A little over two years ago, I sat down in this office and wondered what the next few hours would hold for me.

Many hours, days, weeks and months later I have very little time left working for this fantastic Union.

Hopefully those of you who have joined us this year, or are a sesoned University veteran will have gained something from your Students' Union.  Much like the University the Students' Union is nothing without you, our membership.  Often over the two years I have had to spend far too much time than I would like to in meetings or cooped up away from Student life on our vibrant campus.

To those of you moving on to even better and fantastic opportunities, good luck, the time and experiences you have had here will never be forgotten.  Or to those of you like me, who are heading home for the first time in a long time not sure what's going to happen next, don't worry, I'm 24 and still haven't got a clue what I want to do next.  We are though in a unique juncture in history.  Yes the economy has taken a battering over the last few years, and yes like us there are many other graduates.  There is however a strange willing in the world to try and to do things no one has thought of yet.

A great example of this comes from within our own student body.  I'm sure Ben and Jezz won't mind me mentioning their success, as I believe it is truly an inspiration to every student.  Mango Bikes, a name you may have heard or seen, was born from the imagination of two Swansea students.  The possibility to custom design and build your own bike to get you around during you student career, took off and the guys have turned an idea into something truly unique.  The opportunity though comes from the co-currciular side of student life.  Yes we all study specific currciculums, but we also take part in sport, socities and other voluntary acitivites which leads us to meet a huge spectrum of people.  Next time you have a 'crazy' idea why not pitch it to your friends?  Perhaps it isn't so silly and could possibly change your life.  Now is the time in our lives to take a leap of faith and try something even we are unsure about.  To read more about Ben and Jezz or just marvel at the colour possiblities with their bikes click here:

http://www.mangobikes.co.uk/about-us/

For me though, I'd like to close on a thank you.  Thank you's often don't sound as sincere as people would like them too, so I will try and emphasis mine as fully as possible.

Being 'The President' is possibly the single greatest honour you can receive during your time at University.  For a fleeting 10 Seconds it seems cool, and then for the next 11 Months, 29 Days, 23 Hours, 59 Minutes and 50 Seconds it is the strangest rollercoaster ride you could be silly enough to step on to.  There is a constant feeling that you could let students down.  That might sound odd, or over the top, but many of the meetings that I have the privilege to attend will directly affect student life.  I have sincerely tried my best in every meeting that I have attended to represent the true feelings and values of our student body.  Whilst I'd like to thank our Students' Union Staff, both full and part time and all of the fantastic colleagues I have had the opportunity to work with from the University, my biggest thank you, is to you.

I don't know half as many peoples names as I'd like to, I haven't been to anywhere near as many events as I have wanted to, but I always, always see students enjoying themselves.  This makes every stressful meeting or situation I have been in worth while, and reminds me daily the point of both mine and all of the Officers roles.  Thank you forgiving me the opportunity to represent you.  It has truly been an honour and a privilege and something that I will never, ever forget.

Finally, I'd like to say welcome and good luck to your new Full Time Officer Team.  They are and will be a credit to all of you.  Keep an eye on the Union Website and Social Media over the summer, there are some very, very exciting things on the horizon.

Tom.