Jayden Bookout.

Candidate for School Rep - Law & Social Sciences

Hello! My name is Jayden Bookout, I am a second-year Criminology and Psychology student, and am running for the Law and Social Sciences school representative position. It’s incredibly important to me to make the most of my time at university, especially as an international student, and have done so by being a course rep since my foundation year, a project leader for Volunteering’s Nature Conservation, and treasurer for the Mentality and Criminology societies. Currently, I am also a UKCISA #WeAreInternational student ambassador which is a role that allows me to help influence policy and improve the overall international student experience. These opportunities have given me a multitude of interpersonal and leadership skills to use as the LSS school rep.

The main topics I would like to address in this role are: coursework feedback, learning from Covid, a school newsletter, and awareness of university resources.

Feedback has been an ongoing issue with students noted inconsistent and inexperienced markers. I would like students to be able to gain transparency and a greater understanding of what the marking process is like so it can be clear that they have been scored fairly and adequately.

We have expanded and changed the way we learn due to Covid. While many students are eager to return to in-person classes, I would like to preserve some of the online teaching methods of the past two years. This would be beneficial to international and commuting students, those with disabilities, and even short-term ailments.

I believe that students would benefit from the creation of an LSS school newspaper. This school is diverse in its departments and many may enjoy being aware of events they can attend that would usually not be directed toward them. This newsletter would be visually-appealing and easy to read to improve student engagement and streamline communication. It could also share key information for joint honours students.

Unfortunately, there are students who are not aware of or do not engage with some of the academic resources available including CeDAS and staff office hours. I would like to further promote what the university has to offer so that all students feel that they can access the support they need to perform their best in their studies. This can be done partially through a new school newsletter.

Voting begins at 9:00 on Monday 14 March and closes at 16:00 on Wednesday 16 March. Thank you for reading!