Coursework Officer
Nominees
Tallal Khan
Ticket: Advocate
My name is Tallal Hassan Khan and I am studying a Masters of Climate Change at the Crawford School of Public Policy. As a student during these unprecedented times I understand the difficulties many students are coping with in their studies because I too have experienced them. I am running for the position of Coursework Officer because I believe that I can use my experience and knowledge to enhance the mental wellbeing of postgraduate students. One of the ways I intend to do this is by developing manageable coursework solutions through Wattle. Programs on Wattle need to be standardised, creating a unified pattern of online learning assessments and examination systems. This will be integral when we transition back to on-campus learning.
Developing a work-life balance has become increasingly difficult for students over the past year. Financial resourcing is another challenge for many students. We need to make sure that students are able to speak to the ANU’s administration in a way in which their voices are heard. I believe that I have the skillset and confidence needed to address these issues, paving a better future for us all.
Raghuvir Kelkar
Ticket: ANU United
Hi, my name is Raghuvir Kelkar, studying Masters in International and Development Economics from Crawford School of Public Policy. I am running for the position of Coursework Officer on ‘ANU UNITED’ ticket. We are a team of hard-working diverse people with different life backgrounds but with the same vision - “GO TOGETHER, GO FURTHER” I am in ANU since 2017, currently pursuing my second masters. Until recently, I have been actively involved in PARSA, Indian Students Association, new@ANU helping out many students, and in the community of Ursula Hall. These roles have a particular emphasis on team coordination and leadership, pastoral care, academic matters, project management.
My motivation for running for PARSA election is to ensure smooth coursework duration and flexibility on choosing courses within the degree. Being a coursework student myself for 2 degrees in ANU, I have had experiences of courses of CAP, CBE and CASS along with the difficulties in choosing the courses. I will work closely with the Education officer and the Education Committee to make sure that needs of all coursework students are getting actively supported in PARSA’s advocacy on academic and coursework issues at all levels of classroom, school and college levels. I will in my best capability make sure that the life of coursework students will be better and smoother in ANU.
I always actively participate and engage myself with various ANU community and academic activities. I intend to be your voice and a custodian of your trust.
Disabilities Officer
Nominees
Jahid
Ticket: Advocate
I am Jahid, studying master of climate change at Crawford School, and I am from Bangladesh. Being an international postgraduate student with a disability, I am very keen to run for the position of PARSA officer for students with disabilities for the 2nd time.
From my disability experience and my various previous role in a different organization, I have seen that every individual with disabilities has different challenges. At the university level, these individual challenges need to be identified and to provide support so that student with disabilities can enjoy the same as others. It is their human rights. I possess a caring and sensitive personality, as well as a genuine interest in helping the student with disabilities to become more independent and to improve their university experience.
I want to work for the improvement of understanding the needs of an individual student with disability among the students and other communities at the ANU. Along with this, I want to contribute to implementing the ANU disabilities action plan to make ANU more disabilities friendly and unified community where no one will leave behind.
Vagisha
Ticket: ANU United
I am a Masters student at Research School of Economics, CBE. My areas of interest are economics, dancing, baking, and whichever new hobby catches my fancy.
I believe in equal opportunities for everyone. As someone working through extreme anxiety, I understand that now more than ever, persons with visible and invisible disabilities need to be given greater support. For doing so, I believe a good first step is increasing the accessibility and approachability to university support services such as ANU Counselling. The ANU United team plans
on increasing the number of counsellors and working towards reducing the wait time for counsellor appointments. Additionally, I would like to introduce a buddy network of sorts, where students will have a safe space to talk about their issues with peers. The proposed plan is that students can drop into a Zoom meeting on certain days (with an option of not disclosing their identity) where they could talk to volunteers about their problems, issues, or grievances. While this network would not provide professional support, it could be a way for easing into the act of reaching out for support, as
sometimes the first steps are the hardest.
In the end, ANU United and I have the common goal of being open, approachable, and supportive of
all individuals.
