Monday 18-12-2023 - 13:23

Hello, I am back with the next instalment of the monthly updates, this time for September. Hope you are having a great day! Here is a summary of what I have been doing to represent your voice in the month of September:

International Student Experience Group (ISEG) and International Student Voice Committee (ISVC)

I have been attending these meetings to give a voice to international student issues. Through these meetings, I ensure that international students have their voices heard and that the University is fully aware of the issues our students are facing such as visa delays, resit restrictions on graduate visas and refund processing delays. The university wants to increase its international student numbers and it is very important for the SU to identify and inform about the problems caused by the university process and structures so that future cohorts won't be going through the same issues.  

Postgraduate Certificate Course in Higher Education, Leadership and Management 

I am happy to announce that thanks to the generosity of the University, I have been able to enrol in a course provided for business professionals at the University. This course will provide professional development and understanding essential to my current role. I will learn about higher education regulation bodies, the rules that universities have to adhere to as well as the functions of different university departments such as the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion team which the SU works closely with. I will recommend this course to my fellow co-presidents as well as future SU presidents because it will equip them with the knowledge needed to navigate working in a different industry from their educational background and open the door to continuing working in Higher Education roles!

University of Law TEDx project

During this month, I have been meeting with internal relevant University staff to discuss the TEDx project, potentially getting assistance in raising funds and being able to contact law firms for sponsorship through the contacts of the University. The strategic goal is to have annual University of Law TEDx conferences and the day-to-day goal is to support our InspireX teams on the different campuses with funding and promotion so that they could grow their members and expand onto other University of Law campuses nearby. 

Assisting with the University's Black History Month Campaign

Black History Month is essential for recognizing, celebrating, and educating about the often overlooked contributions and rich heritage of Black individuals, fostering cultural appreciation, inspiring empowerment, and promoting inclusivity and ongoing dialogue on racial equality. Therefore, I am honoured to be able to help organise the Universities BHM campaign by reviewing films to be showcased this month and compiling a reading list of empowering books for the library team. I have also been able to bring onboard some of our elected reps to help out with this campaign. Any student can take part in this project and we would love to have more student voices on the campaign committee meetings so that we can make the best events tailored for you!

Organising and Attending Birmingham Undergraduate and Manchester Freshers Fairs

I have been organising the Birmingham and Manchester freshers fairs this month and it has been a stressful but important responsibility! We have been inviting external organisations and internal departments to these freshers to ensure that our freshers are packed with information, food and fun! Meeting new and returning Birmingham and Manchester students has been a great pleasure and we are so happy to have had the (in my opinion) best stall at the fair! With incredible prizes and food given out! I live in Birmingham, so if your student society organised an event and wanted me to attend, I will always try to be there for you!

Various Committee Meetings 

Attending committees is an important part of my role. This month, I held meetings with TEDx regional leads to keep up to date with the regional progress of the societies. Huma and I also meet with the Pro Vice-Chancellor and Vice-Chancellor every month to speak about patterns of concerns we have been seeing and update each other on what we have been doing. It is crucial for our SU to maintain and expand these relationships because it means that SU objectives and goals are acknowledged by the University and that there is steady collaboration on initiatives and addressing problems faced by students. Together we can expand our Students’ Union and make sure the voices of our students are adequately heard, addressed and not forgotten in the University web of committees and processes.

Thank you for tuning into my monthly update for September. As always, if you want to contact me, send an email to Pedram.Bani-asadi@law.ac.uk. I am always here for you!

Your Voice, Your Concerns, Your Issues,

Pedram