Find out more about our current Sabbaticals, and how they would describe their role and achievements during this academic year...
David Goldsmith, President
What’s the favourite thing about your job?
The opportunity it gives you to make a substantive positive impact on the student experience at Imperial.
List three qualities you think are essential to be able do this job.
1: Ability to get on well with people and work well as a team (The most important quality in my opinion)
2: Great organisation skills
3: New ideas
What’s been your proudest achievement as a Sabb so far?
A House of Lords inquiry into the immigration bill concerning international science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) students, launched as a result of our lobbying.
What do you wish you knew before starting that you know now?
I spent a long time speaking with my predecessor to find out what the job would be like – I would advise others wanting to stand to get in touch with their potential predecessors and do the same!
Finally, describe being a Sabbatical at Imperial College Union in three words.
Intense, fast-paced, and exciting.
Yas Edwards, Deputy President (Clubs & Societies)
What’s the favourite thing about your job?
The role is very varied and I get to work with a huge range of different people and organisations. I enjoy helping to find opportunities for students to start, develop or grow their ideas about clubs and activities and it’s really rewarding to work with talented and passionate student volunteers.
List three qualities you think are essential to be able do this job.
1: Communication
2: Understanding
3: Flexibility
What’s been your proudest achievement as a Sabb so far?
This year we worked with students involved in annual budgeting to rewrite the policy and procedures. This is really important as we allocate over £300,000 to Clubs, Societies & Projects and we want this to make student activities and opportunities the best they can be, allowing them to develop and grow.
What do you wish you knew before starting that you know now?
All the different roles included in being Deputy President (Clubs & Societies). As a Student Trustee, I have to think differently to how I would when representing students or supporting student groups. There are occasionally difficult decisions to make regarding student activities which would be different depending on which role I am acting in.
Finally, describe being a Sabbatical at Imperial College Union in three words.
Challenging, colourful and diverse.
Kieron Creagh, Deputy President (Finance & Services)
What’s the favourite thing about your job?
I enjoying talking to student passionate about their group and making sure they are able to organise and run events as easily as possible. Communicating with members of College staff is also incredibly interesting and the ability to make change in both how we run our organisation (the Union) and the College is really exciting.
List three qualities you think are essential to be able do this job.
Not just for this role but for every Sabbatical position you need to:
1: Have a strong decision making ability
2: Be open minded
3: Have patience.
What’s been your proudest achievement as a Sabb so far?
Standing up to College in regards to excessive charges for our student groups for events; however I'm far prouder of what I've achieved whilst working with my colleagues, redesigning the annual budgeting process.
What do you wish you knew before starting that you know now?
I had no idea just how involved the Sabbatical Officers were with the College, we sit on nearly every single committee. More importantly, our opinion and ideas are listened to and the Union plays a significant role in the decision processes at every level!
Finally, describe being a Sabbatical at Imperial College Union in three words.
Intense, (sometimes) frustrating, but rewarding.
Marissa Lewis, Deputy President (Welfare)
What’s the favourite thing about your job?
Feeling like I’m able to effect change in my role and developing skills I never really had the chance to explore as a medical student.
List three qualities you think are essential to be able do this job.
1: Flexibility
2: Determination
3: Passion for what you want to achieve
What’s been your proudest achievement as a Sabb so far?
Helping to secure an inquiry into the Immigration Bill in the House of Lords.
What do you wish you knew before starting that you know now?
That there’s a limited amount of things you can realistically achieve in one year – set your priorities early!
Finally, describe being a Sabbatical at Imperial College Union in three words.
Challenging, different and fun.
Nat Kempston, Deputy President (Education)
What’s the favourite thing about your job?
Definitely working with all my Reps. I call them “my” Reps and I get quite protective over them. There are over 520 Reps and I work closely with the AAOs and Dep Reps. It’s nice having such a big team all working together to get the best academic experience for students. Education and Representation Board (ERB) that I chair is a great discussion forum as well.
List three qualities you think are essential to be able do this job.
1: Confidence - There will be a lot of meetings with senior College staff where you will be the only student representative. You have to feel confident to speak up and represent all students at the College.
2: Good problem solving skills - Usually when you have a problem you can ask someone for help and advice, however with this job that person is you! Year Reps will pass problems to Dep Reps, who can pass them to Academic Affairs Officers who pass them to me. The buck stops with the DPE and you will be the person everyone goes to to sort out their academic problems.
3: Passion - You need to care about your job! Those many hours finishing off the NSS Response will only be worth it for those who truly care about improving the student experience here at Imperial.
What’s been your proudest achievement as a Sabb so far?
My proudest achievement is delivering the Union's first ever Representation Conference, attended by student reps and College staff.
What do you wish you knew before starting that you know now?
This is more than a job - it ends up taking over your life!
Finally, describe being a Sabbatical at Imperial College Union in three words.
Hectic, fun and rewarding.
