India Marriott
Sharlene Kirubi is running in the 2022 SU elections for the role of International Students’ Officer. Impact’s India Marriott caught up with her to ask a few questions about her campaign.
Q1. What do you think makes you a good fit for this role?
The most obvious thing is that I was the International Students’ Officer this year, so I think I have the skills and training necessary for me to continue that for the next year. However, in terms of my other skills, I can communicate well with other people, I can build relationships with people, I am a hard working person and I am very organised.
Taking a demanding degree isn’t easy whilst being an SU officer but I know how to deal with that, and I am very ready to do it again next year.
“Whilst I think we have achieved so much this year, I think there is still so much to be done”
Q2. Why did you run for the role of International Students’ Officer?
I ran for the role because, whilst I think we have achieved so much this year, I think there is still so much to be done and I just want to consolidate everything that began this year, especially with this being the first year ‘post COVID’.
Q3. Your manifesto discussed what you have done so far as the International Students’ Officer, are there any initiatives or events that you planned within your role that you’re particularly proud of?
I’d say the International Student Mental Health Research and Fund that I was involved with, as it was the first of its kind and we worked with Leeds and SOAS to make it happen. As a result we now have an International Student Welcome Kit so that once you get here there’s all of the information on one site, such as where to register for your GP.
Q4. Are there any initiatives that you maybe began last year, or you have been working on, that you want to carry on if you were to carry on within the role, or will it be entirely new plans?
My aim is for it to be a combination of carrying on pre-existing initiatives whilst working on new stuff. In the upcoming weeks, we will be hosting an International Student Mental Health Day, which is something I’d like to make annual.
Another thing that I want to do is a careers day specifically for international students, as there are a lot of extra things that international students have to do when going into a career, such as thinking about visas and how long they may plan to stay here, which isn’t always widely discussed. In terms of newer plans, I would love to build stronger relationships with the University itself. I believe in some ways it can feel quite disconnected from International Students and I really want to bridge that gap.
“I love Indian cuisine. We have a lot of Indian influence in Kenya”
Q5. What’s your favourite International Cuisine?
I’m from Kenya, so obviously Kenyan. But other than that, I love Indian cuisine. We have a lot of Indian influence in Kenya, and I have a lot of Indian friends, and they love cooking for me!
Q6. Hallward or George Green?
I have only ever been to George Green for a tutorial and I didn’t enjoy it much. It feels very open like everyone is watching you, whereas in Hallward it’s very closed off and once you’re in your little corner you can’t really tell how many people are in there, so I have to go with Hallward.
Voting for the 2022 SU elections closes at 1pm on Friday 25th March.
You can read Sharleen’s manifesto and vote in the elections here.
India Marriott
Featured image courtesy of Chiara Crompton. Permission to use granted to Impact. No changes were made to this image.
In-article image courtesy of Max Harries. Permission to use granted to Impact. No changes were made to this image.
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