Why do you want to apply for an Officer position?

As a Sri Lankan national, it was always my dream to pursue my further education in the UK. Last year, I took the step into achieving my future goals and moved to England and started studying at Canterbury Christ Church University.

I’ve had to overcome a lot of challenges in moving countries, leaving behind all my family and friends to adopt a whole new way of life. I was accustomed to living a comfortable life living with parents and this move has forced me to grow and take on new responsibilities.

As a gay person of colour, I am authentic and bold enough to face anything that comes to me in life. I am always with a positive view that I do not take anything as a failure but a lesson. Transforming all the negative energies to positive energies with a smile is one of the biggest strengths I have.

It has only been four months since I moved to England, I have a considerable number of friends already and I believe that is because I am a nice and supportive friend. I was helping my friends with marketing even the night before the exam. Life is not an individual race. Everyone must win. If someone feels like they are failing, I am here and more than happy to help.

What are your priorities?

One of the main things I would do if I was elected is contact the university management and request to have a check-in hub for every school in the university. Check-in hub is a study group that helps students with their academics and other related things like creating CVs and finding jobs. The only school that has a check-in hub is the business school and as a combined student studying advertising and digital media who joined the university three weeks late, I was struggling with my art schoolwork but there was no group or society that I could seek help from. I had no friends. But they helped me with my missed lessons and made me feel at home. I think every student should feel that way. Especially the latecomers and the international students with a language barrier.

I will also work on the inclusivity of the people of colour and the queer community. I am glad that we have a black history and a LGBT+ history month. But personally, I think we could do much better than just making posters. If I was elected, with the help of the drama club, I would host entreating events like stage drama and films inspired by people of colour. To make the queer community feel safe and proud of themselves, I would organize a pride parade with help of the LGBTQ+ society.

A lot of international students struggle with their mental health. They are not in their comfort zone. They left their family and friends to achieve their dreams. They must work extra hard than the home students because of the course fee. I am grateful that we have counselors on campus, but having only five free sessions is not enough. I would like to speak with the psychology students to see if they can help the students in need.

As a survivor of rape and sexual assault who has also been fat shamed, I would start a body positivity club to make the all the survivors feel seen and let them scream out their unheard painful story.

Since there is no Sri Lankan society and I being the only Sri Lankan in my course, I would start one and gather all the Sri Lankans to make them feel less homesick.

What skills and experience do you have that would make you a good Officer?

Recently I took part in a panel discussion that was organised by the check-in hub. It was about how far we have come and the progress we have made and the things we can do to improve in the future. I talked in front of all the lecturers of the business school. I suggested ways that we could improve, and I got a got standing ovation.

I helped creating content for the Uni-verse event organised by Canterbury Vibes. The last event was a massive success, and we are planning on organising another event in March.

I am passionated in content creating. I made a TikTok account when I came to England. I made a vlog of my flight from Colombo to London. I had zero followers, but I posted it trusting my creativity and the process. It has over 22,000 views now. Now I am a student ambassador in content creation and marketing.