Josh Hayman [Archived]

Societies and Services Officer, what does that even mean?

Thu, 31 Jan 2013 16:38:00 Z

Election season is nearly upon us and nominations have opened for Full-Time Officer elections so I thought I’d give a bit more information about what my role actually consists of and hopefully it will encourage some of you to run!

As with each officer, I’m a trustee of the Students’ Union, responsible for strategically leading the Students’ Union. We also all represent students to the University by sitting on a variety of committees; the Societies and Services Officer sits on:

· Full-Time Officers/University Senior Management

· PSMT – FTOs and University heads of Services

· Student Affairs Committee

· University Senate

· Health and Safety Management Board

· Swansea Employability Academy Management Board

· Customer Service Excellence group

· Arrivals Committee

· Costcutter Management Board

It may seem like a lot but it’s a great platform to give student input into a lot of the decisions that the University is making!

All trustees sit on a variety of internal committees including: trustees board, Personnel committee, finance and resources committee, audit committee and remuneration committee. My role in the Students’ Union is basically split into three parts: societies, Union treasurer and services.

Societies

· Responsible for the financial monitoring of societies spending

· Ensure all societies have a democratically elected committee and a constitution

· Resolve any conflicts in the committee or society

· Encourage growth in society presence and membership

· Sort out sponsorship deals for societies

Treasurer

As director of the Students’ Union’s trading subsidiary, I’m the officer responsible for finance in the Students’ Union. All financial payments made by every part of the Students’ Union are authorised by the Societies and Services officer; this happens almost daily with payments to be made and cheques to be signed. There is a monthly payment run to be done and of course, one not to forget, payroll. As treasurer, you are also the chair of the Finance and Resources committee and Healthy and Safety Committee in the Union.

Services

The third part of the role is all to do with giving a student voice on the services the Students’ Union runs; these are:

· JC’s

· Divas

· Sin City

· Advice and Support Centre

· Nursery

· Events

· Travel Shop

· Costcutter

· Spar

· The Wonky Sheep

· Fulton Outfitters

It’s important to have a good relationship with each department’s manager and to relay information from students to them about the service they are providing and the keep them value for money.

All in all it is a highly varied role with each day being completely different to the last and such a rewarding experience to give something back to the University and to its students. If you want to know any more information, don’t hesitate to email me (societiesandservices@swansea-union.co.uk) or pop in and see me!

So, why should I join a sports club?

Fri, 18 Jan 2013 17:00:00 Z

Sports clubs are a great way for you to meet like-minded people, become part of a team and also get fit! We have over 40 different clubs here in Swansea offering you activities ranging from football and rugby to scuba diving and ultimate Frisbee.

We’ve had some international sports stars come through our ranks here in Swansea, Welsh rugby heroes Alun Wyn Jones and Rob Howley, along with many Olympians and Paralympians. It’s not just a career in sport that benefits from joining a club however; sports clubs give you a lot of new skills on top of your University degree to make things easier when you start applying for jobs.

In most sports, team work jumps out as an obvious key skill but also communication, commitment, motivation and interpersonal skills can all be a key part of being a successful sports player. These are some of the things employers are looking for on CVs and in interviews that you may not necessarily pick up with your degree.

We want to give you as many opportunities to gain these skills as possible and joining a sports club is one of the most fun! Check out the Give it a Go calendar to see which sports you can try out this week or visit www.swansea-union.co.uk/activties to get more information on any of our clubs!

Part Time Jobs Fayre, Whats it all about?

Tue, 02 Oct 2012 08:06:00 +0100

The Part Time Job Fayre was one of my main manifesto commitments and I’m proud to be delivering this tomorrow with the help of Students’ Union and Swansea University staff. The fayre is your opportunity to find employers in Swansea that are looking for students to work for them; in attendance are businesses such as the Liberty Stadium, Sainsbury’s, Amazon and Debenhams, as well as Students’ Union and University employers. So whether you’ve always fancied yourself working behind the bar or want to help international students improve their English, the job fayre is the place to be.

Its not just all about part-time jobs though; we also have a schedule of workshops and talks from each College’s Employability Champions focusing on what they are doing for you this year. The workshops are as follows:

10:30am – 11:30am	CV Workshop
11:30am – 12:30pm	Applications and Personal Specifications
12:30pm – 2:30pm	Trading on eBay
:30pm – 3:30pm	Trading Whilst Studying
3:30pm – 4:30pm	The Dos and Don’ts of Trading

And College Employability Champions are talking from:

10:45 a.m. – 11:15 a.m.	College of Medicine Dr. George Johnson
11:20 a.m. – 11:50 a.m.	College of Arts and Humanities Professor Kevin Williams
11:55 a.m. – 12:25 p.m.	College of Human and Health Sciences Megan Rosser
1:30 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.	College of Science Dr. Geoff Proffitt
2:05 p.m. – 2:35 p.m.	College of Engineering Dr. James Holness
2:40 p.m. – 3:10 p.m.	College of Business, Economics and Law Dr. John Howden-Evans

There will also be oppotunties to get involved as a Students’ Union Part-Time Officer, Academic and Subject Reps and being a Student Ambassador for the University. Its an opportunity for you to get yourself a bit of extra cash or improve your skills and employability.

The fayre is running from 10:30am – 4pm on Tuesday 2^nd October in the marquee in front of Fulton House, make sure you come down and check it out!

My First Month in Office..

Wed, 15 Aug 2012 15:14:00 +0100

It’s been just over a month now since I started in office and it’s been one of the most enjoyable yet challenging months of my life. It’s quite a change going from being 1 of 15,000 to becoming 1 for 15,000, now representing students to the University and beyond.

It’s been a very busy month, my activities ranging from sitting on interview panels with the University and the Union to helping shape the direction of Swansea Employability Academy to helping choose new coffee for JC’s. It’s one of the best things about being an officer, the sheer diversity of work that we do on a day to day basis.

There’s been a lot of focus on my manifesto commitments, ensuring that what was promised can be delivered. I’m pleased to say that almost all of my manifesto will be completed by the time our students return, allowing me to concentrate on doing even more to improve the University experience for our students.

Divas is well on its way to being revamped; its having a whole new sound system, vastly improved standard lighting, new furniture, new flooring and a lick of paint. It’s almost unrecognisable from how it was left after the last Tooters of the term and I’m very excited to be showing it off to you all in September. It’s down to the hard work of both our staff and students that we’ve managed to get it ready for the beginning of the year.

Also ready for Freshers’ fortnight is the part-time jobs fayre, we’ve been working hard on getting as many employers and workshops there as possible to help you find employment and gain new skills whilst at University. Employers recognise the keys skills that you can learn from volunteering in the Students’ Union in a society or sports club, as a part-time officer or a college or subject rep. we’ve worked closely with the University to ensure co-operation with the careers department and the Swansea Employability Academy, who will both be helping out on the day.

Our officers and staff have been busy improving the Union and its products this summer, our services are expanding to include food at JC’s, a brand new supermarket on the ground floor of Fulton House and a Merchandise store.

The scene is set for a great year ahead; all we need now are our students back!