A very warm welcome to the December/ January edition of the Teesside University Students' Union (TUSU) newsletter. Every month during the academic year, we get in touch with all the latest news and events from your TUSU unless you ask us to stop by unsubscribing. In this edition, we, like many of you, we imagine, are looking forward to the festive break and everyone hopefully getting some well-deserved time to relax and have fun. There are full details of our opening hours and Officer/ service availability over the holiday period in the next article or through tees-su.org.uk/fesopenhours.If you are going to be here on campus or close by for whatever reason, we hope you still have a great time. We have top tips for everyone who will be in Middlesbrough or close by on how to make the most of the holidays without spending a fortune.
We also have the latest on our new campaigns around drink spiking awareness, participation in sport and hidden disability awareness. In addition, it is the perfect time to look back on a challenging but highly successful 2021 for TUSU, and we celebrate the incredible team effort from Officers, Student Reps, and our career/ student staff with Our Impact 2021. It celebrates the online and face to face support we provided to thousands of students, the tireless work we did to keep all our venues safe for everyone and the successful physical events we delivered between lockdowns and restrictions through the year.
It is not all about the holidays either! We are already looking forward to the New Year with early details of our plans to welcome you back from Mon, 24th January to Fri, 28th January with day and evening events as part of Refresh 2022, and if you fancy taking our jobs next summer, why not start planning your elections campaign now?
We wish everyone a safe, happy, and enjoyable break, whether you celebrate Christmas or not and a prosperous New Year, which, as always, we hope will have TUSU right at the heart of your student life : - ).
Rebecca, Harriet, and Madhu – Student Officers 2021/22
Teesside University Students' Union (TUSU) reverts to holiday opening hours from Fri, 17th December at 5 pm until and including Monday, 3rd January 2022.
We know that, because of many different circumstances, an increasing number of Teesside Uni students spend some or all of their festive break here on campus or close by. Maybe you will not be returning to your family home because of where it is located or other reasons? Or perhaps you are from Teesside and will be with family on Christmas Day but still want ideas for the rest of the holidays? Whatever your situation, we have a guide on how to get the best from your break without spending a fortune.
We are a students' union that is committed to "real world" campaigns that address the key issues facing Teesside Uni students and truly make a difference. We focus on housing, safety, physical and mental health, and course/ campus-related issues, to name a few.
Alongside the ongoing campaigns, which you can read more about through tees-su.org.uk/officers, we have recognised the growing current concern over a high number of incidents of drink spiking in venues up and down the country. This, we are very sad to say, has included far too many in occurring here in Teesside. Drink spiking is a very serious crime, and the perpetrators are ALWAYS the ones at fault, but we want to do what we can to encourage students to keep themselves and others safe on nights out here in the SU or at other venues. You can get information, advice and useful links through tees-su.org.uk/spikeaware and keep an eye on our social media and website for forthcoming details of campaign events around this very important issue where you will be able to get support and pick up free anti-spiking kits.
Meanwhile, Harriet Dryden (President Activities) wants to know the reasons why some students do not currently participate in sports clubs at the University. Please take a minute to complete her short, simple survey as part of the Get In To It campaign.
And Madhu Bethina (President Welfare) continues to focus heavily on student wellbeing and safety. Make sure you get yourself along to the Safety Day as part of Refresh on Thursday, 27th January 2022 (Full info in the early January edition). He is also keen to increase student awareness of hidden disabilities, both physical and mental. Do you know why people wear the sunflower lanyard? Do you sometimes not realise or forget that a friend or course mate is living with a disability that you cannot see or hear? Check out tees-su.org.uk/hd for more info on hidden disabilities and how to support those living with them.
Student Opinion Counts (SOC) is the biggest and most influential piece of research we carry out here at the Students' Union. Every other year, we ask you about:
You could win:
So, do not delay! Answer the first two short, simple surveys now through tees-su.org.uk/soc and keep checking that link or our social media for more in January.