Education Officer
Nominees
Chitresh Saraswat
Ticket: Advocate
My name is Chitresh Saraswat and I am a PhD student at the Fenner School of Environment & Society. I am running for the position of Education Officer with the mission of providing an ideal climate for students during their studies at ANU. As the current PARSA HDR officer I bought an honest and hard-working approach to supporting the HDR cohort to improve their wellbeing throughout the COVID-19 crisis. Advocacy campaigns focused on extending scholarships for HDR students, improvement of the oral pilot examination, and developing support grants. On a social level, I also enhanced engagement through promotion of the Shut-up & Write program, regular catch-ups and online interactions.
This year as an Education Officer I want to create a more inclusive postgraduate student community and minimize the effects of COVID-19 on postgraduate students. My priority is to advocate for the academic and individual wellbeing of students and ensuring a positive atmosphere to learn and grow together want to work with our new Coursework and HDR Officers to ensure that the ANU is providing a quality education to all students. The voice of the students is important and I strongly believe that my calm and persuasive manner will ensure that the students' voice is heard. Together let's make sure that no student is left behind. Please support me and team ‘Advocate’ with your vote
Yann
Ticket: ANU United
Giving to the ANU community through supporting and advocating for students especially during this pandemic is why I am running for Education Officer (Exec). May I share a few thoughts which I hope convince you to cast your vote for me.
I am YANN, undertaking a Master of Public Administration, Crawford School of Public Policy, ANU. I have over a decade of professional and voluntary experiences in management of associations and organizations, and intensive practices in program design and management, advocacy, coordination and leadership and strategy development.
Currently, I am a PARSA CAP rep and a president of Cambodian Student Association in Canberra (CSAC). Previously, I was a Chair of Student Research Committee (SRC) at International Association for Political Science Students (IAPSS), Netherlands, president of Pannasastra University of Cambodia Alumni Association, president of Pannasastra University of Cambodia Student Senate_ alike PARSA, director of Centre for ASEAN Studies, and Research Consultant for United States Agency for International Development (USAID). During undergrad, I studied Political Science in Cambodia South Korea (Silla University) and USA (Presbyterian College). More information can be found here.
To help our community flourish together, vote for me and ANU United ticket. Our grand strategic policy can be found here.
We are highly appreciative, and we will deliver on our commitments.
Environment Officer
Nominees
Chalaka Fernando
Ticket: Advocate
I am studying a PhD at the College of Engineering and Computer Sciences. Academic research is my second career, and before I completed 15 years of work experience in corporate environmental and sustainability roles both in Sri Lanka and internationally.
I am a strong believer in engaging and sensitising is the best approach to care for the environment. Activities such as bush-walks, environment storytelling and introducing ‘eco-volunteers’ in PARSA would instrumentalise to change life-styles to improve the environment.
Valuing the best asset of the ANU – our student cohort, I propose to position ourselves in environmental value-driven Canberra, initiating the first ‘PostGrad Environment Forum’ with the neighbouring universities to advocate and engage with the associated stakeholders in a significant way. I also recognise the importance of active participation in the ANU environmental initiatives and to escalate the ‘Plastic Free ANU’ dialogue into an actionable item.
engage-voice-change to care our common home!
Phuoc (Phillip) Nguyen
Ticket: ANU United
My name is Phuoc Dinh Nguyen, a postgraduate student studying Master of Engineering in Renewable Energy from College of Engineering and Computer Science (CECS). I was born in Vietnam and I have been in Australia/Canberra for more than 1 years.
I am running for the position of Environment Officer in the 2020 PARSA election on the ANU United ticket as I am keen on making an impact in the reducing of the environmental issues which ANU has on campus by ensuring any environmental campaigns are effective; joining forces with other student associations across Australia and beyond to raise awareness and gain input into environmental policy; raising awareness for energy saving on campus and halls across the ANU community; advocating for ANU to be a global leader in environmental action.
Our team “ANU United”, being a group underpinned by diversity, believes in the power of difference voices and effective collaboration. We have a very supportive and innovative team. Let me speak for you at PARSA and make a difference together! To help our community flourish together, vote for ANU United. Our grand strategic policy can be found in Facebook page. We are highly appreciated your supports and we will deliver on our commitments.
