By Beds SU
Tuesday, 18 October 2022
What is an SU Course Rep?
SU Course Reps are representatives of their cohort. They are the friendly faces in the classroom that their peers can speak to about the good, bad and in-betweens of their academic experience.
There should be at least one Rep per course per year to ensure that all students are properly represented. This year, we expect just over 500 Course Reps across the University!
Role Expectations
Being an SU Course Rep is a voluntary role. We understand that your priority is to be a student and do well in your studies. However, the Rep role is one that you undertake just by coming to class and being available for others to talk to you.
We may also ask you to:
- Attend meetings. These could be SU-led like Student Voice Forums, or University-led, like course meetings.
- Collect feedback on specific topics.
- Submit written feedback. Usually if you can’t attend a meeting.
- Talk to the SU and your course staff, about any feedback you receive from your peers.
- Talk to your peers! You should keep them up to date on the progress of their feedback.
We only ask for 6 hours a term from our Course Reps, that’s not even an hour a week!
Benefits of being a Rep
As an SU Course Rep, you will gain a variety of different skills and experiences, all of which will look fantastic on your CV! For example:
- Negotiating skills.
- Addressing different audiences.
- Presentation skills.
- Meeting experience.
You will also:
- Meet people from outside your course.
- Attend SU Training to help prepare you for the role. There are freebies and certificates involved in this!
- Be in the chance of winning our ‘Rep of the Month’ and ‘Rep of the Year’ at our annual SU Awards.
- Have a real impact on your own and your peers’ University experience.
And we will be there to support you every step of the way! You can always reach out to the SU via help@bedssu.co.uk, or the red button, in the right hand corner of the website.
#BedsSUWins
The SU represents and supports students in four main areas:
1. On your course
2. In your student life
3. When you need support
4. To create positive change – this is where we need you!
Below are just a few examples of positive change that we created thanks to the work of our Reps:
- In the School of Life Sciences, there was not enough library books, and a lot of them were out of date. We were granted an additional £3000 to buy new books!
- Did you know that the University of Bedfordshire has 9 campuses? At many of these, facilities are scarce, some might only have a water fountain. Working with our Reps, staff, and external providers, we have put in new vending machines, microwaves and water fountains at LSC London Bridge and Birmingham!
- The SU is also open to feedback. There used to be 5 different email addresses you would have to know to get in touch with the SU. We now only have 1 – help@bedssu.co.uk, which you can use to get in touch with anyone at Beds SU!
Interested in Becoming an SU Course Rep?
Fantastic! We hope that you are as excited as we are for the year ahead! You can register your interest in the role by speaking to your course staff. Alternatively, you can email help@bedssu.co.uk.