Officer Team who made me feel at home every step of the way. Annie (former Education Officer, now SU President) also helped when she introduced the whole Officer Team to each other before the role started, which made me feel very comfortable and relaxed about working together.
I remember my first day very clearly when I met the 2020/2021 Officer Team, including the previous PG Officer, Fritz. The first two weeks were the handover period in which Fritz gave me an overview of the role and explained how I would be able to achieve my goals whilst learning at the same time. The handover period covered the ins and outs of The SU and gave me an idea of how things function at the university.
Aside from the support, the experience and skills this role has provided me with can only be described as invaluable. As an Officer you will get to do a multitude of things such as Chairing a meeting, Presenting & Communicating in big, scary university meetings, forming diplomatic relations between The SU and various departments of the university, Social Media Marketing and my favourite part is getting to talk to so many students and listening to their stories, experiences, and concerns. When you get to meet and represent so many students, it puts you in a very important and responsible position, which I enjoyed.
During Freshers week, I got to meet so many Postgraduate and Doctoral Students. I listened to their stories and talked to them about their research which made me aware of so many things which are a very important part of the Student Experience. I promise you, if you decide to run, this will be one of the best and most memorable jobs in your whole life! And I still have many things to learn in this role. If you have any questions about running or any other issues/concerns, then please feel free to get in touch with me at: supostgrad@bath.ac.uk.
See you soon,
Sid :)