Whilst I was a student at Bucks, I was studying Performing Arts and was blown away by the amount of opportunities available at Fresher’s Fair. As a fresher I was pretty confident and like getting involved with the club nights and more social events that the Students’ Union put on. Fresher’s fair is one of my favourite events as it gives you a chance to really take in what the Students’ Union has to offer and what you can get involved in. There were loads of societies and sports clubs as well as the chance to meet all the different departments of the Students’ Union team, like volunteering and representation.
Everyone says joining a club or society is a great way to make friends, but it’s so true. I joined Musical Theatre Society and it gave the chance to make new friends outside of my course, who had similar interests to me but in an informal way without course icebreakers and awkward introductions. My first real encounter with the Students’ Union though is when I signed up to be a course rep in my first year. It gave me the chance to start thinking how I could improve the university experience for my course mates and you get the chance to voice concerns not only to your lecturers, but to the higher members of the institution. Some of the bigger meetings can be daunting but I got so much from being able to share feedback and have my voice heard by the senior members of the University.
Once I’d taken on one student leadership role, there was no stopping me. In my second year I became a committee member for Musical Theatre as the chair and carried on that role for the next two years. I learnt so much from being a student leader as a committee member that in my third year I wanted to push myself further. I became the Movember ambassador and had so much support from the Students’ Union whilst we organised fundraising events. It also gave me a taste of organising and managing a month long campaign, with lots of students getting involved to help raise awareness of men’s mental and physical health and encourage men to speak up.
Being so involved in the activities aspect of the Students’ Union and going from strength to strength in my leadership roles meant that, not only was I gaining all these important skills but I was learning so much about myself and what I was good at. There was one last student leadership role for me to add to my list and after three years of thoroughly enjoying my time at Bucks, it felt only right to run for a Sabbatical Officer role and thanks to the students, I was voted in!
- Honor Fletcher, Studens' Union President 2021- 22