This has been another difficult year for everyone across the country, and students have been hit hard by the effects of COVID-19 restrictions and the returns to lockdown earlier in the year. Here at TUSU, we have worked as a team to keep supporting students online and, when able to, in-person while keeping our building as safe as possible and then delivering a hugely successful return to face to face services, physical day and evening events and more in the autumn.
Check out a shorter than usual review of 2021 here at TUSU through tees-su.org.uk/impact or pick up a printed copy from the SU Welcome Desk from Mon, 10th January 2022.
After a lengthy break from Uni, we know it can sometimes be hard to get back into the swing of things in January. Your TUSU will be helping all students blow away the cobwebs and beat any January blues with Refresh from Mon, 24th to Friday, 28th January 2022. Keep up to date with the latest on Refresh and events taking place as part of it through the Refresh minisite or posts and the dedicated events sections of our various social media where will add specific detail of each event soon after the holidays.
PLEASE NOTE: ALL OF THE BELOW IS SUBJECT TO NO FURTHER CHANGES IN ADVICE FROM THE GOVERNMENT OR THE UNIVERSITY BEFORE 24TH JANUARY. WE WILL AIM TO PROVIDE VIRTUAL ALTERNATIVES WHEREVER POSSIBLE IF WE ARE UNABLE TO HOLD A FACE TO FACE EVENT.
During the day:
During the evening:
Teesside University Students' Union (TUSU) is led by students for students, and from Mon, 21st February 2022, four incredible opportunities come around again!
Any current student at Teesside University* can run in our elections to find the next three people who get paid over £23,000 per year to lead TUSU and speak up for all students as President Education, President Activities and President Welfare (you may only run for one of these positions).
You could also run for one of the positions available in a separate election, representing Teesside University Students’ Union at the single biggest annual gathering of students and students' union. You would join the Student Officers to represent all Teesside Uni students on the big stage at the NUS National Conference 2022.
Just running as a candidate is an amazing experience and a great way to boost your skills and widen your experience while ensuring we have properly contested elections with as high a voter turnout as possible! And, if you are interested, NOW is the time to start getting organised!
Drop elections@tees-su.org.uk a line with questions about running in the elections and to speak to current Student Officers/ key support staff. There is also a wealth of info, including a special summary for international students about things to think about before becoming a candidate through tees-su.org.uk/elections.
*Various factors may prevent you from being eligible to be a Trustee of Teesside University Students' Union and thus running in the Student Officer elections including your right to study and work in the UK, previously having been declared bankrupt or holding a criminal record. Contact us using the elections e-mail address above for a confidential chat about your situation.
As we may have mentioned earlier, the holidays are coming! And whether you celebrate Christmas or not, you can make some great savings and discounts on food, drink, fashion, travel, digital, music and more for yourself or others with the TOTUM app and card. It is the only OFFICIAL student discount app and card, the only one offered by the National Union of Students (NUS) and the only one we recommend.
Aside from all of that, you will be helping out your TUSU as we receive payments from NUS depending on how many students download the TOTUM app and how often they use it and the number of students who upgrade to the complete TOTUM package! All that money is poured back into making your SU even better!
The Teesside University Degree Calculator is a handy new tool we have added to our website which allows students to get an estimate on the final mark will they receive based on their current academic performance. It is a great way of identifying where you can improve before deadline/ exam time!
Disclaimer: This degree calculator is a Students' Union tool, it is not an official University tool and is for indicative purposes only. There is no guarantee that the classification calculated by this method is the one that will be finally awarded by the University. For full details on how your degree classification is calculated please read the University's Assessment Regulations.
For students on some courses there may be specific professional registration requirements that vary from the standard University Assessment Regulations. All marks/grades and classifications must be confirmed by a University Assessment Board before they become final. This tool is provided in good faith, however official advice should always be sought from the University.
Your SU works closely with the University and a range of external agencies such as Cleveland Police, Cleveland Fire and the NHS to try to keep all students safe and well. This is a particularly important time for taking sensible precautions and minimising risk to both yourself and other students.
Check out our tips for staying safe and reducing the chance of being affected by crime over the festive period below:
Coronavirus:
General Tips:
