This blog post is part of a series of monthly posts detailing the activities of the DR President’s Team (President: Leah Henrickson; Vice-President: Hugh Tawell). Note: This post refers to PhD/EngD Students as Doctoral Researchers (DR) and Postgraduate Researchers (PGRs). This is because the University uses the former language, and the Union uses the latter.

Folks, this blog post marks the end of an era. We’re stepping down from our roles as the 2018-2019 President and Vice President, and handing these roles over to Tom Baker and Rieman Rudra on 30th September for the next academic year. September was therefore a month of winding down. We also tried to ensure that Tom and Rieman’s transition into their roles is as smooth as possible. Here’s our September in review:

Meeting with Education EO

On 11th September, Leah met with LSU Education Executive Officer, Ana, to offer feedback on Ana’s education priorities for this academic year. Ana has a lot of great plans, and has shown some real commitment to improving Loughborough’s postgraduate experience.

Research Committee Meeting

On 17th September, Leah represented doctoral researchers at the Research Committee meeting. Tom, the 2019-2020 DR President, also attended to get a feel for his new role. In these meetings, the Associate Deans (Research) (ADRs) and other staff from research support services from across the University opportunities discuss research-related issues. The PRES results are currently being reviewed by each School, and students will start seeing their feedback being addressed soon.

PGR Lead Rep Meeting

On 18th September, we met with PGR Reps from across the University to have our final Rep meeting of the year. During this meeting, we discussed what we accomplished – and what we didn’t manage to accomplish – this past year. We also looked forward, considering issues that need continued attention. We also worked with the LSU to film a short video about what being a Rep is all about. This video should be released within the next few weeks.

_____

With that, we’d like to thank everyone who has supported us in our roles as President and Vice President this year. It has been an absolute pleasure working collaborating to make meaningful change for DRs from both of Loughborough’s campuses. Peace out, y’all.

To keep up-to-date with DR activity, join the ‘Doctoral Researchers of Loughborough University’ Facebook group and follow the DR President’s Team on Twitter. If you’re a London student, follow the ‘Loughborough Students’ Union London’ Facebook page. Leah and Hugh.