SU23 - Kieran Minto for Postgraduate Education officer

Kieran Minto

Hi, I’m Kieran.

I’m currently studying a Masters in Ecology or to give it its full title ‘Ecological Management and Conservation Biology’; and I’m running to be the next Postgraduate Education officer. I  decided to put myself forward simply because I want to make the University a better place to study. Since beginning my Masters, I have noticed how much of a raw deal taught postgrads get, especially considering the amount of money we pay to study. That’s without even mentioning the conditions PHD students and research Masters students face at Queen’s. These students sacrifice years of their life to better themselves, better the University and better our society as a whole; and how are they repaid? Low wages, long hours, and heavy workloads. The current system simply does not incentivise people to want to continue studying. I  love the idea of university as an institution and I want to love Queen’s, but we are simply being let down. I think it’s time for some changes. 

First and foremost, we must tackle the cost-of-living crisis at Queen’s. Efforts made by the University and SU such as the direct cost-of-living payments and free breakfasts, have been welcome and desperately needed, however these alone don’t go nearly far enough. Students are struggling, with many postgrads feeling the brunt of this. How exactly can you take part in wider university life if you’re constantly racing to keep up with work or worrying about paying rent? My goal is a series of larger scale initiatives to tackle the issue at Queen’s. Working with the wider movement at Queen’s to prevent rent increases, establish housing co-operatives, provide long term food assistance and public transport passes. 

Queens is supposedly a “research-intensive” university, however most of its research students are currently overworked and underpaid. Postgrads have taken time out of their lives to produce world-class research here at Queen’s and this is how they are treated? With costs rising just as fast as workloads? I aim to increase funding available for both Masters and PHDs. This will require working with Queen’s to lobby Stormont to increase the number of sponsorships they provide, as well as Queen’s itself to provide more grants and awards. This again feeds into the larger fight around how the University simply isn’t doing enough to take the financial burden off postgrads. 

Currently most clubs and societies feel disconnected from the Students’ Union. This is one of the principal ways students interact with each other and the SU should be doing more to connect with these groups. Many are crying out for funding to buy new equipment or hold events, with the university providing far less funding than other similar institutions. What little funding is available many simply don’t know about. How can postgrads, or students more generally get involved with sports or societies if some are struggling to even operate? I  will integrate clubs and societies more within the SU as well as lobby for increased funds to be made available to their committees. 

This feeds into the larger issue with postgrad involvement in wider university life, progress has been made but there is still a lot of work to do. I will work to make sure clubs, societies and the SU as a whole are more welcoming to postgrads. We have as much right to take part in university life as everyone else.

Campus sustainability is an area the University is also failing in. For example, the SU and Queen’s owns large amounts of land and roof space that could be planted with flowers and trees to create biodiversity-rich gardens. Small-scale changes to the campus can create a more vibrant ecosystem and make the campus a nicer place to spend time. Queen’s as an institution has a tremendous amount of lobbying power which it should be directing towards the promotion of environmental causes especially within Belfast. 

So, if you want a representative that holds the University to task, represents your views, works with you and campaigns passionately not just for all postgrads but the whole student body, vote Kieran Minto. 

To see all the candidates running, visit the Queen’s SU website