GRADUATE UNION Guidebook 2018
Hello! Welcome to the start of your journey as a graduate student at the University of Cambridge, and welcome to your membership of the Graduate Union! This will hopefully be one of the most rewarding and stimulating times of your life, and lots of people who’ve finished their graduate degrees and postdoctoral research here in Cambridge have found the experience to be life-changing. The GU represents all postgraduate students at Cambridge, as well as mature undergraduates and partners of graduate students. We campaign for you, we support you through our Advice Service and we provide a range of services, including gowns to rent and sell, and hard and soft binding. Our political role is particularly important: we campaign for change, both in Cambridge and the higher education environment more generally. We are an entirely democratic organisation: we listen to you and our campaigns reflect your hopes, concerns and priorities. We’re currently running two campaigns: on graduate mental health, and graduate rights, which are described in this booklet, but we’re always keen to hear from new students about areas they’d like to work on with us. We hope you come by the GU building to meet us and work with us! I’d particularly like to extend a warm welcome to students with families: your children and partners are very welcome to all of our events and we provide weekly parent and toddler mornings. Have a great year, and remember that we’re here for you! Sofia Ropek Hewson Graduate Union President, 2018/19
www.gradunion.cam.ac.uk
The Graduate Union: We represent all postgraduate students, as well as mature undergraduates, partners of graduate students and postdoctoral research associates. We work with the other central Students’ Union at Cambridge, CUSU, and membership of both unions is free. GU is run by two sabbatical (full-time) officers and a group of part-time officers, representing LGBTQ+ students, mature undergraduates, women, international students, BME students and graduates with families. Our direction is set by our GU Council, made up of representatives from colleges and faculties, and open to all students to attend. We represent students on over 70 University committees, we run the joint advice service (SUAS, described below), we run events, weekly free yoga classes and parent and toddler mornings. We also sell and rent gowns, provide binding services and sell work supplies. Get involved? Elections are coming up, run for one of our positions and help run the GU!
Graduate Union History: The Graduate Union was set up by humanitarian and graduate of the University, Greta Burkill. After helping to house thousands of refugee children, and setting up a number of colleges, Greta noticed that colleges were struggling to cope with a large influx of postgraduate students. She managed to obtain a house in Cambridge for postgraduate students and provided what colleges could not: a place to socialise, relax and eat. At one point, Burkill was catering for over 150 students a day. Our GU President doesn’t have to do much cooking anymore, and, instead, focuses on supporting students and campaigning on their behalf.
Based in the GU building, 17 Mill Lane The Students’ Unions’ Advice Service (SUAS): SUAS offers free, confidential and independent support to all Cambridge students. If you feel you have been discriminated against, treated unfairly, or would like to discuss something that is bothering you, you are welcome to contact us whether it’s the first time you have a question or as a last resort. You can come to the Service with any problem or issue you might experience as a student, from questions or concerns about your rights, education, to relationship problems and mental health issues. We will discuss your concerns with you, explore options, and, if needed, represent you on a college or University level. The Student Advice Service is made up of three professional Student Advisors. We all have specialist knowledge of University procedures, rules and regulations. Advice officers are trained in providing support and representation, and the service is a member of Advice UK. SUAS is based at the Graduate Union, and open Monday-Friday, 9-5. Advice drop-in sessions are on Tuesdays and Thursdays, 12-2. https://www.studentadvice.cam.ac.uk/. GU Shop: Gown Sale/Hire: We sell and rent BA and MA gowns for matriculation, formal hall and examination invigilation, and we also buy and sell good-condition second-hand gowns. Supplies: We stock a variety of cheap stationery and supplies, including branded Cambridge notebooks, pens and pencils, academic diaries and postcards. Printing, copying, and scanning: We offer colour and black-and-white printing and photocopying at some of the most competitive prices in Cambridge: 15p per page for colour printing, and 5p per black-and-white page. We also offer heavier-weight paper at a surcharge of 1p per sheet. We can also scan documents to a USB stick. Laminating: We can laminate any pages up to A3 size. Binding: We offer both soft and hard binding. Soft binding is either plastic comb or metal channel binding; both are suitable for MPhil submission and PhD first submission. This can be done while you wait. We also offer hard binding which accords with Cambridge University Library regulations, suitable for PhD final submission, at some of the cheapest rates in Cambridge. This is done off-site, and theses for binding are collected by the specialist firm we work with on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings. Room booking: You can book rooms or the GU Lounge for society events or meetings. Enquiries should be referred to the GU Administrator at: enquiries@ gradunion.cam.ac.uk.
