NUSSU’S Problem Or Yours?
Do you know you're part of this?
FEATURE by Samantha Ding
Decorative notice boards, an array of pictures, rooms one after another. This is what you see when you make your way down the level six walkway at Yusof Ishak House.
At a glance, you will see find yourself surrounded by brightly coloured notice boards reading “NUS Outdoor Activity Club”, “NUS Entrepreneur Society”, and “NUS Rovers Adventure Club”.
And it does not stop here. Continue walking down the walkway and you will see a different rooms housing different clubs and societies. It is not surprising to see students streaming in and out of these rooms, but not one room.
This one room houses the National University of Singapore Students’ Union (NUSSU) Secretariat.
According to NUS fact sheet, there are currently 26,742 undergraduates enrolled in NUS. Every undergraduate pays a compulsory fee of $24 per annum as union subscription fees. This means that NUSSU collects $641,808 from its students each year.
It is ironic that students pay NUSSU a subscription fee each year and yet some are unaware of who they are and what they do.
A member of NUSSU
“I am?” This was freshmen Cheryl’s Tan reply when asked if she knew she is a member of NUSSU.
Some undergraduates do not even know that they are members of NUSSU. How can students be aware of what NUSSU does for them when they do not even realize that they are part of this student body?
With a baffled look, second-year student, Sitoh Pak Meng said, “I thought they were just another CCA that were in charge of NUS activities. I always thought you have to join NUSSU in order to be part of them.”
It is obvious that to some students, NUSSU is commonly portrayed as an isolated entity, separate from them. Also, they seem to be “up there rather than down here,” according to Lena Teo, a year 2 Geography major.
There’s always a time for publicity
Even for students who know that they are members of NUSSU, some are unaware of the things NUSSU does. A possible reason could be the lack of publicity.
NUSSU seems to have the problem of hiding themselves in the dark, not revealing what they have done for students and what they can do for them.
“It is like I know NUSSU exists but I cannot see them, they seem to be always behind the scene. I am interested to know what NUSSU has done for students but I just do not know how,” said Teo.
Nicole Kang, a writer for The Ridge, said, “Honestly, NUSSU doesn’t publicize a lot. I sit through meetings so I know what they do.”
Over the past few years, NUSSU has made efforts to publicize their events through sending students emails but not all students read their emails. In fact, many delete their emails. Some view NUSSU emails as spam and delete them, some feel that these emails are superfluous.
This year, NUSSU’s publications cell has made effort to increase their publicity channels by introducing a union book for freshmen and revamping their websites. Of course, there is a limit to how much NUSSU can do because they will appear to be a show off if they over publicize.
With two years of experience as NUSSU’s publications secretary, Tan Heng Wee has a greater understanding regarding NUSSU’s lack of publicity and he has formulated several new plans to address this issue.
Tan said, “NUSSU has plans to improve on our publicity. For example, we plan to take a video of the various concerns students have and collate it into a video. This video will be uploaded on YouTube and we hope to make it viral among students.”
Student apathy
“I don’t care”, “I don’t feel compelled”, and “I am just apathetic.”
Another reason why students are unaware of the things NUSSU does—pure apathy.
It is not surprising to see student apathy prevalent among undergraduates because many enter university to study and not to advocate student welfare.
“It does not make a difference if I am a member or not because I do not see a need to be involved,” Sharon Lee, a second-year Nursing student said.
There is simply no reason for students to care about what NUSSU does and who NUSSU is when they perceive themselves as a separate body from them.
It is interesting to see how third-year School of Design and Environment student Louis Lu gave an analogy as to how being a member of NUSSU is equivalent to being involved in the General Elections. He believed that one would only be concerned about what is happening if you feel that you belong.
“I am concerned in the general elections because I have a voting right and it concerns me,” he said.
Relating it back to being a member of NUSSU, Lu said, “I am not empowered with any rights. What good does it make to be a member of NUSSU? That’s the source of my apathy.”
Nipping the problem
So what really is the problem?
It could be student apathy. It could be a lack of publicity. It could be both.
With the newly elected NUSSU president and intentional efforts to improve publicity this academic year, one can look forward to a change in the current situation.
