Who am I?

Heya friends, my name is Joel and I'm a current BSc Pharmaceutical Science student at Queen's. For 3 years I have been a course rep, in which I have had the pleasure of chairing Student Voice Meetings and working alongside staff to improve the student experience. I am also an undergraduate MHLS rep within our student council. As such, I am well versed in working with students to inspire the change they want to see. Working with students is my greatest passion and it would be an honour to perform this duty for you as your MHLS Faculty Rep.

My Aims

Promote a varied range of teaching techniques - Each student is unique, and so are their learning needs. The days of monotonous recital of lecture slides to students are draconian at best. We deserve better. MHLS is supposed to be creating the best healthcare professionals and scientists of this generation, yet many of us are left unengaged, disillusioned and disappointed with the "teaching" methods that are being used. There is no reason why options like differentiated instruction and group learning cannot be used to a greater extent to suit every style of learning.

Support you with tuition fees and cost of living schemes - It's no secret that the cost of living crisis has been affecting us all more and more recently, with unfortunately no signs of going anywhere. With MHLS being an extremely expensive faculty to enroll in, this problem is amplified. Our students are expected to excel in challenging fields; with placements, coursework, clinical rotations, exams, seminars, workshops, and the stresses of student life in general all hanging over our heads. We are then further forced to work extra jobs to be able to afford the bare necessities, all the while being exploited by our landlords. This is unacceptable. I fully intend to work alongside the full-time Student Officers (especially Welfare) to do everything possible to minimise your financial stresses. Schemes such as the Pantry are great, but they are only a small step towards ending student suffering.

Promote mental health and wellbeing within MHLS - Mental health is a vital and sensitive topic that affects us all. For many, we find the facilities within MHLS and Queen's in general to be extremely lacking. However, something you may not know is that some schools within MHLS have their own mental health groups. For example, the School of Pharmacy has a Mental Health and Wellbeing Group that runs events and offers support to students and staff within the school. Schemes like this are exceptional, but they are still in their infancy and far from being universal. I plan to change this. I believe every school should have a dedicated team of students and staff that can help support their peers in need of a helping hand and friendly face to speak to. Furthermore, I believe there should be inter-school events and schemes for all of MHLS to work together to break the stigma of mental heatlh discussions. We have come a long way, but there is more work to be done.

You are the future healers and heroes of our generation and you deserve better.