AUSA Politics & International Relations: March 2014

Monday 24 March 2014

Committee Positions

The President

Will have final responsibility for all matters pertaining to the running of the society.
Will chair meetings of the committee.
Will introduce or delegate committee members to introduce guest speakers
Will assist and support all other members of the committee in performing their duties.
Will hold a membership list in addition to the copy held by the secretary.
Will hold a copy of the constitution and associated documents.
Will have access to the society email account and have the responsibility for its operation, upkeep and for granting access to committee members.
Will be politically neutral and refrain from publicly supporting one political party.
In charge of drafting society’s year planner.
A previous committee member (if no committee member stands, position will be open to entire membership)
Will send Committee agenda to members at least 48 hours before a meeting
(see I.2 for more information)

The Vice-President:

Will assist the president thus will be in charge when President is absent.
Will chair at least 2 committee meetings (1 each semester and as agreed on with president)
Will be in charge of preparation of fresher’s stall and the Introduction evening.
Will support the committee as a whole and represent the President when the president is absent by chairing committee meetings and attending required events.
In charge of buying gift for guest speakers.
Will be the intermediate between the Society and the other AUSA recognised Political Societies.
Will help organise an inter-political societies event once a semester.

The Secretary

Will perform all secretarial duties, including minute taking, attendance recording and collection.
Will maintain a list of society members and other data, in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998.
Will check the society’s email daily and make sure members receive their weekly communication.
Will make sure committee members receive previous committee minutes within a week after a meeting.

The Social Convener

Will be responsible for the organisation of the society’s social calendar.
Will oversee the organisation of the Society’s Christmas event and end of year Ball.
Will assist VP with organising the Introduction

The PR, Social Media and blog officer.

Will be responsible for all matters dealing with publicising events.
Will maintain the Blog, Facebook and all social media.
Will be responsible for holding the society print card and hence, the printing of media.
Will be responsible for photographing events.
Making sure events are well publicised
Along with the VP will be the main person in charge of freshers’ stall.
Responsible for taking care of the blog, posting about events, photos and all things politics related - will remain neutral in posts.

The Treasurer

Will be responsible for all matters dealing with the society’s finances.
Will ensure that the finances will adhere to AUSA rules and regulations.
Will provide committee with a monthly financial statement of the society’s finances
Will not be a 4th year student.
Will be in charge of all financial transactions of the society.

Committee Members (3 places)

Will provide support to other committee members in tasks which are important to the society.
Will contribute fully to the organisation and decision making of the society during committee meetings.
Will hold committee members with portfolio in to accounts to make sure they are performing their role.

First year representative.

Will provide support to other committee members in tasks which are important to the society.
Will contribute fully to the organisation and decision making of the society during committee meetings.
Will hold committee members with portfolio in to account to make sure they are performing their role.
Will be responsible for organising one event throughout the academic year.

Why you should join the PIR committee...

I don’t really do blogging, or talking about my feelings and the likes so as a result this post is going to end up being super gushy and probably OTT, but I don’t really care.

I joined the PIR society in September 2012 in the position of joint Social Convenor with my pal and partner in crime Josh – if I’m honest we decided to run as a laugh. We kept saying things such as ‘it’s so cliquey’, ‘they never have social events’ and in the end someone told us to stop moaning and do something about it. At the AGM (which also happened to be the ball, for those of you who are wondering what happened when alcohol and politics were so blatantly mixed, well lets just say it didn’t end well) Josh and I first had to defend why we wanted to do the job as a pair, which took rather a lot of convincing on our ability to work together, and we were duly voted in.

The regulars, and current PIR Committee members didn’t know what to think of us, and well especially me – I’m loud, and talk a good game, and I don’t think they felt that I could deliver. But nevertheless, they welcomed me with open arms and we began to form a team. We had each others backs, we went big, we did ambitious – it paid off – The US Election All-Nighter, The Iranian Presidential Candidate, The ex-UN Under Secretary General, The Skyball – are but a few of our amazing events that were unprecedented successes. As a committee member I learned so many skills that I did not, and would not, get from my degree – event planning, management, how to deal with university bureaucracy, and how to manage a budget, right down to the small things such as talking to new people and making our new members feel welcome. The best moment of my first year was our amazing trip to the Hague and Amsterdam, the whole committee went and we had a blast with all our members – it probably goes down as one of the best weekends I have ever had in my life (for those of you who were there: Valentine’s Day. The Hague. Enough said.) and it was then that I realised that my fellow committee were not just my colleagues, but they were my friends – and some of the best friends I could have, so, Monique, Veronika, Laura, Bianca, Eva, Jackson, Lili, Mallory, Josh and AShaw – thanks for being awesome. The night we won Society of the Year, for the first time, will always be a treasured memory.