Equity Officer
Nominees
Epi Terbio
Ticket: Advocate
Epi Terbio is in his second year in the Juris Doctor program. He was currently appointed as the Equity Officer of PARSA after serving as a College Officer for the College of Law last year. He is also a Senior Resident at Toad Hall. As a College Officer, he represented PARSA in the College of Law Education Committee and sat in the Student Extracurricular Enrichment Fund (SEEF) Panel. In the height of the COVID-19 Pandemic, he served as a Document Checker for PARSA’s COVID-19 Emergency Grant. The experience he gained as College Officer brought him closer to the plights and challenges being faced by postgraduate students of the ANU. The past few months has been difficult for students. Although this isn’t a local phenomenon, many international students are unable to return to campus due to travel restrictions, while others suffer from the deficiencies in the hybrid educational model. In these challenging times, he hopes to continue the initiatives that have already been started by PARSA and build on it to provide a better experience for postgraduate students, especially those in the Women, Queer, Disabled, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, and International postgraduate students sectors. I am bent the challenge of building a tight-knit postgraduate student community in the age where social distancing seems to be the new normal. In the Equity Officer role, he is looking to prioritize postgraduate students’ mental, physical and sexual wellbeing through a variety of community-building programs to ensure that no student is left behind.
Anh Bach
Ticket: ANU United
I am Anh Bach, a Vietnamese student in the Master of Applied Finance program at College of Business and Economics (CBE), The Australian National University (ANU). I have been a PARSA member since the first semester of this academic year. I am running for the position of Equity Officer in the 2020 PARSA election on the ANU United ticket, as I am passionate in maintaining equity within and for the community of postgraduate students at the ANU. Specifically, I am keen on undertaking a variety of activities to support postgraduates identified as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, students with disabilities, international students, LGBIQI+, women, parents and caretakers, amongst other groups under the Equity portfolio. I, as a member of the ANU United ticket, commit to advocate for better and more accessible services to ANU postgraduate students, and ensure an inclusive environment for everyone, irrespective of identities, within the broader ANU community.
Our team “ANU United”, being a group underpinned by diversity, believes in the power of difference voices and effective collaboration. We have a very supportive and innovative team. Let me speak for you at PARSA and make a difference together.
To help our community flourish together, vote for ANU United. Our grand strategic policy can be found on our Facebook page. We are highly appreciative and we will deliver on our commitments.
Higher Degree by Research (HDR) Officer
Nominees
Dige
Ticket: Advocate
Dige is a PhD student from Laser Physics Centre, Research School of Physics. She gained lots of teaching experience through being a tutor over the past few years and became an Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. Her main aims of joining PARSA revolve around ensuring that the university engages in providing specialist advice, training and support to HDR candidates throughout their journey in order to enhance the student experience whilst maintaining mental and physical wellbeing. Some of her priorities are: promoting the university-wide HDR mentoring program along with furthering the SUAW (Shut-up and Write) and HDR catch-up events, arranging research skill seminars and workshops focus on improving scientific writing and presentation, creating a platform for broadening the network and connect available to current HDR students and graduated alumni on research collaboration and career development.
Wenzhuo
Ticket: ANU United
I am Wenzhuo Zhang, a PhD candidate at the Centre for Heritage and Museum Studies, ANU Research School of Humanities and the Arts. I got BEng and MEng from Tongji University (China) and MSc from Ruhr University Bochum (Germany). My research is located at the interface of urban planning and heritage studies with special interests in urban memory and urban heritage (esp. colonial heritage and industrial heritage). I am Chinese and have been in Canberra for two years.
I am running for the position of Higher Degree by Research (HDR) Officer in the 2020 PARSA election on the ANU United ticket as I am keen on assisting HDR students with their overall wellbeing and academic excellence. My priorities will be improving the mental health of ANU HDR community during the COVID-19 pandemic and exposing more local and international academic opportunities – including workshops, conferences, and publishing opportunities – to our HDR students. Our team ‘Anu United’ is diverse but we believe in working together. Let me and our very supportive and innovative team speak for you at PARSA and make a difference together!