University Support You might need some help while you’re here. University Counselling Service: The University Counselling Service provides free, confidential and professional counselling to all students. Counsellors are friendly, non-judgemental and very experienced at dealing with issues relating to student life at Cambridge. To make an appointment, fill in a form on their website and they’ll get back to you with a time that fits with your timetable. They offer individual counselling, and group courses and workshops on a range of issues from ‘Writing Up Your PhD’ to ‘Healthy Self Esteem’ and ‘Overcoming Worry’: www.counselling.cam.ac.uk. Disability Resource Centre: The DRC provides information and advice on disability issues, study skills tuition, assessment for dyslexia, guidance on assessments for disabilities, assistance with funding applications, the loan of specialist equipment, support in the form of a note-taker or mentor and they’ll liaise with your college and department. The DRC also administers several bursaries and publishes an online guide of practical access information for most University buildings: www.admin.cam.ac.uk/disability. English Language Support: The University Language Centre offers intensive English courses for academic purposes (EAP) prior to and during the academic year. For pricing and more information, visit their website: www.langcen.cam.ac.uk. International Student Office: The International Student Office offers guidance, inductions and orientation information for new students. They have a helpful ‘A-Z for international students’ at: http://www.admin.cam.ac.uk/offices/internationalstudents/orientation/. The Student Registry: The Student Registry manages your registration, progress, examinations and your final submissions of theses and dissertations. Visit the red door on Mill Lane for information on fees, funding and university regulations: https://www.student-registry.admin.cam.ac.uk/contact-us. University Careers Service: It may feel a bit early, but the Careers Service is a great place to get advice. They offer one-on-one discussions, online materials to help you prepare for job tests and have a large database of advertised jobs: http://www.careers.cam.ac.uk/.
Current campaigns planned for 2018/19 Get in touch if you’d like to organise a campaign with us, or work on one of our campaigns! Graduate Mental Health: Times Higher Education recently reported a ‘mental health crisis among postgraduates’, and referenced a study in which over half of postgraduates surveyed experienced symptoms of psychological distress. Over forty percent of students surveyed felt under constant strain, and other common symptoms included depression, unhappiness and sleeping problems. This is not acceptable. The Graduate Union is running a survey on postgraduate mental health until the beginning of November and holding sessions on mental health and supervisor relationships, and funding and finances. Campaign: https://www.gradunion.cam.ac.uk/MentalHealth. Graduate Rights: Cambridge can be a great place, but expectations and reality don’t always match up, so it’s important to know your rights. Read Cambridge’s ‘code of practice for research students’, available online, and if you have any doubts, speak to our advice service, SUAS, based in our Graduate Union building. Supervisor relationships: for many research students, their relationship with their supervisor is paramount. Read the ‘code of practice’ to make sure you’re aware of your rights in this relationship, in terms of holidays, expectations and fair working practices. Make sure your supervisor has also read the ‘code of practice’! Code of practice: www.cambridgestudents.cam.ac.uk/files/cop_research_1819.pdf There should be no compulsory hidden charges for your course. The cost of your study should be communicated in advance. Get in touch if you’re having problems with previously unexplained costs. See our campaign details here: https://www.gradunion.cam.ac.uk/graduaterights.
Escape the Cambridge bubble! Leave your college and the centre of town and try some of these cafés, restaurants and places of interest around Cambridge. The Old Norfolk Street Bakery: There’s another Norfolk Street Bakery on Station Road, but visit their original location and try their delicious British and Portuguese breads and pastries. Club Polonia: A Polish restaurant off Chesterton Road, come here for tasty pierogi and potato pancakes. They also have an infamously large and exciting Polish vodka menu! La Latina Bustaurante: A Latin-American restaurant in a bus, next to the Cambridge Retail Park. Come and pick up some work supplies or a duvet, and stop by for some empanadas or dulce de leche. Leper Chapel: One of the oldest complete surviving buildings in Cambridge, dating back to around 1125. Visit this amazing chapel/former leprosy hospital, which was formerly the site of the famous Stourbridge Fair, which began in 1211. Cambridge Buddhist Centre: Just off Newmarket Road, this Centre offers free meditation classes and courses on Buddhism. It’s also home to the beautiful Barnwell Theatre, which opened in 1814, and the Centre has an exhibition about the theatre’s fascinating past. Botanic Gardens: University students have free access to the lovely Botanic Gardens! Visit them or work in them. Calverley’s Brewery: A small brewery near Mill Road offering an interesting range of beers and food. Jesus Green Lido: An outdoor pool on Jesus Green. For the summer months, unless you’re brave… Escape rooms – ‘LockHouse’ and ‘Cambridge Escape Rooms’: Cambridge has two sets of ‘escape rooms’, team-based games where players have around an hour to solve a series of puzzles. 196: Try the ‘most innovative cocktails in Cambridge’ at 196 on Mill Road.
The Graduate Union | 17 Mill Lane | Cambridge | CB2 1RX gradunion.cam.ac.uk