Decorative notice boards, an array of pictures, rooms one after another. This is what you see when you make your way down the level six walkway at Yusof Ishak House.
At a glance, you will see find yourself surrounded by brightly coloured notice boards reading “NUS Outdoor Activity Club”, “NUS Entrepreneur Society”, and “NUS Rovers Adventure Club”.
And it does not stop here. Continue walking down the walkway and you will see a different rooms housing different clubs and societies. It is not surprising to see students streaming in and out of these rooms, but not one room.
This one room houses the National University of Singapore Students’ Union (NUSSU) Secretariat.
According to NUS fact sheet, there are currently 26,742 undergraduates enrolled in NUS. Every undergraduate pays a compulsory fee of $24 per annum as union subscription fees. This means that NUSSU collects $641,808 from its students each year.
It is ironic that students pay NUSSU a subscription fee each year and yet some are unaware of who they are and what they do.
A member of NUSSU
“I am?” This was freshmen Cheryl’s Tan reply when asked if she knew she is a member of NUSSU.
Some undergraduates do not even know that they are members of NUSSU. How can students be aware of what NUSSU does for them when they do not even realize that they are part of this student body?
With a baffled look, second-year student, Sitoh Pak Meng said, “I thought they were just another CCA that were in charge of NUS activities. I always thought you have to join NUSSU in order to be part of them.”
It is obvious that to some students, NUSSU is commonly portrayed as an isolated entity, separate from them. Also, they seem to be “up there rather than down here,” according to Lena Teo, a year 2 Geography major.
There’s always a time for publicity
Even for students who know that they are members of NUSSU, some are unaware of the things NUSSU does. A possible reason could be the lack of publicity.
NUSSU seems to have the problem of hiding themselves in the dark, not revealing what they have done for students and what they can do for them.
“It is like I know NUSSU exists but I cannot see them, they seem to be always behind the scene. I am interested to know what NUSSU has done for students but I just do not know how,” said Teo.
Nicole Kang, a writer for The Ridge, said, “Honestly, NUSSU doesn’t publicize a lot. I sit through meetings so I know what they do.”
Over the past few years, NUSSU has made efforts to publicize their events through sending students emails but not all students read their emails. In fact, many delete their emails. Some view NUSSU emails as spam and delete them, some feel that these emails are superfluous.
This year, NUSSU’s publications cell has made effort to increase their publicity channels by introducing a union book for freshmen and revamping their websites. Of course, there is a limit to how much NUSSU can do because they will appear to be a show off if they over publicize.
With two years of experience as NUSSU’s publications secretary, Tan Heng Wee has a greater understanding regarding NUSSU’s lack of publicity and he has formulated several new plans to address this issue.
Tan said, “NUSSU has plans to improve on our publicity. For example, we plan to take a video of the various concerns students have and collate it into a video. This video will be uploaded on YouTube and we hope to make it viral among students.”
Student apathy
“I don’t care”, “I don’t feel compelled”, and “I am just apathetic.”
Another reason why students are unaware of the things NUSSU does—pure apathy.
It is not surprising to see student apathy prevalent among undergraduates because many enter university to study and not to advocate student welfare.
“It does not make a difference if I am a member or not because I do not see a need to be involved,” Sharon Lee, a second-year Nursing student said.
There is simply no reason for students to care about what NUSSU does and who NUSSU is when they perceive themselves as a separate body from them.
It is interesting to see how third-year School of Design and Environment student Louis Lu gave an analogy as to how being a member of NUSSU is equivalent to being involved in the General Elections. He believed that one would only be concerned about what is happening if you feel that you belong.
“I am concerned in the general elections because I have a voting right and it concerns me,” he said.
Relating it back to being a member of NUSSU, Lu said, “I am not empowered with any rights. What good does it make to be a member of NUSSU? That’s the source of my apathy.”
Nipping the problem
So what really is the problem?
It could be student apathy. It could be a lack of publicity. It could be both.
With the newly elected NUSSU president and intentional efforts to improve publicity this academic year, one can look forward to a change in the current situation.