To help our community flourish together, vote for ANU United. Our grand strategic policy can be found in Facebook page. We are highly appreciative and we will deliver on our commitments.
International Student Officer
Nominees
Benjamin Chew
Ticket: Advocate
International students play a huge role in universities. We contribute our culture, our experiences and the diversity and range of opinions. One would think that this would mean that international students would be able to receive the support they need. Unfortunately, after my three years as an undergraduate at ANU, nothing can be further from the truth. I have seen how problems international students constantly face are overlooked. As the International officer, I believe my sole responsibility would be to give the international students a voice to highlight the issues that affect them. The dip in the quality of education because of remote learning, for example, are issues that disproportionately affect international students, many of whom are stuck in their own country because of travel restrictions. Uprooting yourself and assimilating yourself into a foreign country is a daunting challenge for anybody. This is in addition to the exorbitant fees that international students have to shoulder during their stay. I want to ease the transition that international students face during their life at ANU and help build an inclusive campus that values the presence and uniqueness that an international student population brings and makes sure that the distinct challenges they face are treated with the same care and seriousness as everyone else.
Dash Singh
Ticket: ANU United
I am Dash, an international student from India studying Master of Mathematical Sciences (Advanced) at Mathematical Sciences Institute, Joint college of Sciences.
I am incredibly passionate about the numerous issues faced by international students across campus and therefore I am running for the position of International officer. I have been working in various leadership positions across the university for the last two years. During then, I have worked hard towards becoming a very approachable leader, the kind of person who you would go to for advice regardless of his position. I will continue to follow the same principles during my role as the international officer.
If elected I would bring an element of fairness in the lives of many struggling international students on and off campus. We will not only be working to eradicate systematic discrimination but also guide our fellow postgrads towards a sustainable way of living here, tackling complex problems including mental health and financial freedom.
The last few years I have been here, I have faced all sorts of problems. My biggest ambition right now is to be in a position to be able to help others facing a similar crisis.
For more information please visit our Facebook page for ANU UNITED where you’ll find our policies and the rest of the team.
We are highly appreciative for the opportunity and we promise to deliver on our commitments.
Social Officer
Nominees
Kanishk Kumar
Ticket: Advocate
Hello all! I am quite overwhelmed to take this opportunity to announce that I am running for the position of social officer for postgraduate and research student's association (PARSA) under the ticket named “advocate”. I am currently the Interim Social Officer at PARSA and I would like to continue working for the same this coming year. I am passionate to work in this position with an aim of maximizing the engagement and participation of our proud community members and conduct awesome events for them. My advocacy would work by taking your feedback as an opportunity and I ensure that I would take your voice forward in the best of my capacity. I hope to see your support by your votes for our team. Looking forward to seeing you all soon! For more information and to stay updated, do check our Facebook page.
Surendra Kumar
Ticket: ANU United
I am Surendra Kumar, an international student from India. I am pursuing Master of International and Development Economics at the Crawford School of Public Policy and have 4 years of experience as a Managing Partner and Business Analyst of a Digital Marketing Firm.
I am running for the position of Social Officer in the 2020 PARSA election on the ANU United ticket as I am keen on making an impact in building and maintaining a strong postgraduate community at the ANU through understanding and constantly considering the needs of the community.
Our team ‘Anu United’ is diverse but we believe in working together with the vision of “GO TOGETHER, GO FURTHER”. We have a very supportive and innovative team. Let me speak for you at PARSA and make a difference together!
To help our community flourish together, vote for ANU United. Our grand strategic policy can be found on Facebook page of ANU United. We are highly appreciative, and we will deliver on our commitments.
Women's Officer
Nominees
Batgerel Tolya
Ticket: ANU United
I am Batgerel, an international student from Mongolia studying Master of Public Policy from Crawford School of Public Policy. I was born in 1990 and have been in Canberra for a year. My undergraduate degree was on Political & Social science, and have worked in government implementing agencies under Ministry of Justice and Home Affairs for 6 years. I initiated numerous projects in cooperation with international organizations based on social research.
