Student Group Committees

All of Swansea University Students' Union's student groups are led by students - for the benefit of students. Our clubs and societies are led by student volunteers who give up their time to better the experience of their members in some way. 

In this article, you'll find out about the core roles of committees, the groups of volunteers that lead student groups, their responsibilities, the perks, and how to become one! 

Committee Roles

Each student group is led by a committee made up of various roles. Each role has different its own responsibilities to carry out on behalf of the group. Three of these committee roles are core and shared amongst all groups - President, Secretary, and Treasurer. 

Below are the details of the responsibilities of the core 3 roles of every student group.

President - The President is the democratic and strategic lead for the group. It is their responsibility to chair meetings, lead on decision-making, strategy, and disciplinary action, and generally look after the student group and its members. They approve finance requests alongside the Treasurer. At the end of the year, they must give a report at the AGM detailing the group's progress over their time in post.

Secretary - The Secretary is the operational lead for the group and is generally in charge of the paperwork side, from booking rooms to writing minutes at meetings. They are also often in charge of keeping an eye on the inbox for the group and responding to emails they receive or sending out regular updates to their members. 

Treasurer - The Treasurer is mostly responsible for the group's money. This includes submitting and approving finance requests, managing any cash or payments, and keeping an eye on the overall balance of the group to avoid entering debt. They should help budget money for the year and can request new products be added to their webpage. At the end of the year, they must give a report at the AGM detailing the group's ingoing and outgoing money, and the reasons behind it.

Many student groups choose to add additional roles to their committee to share responsibility and fill specific needs and niches of the group - this could be a musical director for a performing arts society or a team captain for a sports club. 

Some common optional roles are detailed below. 

Welfare Officer - A Welfare Officer is responsible for managing the overall positive atmosphere of the group and overseeing welfare and well-being issues that may arise - these may be related to the group, or entirely external. They should be well-versed in the support mechanisms available at the University for signposting and be willing to seek additional support wherever necessary. They can achieve their role by working with other members to create sober socials, create feedback surveys for members of the group, and raise welfare concerns with the relevant staff. They should be a compassionate, resilient, and approachable person with a strong sense of confidentiality. 

Social Secretary - A Social Secretary is responsible for fostering the social side of the group. They should arrange social events and activities for the group's members, often outside of the usual group activity. Social secretaries should work with Welfare Officers on sober socials, and work with the Treasurer to ensure social events are affordable and all paid for when necessary. 

Social Secretaries are also often responsible for sourcing sponsorship for groups too with the Treasurer.

Social Media Officer - A Social Media Officer is responsible for managing the online presence of a student group - everything from TikTok to Facebook, and the SU website to MySpace. They should ensure that information online is up to date for prospective and current members, and they should create engaging picture and video content.

How Do I Become a Committee Member? 

All our volunteer committee members and student leaders are democratically selected by their members via an online election. 

During the months of March and April committee elections start taking place. Speak to the leaders of the student group you want to be a part of to find out what their elections will take place. 

To participate in an election you will need to first have purchased standard membership for the relevant group i.e. Football Standard Membership. Then you will need to nominate yourself via their election which can be found on their page on the SU website

You'll be able to upload a photo of yourself and a manifesto to let people know why they should vote for you. You can also campaign to tell members of the group why they should vote for you. Once voting has concluded, the club or society should announce the results in the following days, and if you're lucky, you'll have won!