Moving onto year 2013-2014, I decided I would stay and do my Masters at Aberdeen so ran for the position of PR & Social Media, and again, I was duly elected with only one R.O.N (thanks Monique – you’re so funny) and off I went again. I got off to a bit of rocky start this year, not because of the new committee (you guys are also awesome) but I had a few personal things to deal with, so I took a bit of a backseat after Fresher’s Week for the first semester, but came back with a bang just before Christmas. This year has been different, my job is to publicize events, not organize them so it’s a bit different, but with different has come a different skill-set. I can now make a poster for any event in around 10 minutes, I am so good at facebook and twitter is now one of my BFF’s – but again, skills I would not have gained just with my degree alone! Unfortunately, I haven’t made it on any of the trips this year (yey for being grown up) but the Society went to Vienna and Prague , and New York City and Washington D.C – amazing! We also had some pretty badass events, including our Legacy of Nelson Mandela (which won Best Event at the King’s Awards), many a social (yey Amanda), a talk on the Ukraine and Venezuela and a debate around Scotland and the EU. This is where I did something I have never done in my life, was sit on a debate panel – it pushed me way out of my comfort zone but I am so glad that Laura asked (forced) me to do it, as I had never spoken in front of so many people before. We have a few other big events coming up this year, such as the Aberdeen University Mock Independence Referendum and the Black Tie and Diamonds May Ball (always a hoot) – and through planning and participating in all these events with my fellow committee babes, they turned again from colleagues to friends. Veronika, Laura, Jackson, Bianca, Ralu, Dave, Alex, Amanda, Ysabelle, John – you guys are the best. Winning Society of the Year (AGAIN) was the bomb dot com, and I am so glad I got to do it with y’all.

As per the above warning, this sounds like a love in to PIR – but it’s not. There have been downs too, arguments (the loud kind), disagreements (the bitter kind) and disappointments – BUT that is all part of working in a group for a year. You are never going to always get your own way, and learning to compromise and work together is one of the best life lessons PIR can give you. Also learning to give constructive criticism, rather than completely attack your friends idea is a skill that everyone could do with. I’m not even lying, or exaggerating when I say the PIR is the best thing that ever happened to me at Uni – it is the truth. I’m almost welling up here with the realization that I will never be in the committee again – but I have every faith in those who take up the challenge, so to all of you reading this wondering if you should, or should not, run for a position, my advice is: Do it, you have nothing to lose and absolutely everything to gain. The fun, the friendships, the accomplishments… oh and you also have the pretty big task of taking home Society of the Year 2014-2015 – let’s make it a hat-trick – Are you up for the challenge?

PIR Love,

Jen x

A little update

The Politics and International Relations Society is delighted to announce that we won Society of the Year at the King's Award Ball. This is the second year running for us, and we couldn't be happier. We also won Best Event for The Legacy of Nelson Mandela, joint with the African and Caribbean Society - thanks guys!

We would like to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you for supporting PIR throughout the years, whether through turning up to events, coming on our trips or just by buying a (probably disgusting) cake at one of our bake sales. A massive thank you has to go to the wonderful Emma Carlen and Laura Chalmers over at AUSA who put in the extra hours (and lots of stress) to help us out every time we needed a last minute room booking or bank transfer. Lastly, a thank you to the Politics and International Relations Department, in fact, the whole School of Social Science, for providing the speakers and encouraging us to put on some fantastic events.

This win did not happen overnight, and we would particularly like to thank the previous committee members who are no longer with us, in particular the ex-Presidents Bright Amponsah and Monique Bouffe, everyone else, you know who you are! This has been four years in the making, and we can't wait to see what the future holds for the Society.

A special shout out to the 2013-2014 Committee - WE DID IT!

PIR Love,
Jen x

PR & Social Media