I am running for the position of Women’s Officer in the 2020 PARSA election on the ANU United ticket as I am keen on making an impact in equity, wellbeing and encouragement of women. I realized that female students need system to make friends, and share ideas during the complex time being. Therefore, I would like to build strong community that we cheer, learn from and care each other for our further development of studies, and career. Furthermore, I can be strong voice combating gender issues, sexual assault and harassment. Your problem is our concern, let’s support each other.
Our team ‘ANU United’ is diverse, and we believe that effective policy comes with our heart to the students. We have a very supportive and innovative team. Let me speak for you at PARSA, and make a difference together! To help our community flourish together, vote for ANU UNITED. Our grand strategic policy can be found in Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/ANU-United-119537279889164). We are highly appreciative and we will deliver on our commitments.
Parent’s and Carer’s Officer
Nominees
Jhana De Silva
Ticket: Advocate
My name is Jhana de Silva and I am a PhD Candidate at the Research School of Psychology. I study how our perception of our body changes with different sensory information. When I am not being a stressed out PhD candidate I am taking care of my two beautiful children. I started my PhD when my oldest son was 4 weeks old. I had my daughter in the 2nd year of my PhD. Over the last four years at ANU I've experienced a lot of support as well as a lot of barriers as a PhD parent and I'm really excited for the opportunity to promote the needs and experiences of parent and carer postgraduate students. From my experience, having children while undertaking postgraduate study is a fantastic choice, but it also obviously can be stressful and very challenging at times. I think that the university could do a lot more to facilitate and manage some of the very unique needs and requirements of postgraduate parents. If elected I would like to increase awareness around the specific needs of postgraduate parents. I would also like to promote more events for postgraduate parents with the aim of establishing a culture of support, inclusion and integration for parents in the postgraduate ANU community.
Renita C.K.T
Ticket: ANU United
I am Renita Ka Tong Choi, an international student from Macao S.A.R. studying Master of Finance from College of Business & Economics. I am a registered nurse in my hometown Macao S.A.R. for more than 4 years. I understand what parents and carers need.
I am running for the position of Parents & Carers Officer in the 2020 PARSA election on the ANU United ticket as I am keen on making an impact in ensuring that students, who have caring responsibilities for others, are provided with a strong, contingent support network both on and off campus. Your voice is heard. You have the level of support from the University that you deserve. Our team ‘Anu United’ is diverse but we believe in working together. We have a very supportive and innovative team. Let me speak for you at PARSA and make a difference together!
To help our community flourish together, vote for ANU United. Our grand strategic policy can be found in Facebook page. We are highly appreciative and we will deliver on our commitments.
Research and Policy Officer
Nominees
Ben Langley
Ticket: Advocate
Hi I’m Ben I’m running for Research and Policy officer as part of the Advocate ticket. As someone who has been involved with the ANU since 2012, first as an undergraduate and then as a PhD candidate in the Crawford School of Public Policy in CAP I have a strong connection with student population and would love a way to give back. Through my work in the NGO and Academic sectors I’ve developed a passion for evidence led reform. If elected I will make sure the whole PARSA team has a strong evidence base to campaign for your best interests. I’ll be working hard with the team, whether it's finding the data to back up the issues I’ve heard around campus or finding the most efficient ways to deliver the activities that bring us together.
Deepthi
Ticket: ANU United
I am Deepthi Purushothaman, an international student from India, studying a Masters of International Relations from the Coral Bell School of Asia Pacific Affairs. I am running for the position of Research and Policy Officer in the 2020 PARSA election on the ANU United ticket.
I’m a law graduate and have had enriching experience as a litigating lawyer in various courts in India. My experiences both as a postgraduate student as well as a lawyer have taught me that research and policy plays a pivotal role in shaping and developing society. Quality research and sound polices are the backbone of any institution and I am keen on making an impact as the Research and Policy Officer of PARSA. Our team ‘ANU United’ is diverse but we believe in working together. We aim to work on various policies ranging from health and wellbeing policies, academic policies, environmental policies as well as social and cultural policies. We have a very supportive and innovative team. Let me speak for you at PARSA and let us make a difference together!
To help our community flourish together, vote for ANU United. Our grand strategic policy can be found on ANU United Facebook page.
