Ashay Divekar

Hello! My name's Ashay and I'm a 4th year student running to be your academic officer for the BSc year.

I'm currently the academic representative for Translational Respiratory Medicine, and over the past year I've thoroughly enjoyed getting to know my cohort, listening to their feedback, and reporting back to the course leads and faculty during SSLGs.

The BSc year differs greatly from all the other years in medical school. It offers a chance to explore research in depth, however it also comes with challenges of its own which I aim to address:

• Improve course rep support: Building on the excellent support I received as a rep this year, I will strive to ensure any issues are tackled early on and that all reps fully understand their roles and responsibilities.
• Standardise academic rep elections: The way in which the courses select their reps varies greatly, with some holding elections while others choose theirs on a first-come basis. I will push to standardise this process to ensure all reps are voted in democratically meaning they will speak for the majority of their cohort.
• Integrate external students: For many externals, coming to a new university is a daunting experience, so making sure they feel welcomed is a top priority. While there is a well run 'BSc Refreshers' first week, more could be done to integrate externals during the rest of the year. I will aim to organise more inter-course socials.

Thank you for reading my manifesto! I'd really appreciate your vote.