with.....Rosie Coleman

I’m Rosie Coleman and before being elected as LSE Students’ Union’s Education Officer for 2013-14, I studied International Relations at LSE. I’m originally from a village in the beautiful Cambridgeshire countryside and I’m the youngest in a family of loud, opinionated individuals! I love singing, and was a member of LSESU Houghtones Acapella group throughout my undergraduate degree. I now sing for London Youth Gospel Choir and I’m attempting to learn to play the ukulele (since my brother and sister-in-law bought me one for Christmas!). I’m a passionate feminist and I’m taking part in the NUS ‘I will lead the way’ project to encourage more women to stand for Students' Union leadership positions.

What are your main responsibilities as LSESU Education Officer?

I'm LSE students’ main representative on academic affairs, sole SU representative on a number of committees including the Academic Student Affairs Committee, and the lead voice on student concerns at Academic Board. I work closely with academics and the Directorate to keep students up to date on any changes proposed by the School to ensure they're involved in the discussions. I've created a Course Rep Congress which will give SSLC reps a chance to dissect agendas of Academic Board meetings. I wanted to work for LSE students as during my time here I didn’t think students’ views were sufficiently considered when decisions were being made by departments or the School, and I believe students deserve better. I'm currently lobbying academics on School wide proposals such as Teaching Task Force 2, and working on a number of projects with departments and the School's services, such as TLC and CLT, to bring student opinions into all parts of the School, as well as working hard to build a stronger network of course representatives. As one of the full time Sabbatical Officer team, I also spend a lot of time strategising about the Union’s direction and planning student experiences such as orientation week and the launch of the new building.

Please tell us more about the LSESU Graduate Journal.

The Graduate Journal is a new initiative by the SU, and my baby. I launched it in November 2013 with support from the Annual Fund and we now have a full editorial committee and two incredible co-editors. The Journal is an opportunity for LSE research students to publish and edit in a safe environment and gain skills and exposure alongside some of LSE's most prolific academics which will prepare them for the more daunting world of global research journals. The theme of the first edition (Power) was selected by Professor Calhoun. I'm excited to see where the fantastic committee and co-editors take it in the future. If any postgraduate students want to submit an article for the first edition, please visit www.lsesugraduatejournal.co.uk for more information - the deadline is fast approaching!

What was your favourite subject at school?

I had two favourites: history and chemistry, a juxtaposition I could never resolve. I had a fantastic history teacher in secondary school, who was the saving grace to what was otherwise a pretty dodgy school experience! She made me passionate about her subject and had an amazing ability to engage every student. I was incredibly lucky to be taught by her, and I will always have a secret love for the British Civil War and the Tudor monarchy! I also loved chemistry, and was one of only six girls in my class who wanted to study it at GCSE or A Level. I nearly studied chemistry at university because I loved its structure and theory (I so wanted to go to Imperial) but I realised just in time that it wouldn’t lead to the life I wanted, so I opted for the humanities side of my brain. International Relations at LSE had the right combination of global history, theoretical knowledge and my opinions - anyone who knows me knows I have lots of these!

What are the best and worst presents you have ever received?

I got a hamster for my 11th birthday and I’d always wanted a pet so that was pretty sweet. I could finally stop pretending to be a cat to persuade my parents of the benefits of furry family members! The worst present probably has to be a strange stacking cups game I got aged about 15, even though the suggested age was something under 10 years. Bad presents are always good donations to charity shops anyway and I’m sure the child who bought them had a great time – silver linings!

What is your ambition in life?

My ambition is to die knowing that I’ve helped make the world a better place. That sounds horribly clichéd, but I genuinely think mankind has huge problems to solve, and I can’t wait to be part of the effort to find solutions that will benefit our global population as a whole and not just the lucky, wealthy members.