Your support is highly appreciated and we promise to deliver on our commitments.
Communications Officer
Nominees
Gautham Venkitaramamoorthy
Ticket: Advocate
Greetings to all, I would like to take this opportunity to announce that I am running for the position of Communications officer of PARSA at ANU under the ticket named “Advocate”. I’ve been actively volunteering for PARSA Events in the past and I intend to be more involved with PARSA through this role. One of my major ambitions with this role is to maximize the communication aspects through all possible mediums and involve as many members of the postgraduate and research community to express their ideas. This will definitely be challenging but I am confident that I will keep working hard and represent the community in the best of my capacity. I request you all to please show us your support by voting for team Advocate. For more updates please do check our Facebook Page.
Sandra Prada
Ticket: ANU United
Hello, I am Sandra Prada, a second-year post-graduate student of the Master of Engineering in Renewable Energy from the College of Engineering and Computer Science. I am running for the position of Communication Officer in the 2020 PARSA election on the ANU United ticket. As an international student I am aware of the importance of keeping a close relation with people from different backgrounds while promoting exchange of experiences and knowledge. As a Communication Officer I am willing to be engaged with PARSA activities to boost the students’ relations within the academic community. I would like to participate by keeping constant interaction with the students through the development of strategies that allow them to be informed about the activities and benefits PARSA has for them.
In my previous studies in Colombia I was part of the Engineering College Students Committee at La Salle University during the period 2009-2010. Part of my responsibilities were to establish communication channels between the undergraduate students and the college in order to solve inquiries related to the university procedures or general academic issues. Moreover, my professional experience as a consultant engineer has provided me with the required skills to manage relationships between people of different professional and cultural backgrounds. I believe information is a powerful tool to drive us to take the best possible decisions. For this reason, I am determined to keep all PARSA community informed about events, activities and general information, to help them to improve their ANU academic experience.
Welfare Officer
Nominees
Sukriti
Ticket: Advocate
My name is Sukriti Kapoor. I am an international student from India, pursuing Juris Doctor at the College of Law, ANU. I am a human rights lawyer and have practiced rights-based litigation throughout my legal career. I am running for the Welfare Officer’s portfolio to attempt bridging the gap between availability and accessibility to the different support services present for postgraduate students at ANU. I have worked as a staff member at the Respectful Relationships Unit at ANU. This position has made me aware of the importance, need, and urgency for fast-paced student support mechanisms targeting both International and domestic students at ANU. I aim to make use of this opportunity and promote student assistance programs, during this very difficult time for all postgraduate students and especially international students in Australia. The aftermath of this pandemic has brought forward grave discomfort amongst students facing issues with personal welfare at ANU. I will act as the first point of contact for all the postgraduate community and strive to conduct various welfare initiatives. The themes of these initiatives would be to promote inclusivity and a culturally positive community. As a student body representative, I aspire to make various stakeholders accountable for their inaction in supporting the postgraduate community. I will be advocating for your rights to feel safe on and off-campus, through a range of safety initiatives and policy changes. PARSA’s Welfare initiatives will undergo a massive change, with the entire focus on student’s mental health trainings, awareness campaigns, and other welfare workshops.
Aneri Shah
Ticket: ANU United
I am Aneri Shah, pursuing Master of Economics from the College of Business and Economics. I completed my Undergraduate degree in the field of Triple Majors in Economics, Political Science and Sociology. I am also the current Postgraduate Marketing Director for ANU Economics Network. I was born in India and have been in Canberra for over a year. I am running for the position of Welfare Officer in the 2020 PARSA election on the ANU United ticket. My team and I are keen on making an impact in the area of wellbeing by advocating for issues like affordability of food, groceries and medicines on the ANU Campus; organise more motivational talks/ seminars; appointing more counsellors; improve medical services and sports activities for people on and off campus and for remote students. Our team ‘ANU United’ is diverse, but we believe in working together. We have a very supportive and innovative team. Let me be your voice at PARSA and let’s make a difference together! To help our community flourish together, vote for ANU United. Our strategic policy can be found on our Facebook page. We highly appreciate your support and we promise to deliver to our commitments.