Class Representative Council

Class Reps are vital to ensuring that our Union represents the voices of all the students in the South East Technological University. Being a Class Rep is a fantastic opportunity for lots of different reasons!

Class Rep Recruitment

Class Reps are elected at the start of every Academic Year. Ideally, every class in the University should have a rep. If a class has over 30 students, they are entitled to have 2 elected Class Reps. Class Rep elections are self-regulated from year 2 onwards, but if your class needs help with electing a representative, get in touch with your Education Officer, who will be able to facilitate an election.

Once a Class Rep is elected, it’s important that they get in contact with the Education Officer to ensure that they are registered, so that they will get any communications sent out by the Students’ Union during the year, including when meetings are held, and other important information sent out by the Students’ Union that should be brought back to their classes. Class Reps will also be invited to attend Class Rep Training Day, whether new or returning, to equip them with the skills that they need to be the best rep they can be!

Benefits of being a Class Rep Include:

Holding your Union to Account – Class Representative Council is the main decision-making body of the Students’ Union. By attending Class Rep Councils, you’re able to ask questions of part-time and full-time officers, as well as holding them to account through Officer Reports.

Shaping Union Policy – Class Reps vote on all policy mandates that are brought to Council. If a major decision needs to be made, it will be your job to vote on whether or not the policy should go through. This includes a wide variety of issues – everything from academics, to National Issues, to student welfare.

Gaining Skills 
Leadership: Your classmates may often look to you for leadership on issues they face, such as timetabling, examinations issues, issues with course content, and so on.
Negotiation: You may be required to negotiate with your department head, course leader, or module leader on matters such as deadlines or re-arranging classes.
Advocacy: You will be speaking on behalf of your classmates at different levels – for example, Class Rep Council and course boards.
Organisation:

Class outings, trips away, nights out, parties – as a rep, you’ll have the opportunity to organize bonding events between your classmates to ensure a great experience at college (with the help of the SU, of course!)

Training

There will be a number of training opportunities made available during the year to Class Reps, whether in the Union or outside of the Union. These can range from everything from writing formal correspondence and public speaking to SafeTalk Training.
Socializing and Making Friends – being a Class Rep is a great way to meet new people, especially outside of your school and course! As well as this, to recognize and award the hard work of Class Reps, the SU host different events during the year so that Reps can meet and bond outside of Council!

If you have any questions or queries, don’t be afraid to get in contact via our website, or by contacting the Education Officers at sueducation.cw@setu.ie or setueducation.wd@setu.ie

Class Representative Council

Class Representative Council is one of the main decision-making bodies for the SETU Students’ Union. In order to ensure a wide range of representation, we have three Class Representative Councils:
Waterford Class Representative Council: Looks after all Class Reps from the Cork Road, College Street, Granary, Carriganore and Kildalton Campuses.
Carlow Class Representative Council: Looks after all Class Reps from the Carlow Campus.
Wexford and Wicklow Class Representative Council: Looks after all Class Reps from the Wexford and Wicklow Campuses.
Many issues are discussed and voted upon at the Class Representative Council – everything from national issues, to academic and welfare policies. It’s vital that as many Class Reps attend Council as possible, so that the Student Union can work as effectively as possible!

Class Representative Councils are held a minimum of 4 to a maximum of 6 times a year. If you have any questions about the Class Representative Council, don’t be afraid to get in touch via our website, or contact the Education Officers sueducation.cw@setu.ie or setueducation.wd@setu.ie.