Union Elections

The role of the Vice President Education is very broad and includes everything relating to academia;

• building positive relationships and partnerships between University staff and students,
• enhancing  student engagement to develop and improve quality in education,
• managing issues around course delivery, timetabling and exams,
• managing Union Council and General Meetings.

The Vice President Education meets with students on a daily basis to assist them with their educational issues. Some projects include national education campaigns and Class Rep recruitment, training and organisation. The Vice President Education is a member of many University boards including Academic Council, the Appeals Committee and the Student Disciplinary Committee.

The Vice President Welfare delivers an educational and awareness programme throughout the year to help students to manage personal issues including sexual health, mental health, accommodation, finance, safety, bullying and addictions. The programme features campaigns such as S.H.A.G. (Sexual Health Awareness & Guidance) Week, Positive Mind and Body Week, Exam DeStress Campaigns, Equality Campaigns and Safety Week. These campaigns address different issues which may affect students in an attention-grabbing, fun and effective way.  Along with this, the Vice President Welfare sits on many University committees which include the Student Assistance Fund, Athena Swan and the Safety Committee.

The Communication Officer aids in the development of the Union’s information and communication policy. This Officer must be familiar with all the communication policies and all the communication media available to the union and ensure they are used to their full potential. The Communications Officer keeps the membership of the Union informed through the provision of a regular Union publication in conjunction with the Sabbatical Officers and Union Staff.

The Entertainments Officer is responsible for the provision of entertainments and other forms of social and cultural activity for the members of the Union in conjunction with the Sabbatical Officers and Union Staff.

The Projects Officer’s role is to support the Sabbatical Officers in the areas of campaigning, Union development and projects.

• Focused/Dedicated: The Officers’ roles are extremely broad and they need to set out a strategy for the year with realistic and achievable goals. Project management skills are vital. The summer is a great time to learn what they need to know as well as prepare for the year ahead.
• Commitment: It is essential that Officers are committed and understand what is involved with the role.  Sabbatical roles are full time and paid while non-sabbatical roles undertaken in tandem with studies and are voluntary in nature.  Consideration must be given to how much time can be allocated to the role and potential candidates should assess other commitments such as course requirements and part time jobs before opting to run for election.
• Responsible: The Officers of the Union must oversee many activities so having a responsible attitude is vital. They must keep themselves informed of issues, while being responsible for the students’ views is imperative. They will also need to sit on boards that deal with sensitive issues
• Innovative/Creative: New ideas for events, campaigns and promotion will truly benefit the Union as a whole.
• Diplomatic: Good interpersonal skills are necessary to accomplish tasks and Officers need to be able to manage relationships with staff, students, management and others in a tactful way.  Often developing good relationships and gaining mutual respect is the key to affecting change and improvement.
• Assertive/Influential: The Officers must often stand their ground when it comes to all sorts of initiatives, be it stand firm against University management, press or political figures. They will also need to become comfortable speaking in public and be able to influence the opinion of others.
• Self-Aware: Officers should understand their strengths and weaknesses and by doing so create an opportunity to grow as individuals and as effective Union leaders. It is important to put the needs of the students and the Union as a whole ahead of the needs of the individual Officer.
• Realistic: The Officers must be able to assess the feasibility of projects, ideas or campaigns in terms of legal, financial and resource limitations. When dealing with students’ needs, an unbiased approach has to be brought to every specific case. Officers must check all the facts and hear everyone out before passing judgment. This will avoid leaping to conclusions based on incomplete evidence. Bringing every case to a fight will weaken credibility when a genuine case emerges.
• Caring/Approachable: Officers should be approachable, friendly, non-judgmental and welcoming to students. They also need to be able to keep their work with students confidential within reason. They must possess the ability to listen sensitively to people’s problems and be able to deal with them in a sympathetic, mature and non-judgmental way.

• Develop your management, communication, organisational, negotiation and leadership skills.
• Differentiate yourself from others on the jobs market
• Expand your work experience profile
• Join an energised team

For Sabbatical Officers including the President, Vice President Welfare and Vice President Education, it is a full time paid position, commencing on the 1st June and ending 31st May. Sabbatical Officers work 39 hours per week, usually Monday to Friday but flexibility is necessary as many activities take place in the evening and occasionally at weekends.  Familiarity with the Union’s Constitution is essential and Schedule C refers to the rights and obligations of full time Officers as employees.

For Non-Sabbatical Officers, including the Projects Officer, Entertainments Officer and Communications Officer, the jobs are voluntary and hours of work will be based around the class time/free time of the non-sabbatical Officers. It is advisable to speak to the current Officers to find out more and they can be contacted through the Students’ Union.

The election process takes place entirely online and details will be made available to all Union members via email (mycit.ie accounts). Should you require information relating to the election process and rules, please contact Vicky O’Sullivan by emailing vicky.osullivan@mtu.ie

You could be the next member of the MTU CORK SU Executive!