THE GOWN ACCEPTS THAT POINTS MADE ON PAGE 13 OF THE MARCH/APRIL ISSUE WERE MISTAKES AND WE REFER YOU TO AN EMAIL FROM VP EDUCATION KEVIN KELLY.
To whom it may concern,
Your article on Page 13 of the newest issue of the Gown concerning the upcoming elections in the Union contains several mistakes which I feel should be corrected.
The first being relevant to me and my post. The article states that I PROMISED to get rid of repeat examinations in August. Firstly, if you take a look at my manifesto you will see that not only did I not "promise" ("As Vice-President of Education I will eagerly campaign"), but I never even said that I would try to get rid of repeat examinations in August. I said that I will try to have repeat examinations included in the May timetable AS WELL AS the August one. I would like this corrected. Negotiations are ongoing within both the Education and Welfare Committee of Student Council, and between myself and Pro-Vice Chancellor Ken Brown.
The opening lines of the article have the dates of the elections wrong, saying "2nd and 3rd" when it is actually 3rd and 4th.
Under VP Community it says that the post was introduced in 2007/2008, when it was actually 2008/2009. Also you have not included the name of candidate Shane Boylan for VP Community, a rather large and unfair mistake.
Under VP Welfare it says that the post was held by Ciarnan Helferty in 2006/2007, when it was actually 2007/2008 when Ciarnan had this job. Also the name of candidate Susan Kearney is spelled incorrectly.
Under VPCS you have included Shane Boylan as a candidate in this election which will prove detrimental not only to Shane's chances of winning VP Community but also to other candidates in the VPCS election.
I hope that these mistakes are taken into consideration the next time the Gown is published and thoroughly proof-read for such errors before any mud is slung my way for 'failing to fulfill my "promises"'.
Thankyou,
Kevin.
Thursday, 26 February 2009
QUB: No Irish Need Apply
A shocking discovery made by The Gown in recent weeks has unearthed racial inequality on the part of QUB. The Management School, one of the university’s leading bodies, took the seemingly innocuous decision to advertise a bursary for their postgraduate programmes. However, said bursaries were for GB students only, that is, students from England, Scotland and Wales. Thus excluding students from Northern Ireland, The Republic of Ireland and Europe.
The Gown can confirm that QUB have since retraced their steps, and have made applications for the bursary open to all students. Meanwhile, the controversial GB clause has been amended on new advertisements detailing the bursary, and QUB have done their utmost to remove old fliers from the campus.
However, when The Gown spoke to a Management School representative on 4th February, the original rules of eligibility were still in place. To quote the initial conditions: “Queen’s University Management School is offering 5 MSc Scholarships for Great Britain students enrolling on any full-time postgraduate taught programme within the School for September 2009 entry.” The flier then goes on to say, “All Great Britain applicants who apply for the full-time MSc programmes will automatically be considered.”
The Gown spoke to the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland which, after a long discussion, concluded that it did not have sufficient details on the case to comment. Undeterred, The Gown spoke to a leading representative from the School of Law on the legality of the matter. Given the fact that there exists no legitimate aim or reason for stipulating that GB students need only apply, the Management School have left themselves susceptible to claims of discrimination.
Now that the fliers and advertisements have been amended and extended to all home and EU students, eligibility is solely based on academic performance. This does indeed sit more comfortably with QUB’s self portrait as a Russell Group institution. No other school within the university has ever incurred such controversy in relation to rules of eligibility, as all schools rely predominantly on academic performance.
When The Gown quizzed senior employees from the Management School, they were extremely hesitant to speak on the matter. The first person we spoke to simply stated, “I don’t know”. The Marketing and External Relations officer of the school remained extremely evasive on the matter. When pursued for comment, said representative dismissed The Gown’s rights of enquiry. At this conjecture then, The Gown wishes to reiterate that it stands independent from the University, and is simply continuing the newspaper’s responsibility to hold the institution to account.
When asked whether or not the old fliers had been successfully retrieved from universities in GB, The School’s representative said: “I cannot answer that.” When further pressed for an answer to that question, and why indeed such a rule was implicated in the first place, the lady in question told The Gown, “I am not having this conversation with you. The important
thing for you to know is that all students are now eligible.”
The Management School, it seems, does not know whether the old fliers, which include the discriminatory rules, are actually completely out of circulation. They also refused to inform The Gown why these rules were implemented in the first place.
We spoke to a student from Co. Tyrone who was outraged at the prospect of being discriminated against. “I cannot believe that the university would have the audacity to tell me I am not eligible for a bursary when I have performed very well academically. I should have as much chance as anyone else to receive a bursary for a postgraduate course which offers financial help.”
The Gown suspects that this oversight may have been part of
a bid to enhance the university’s status on the Mainland. After all, it has been suggested that QUB were welcomed into the Russell Group for nothing more than geographical balance.
Shane Brogan, VP Equality and Diversity told The Gown, “I was stunned when I heard about the actions of the Management School. It is absolutely disgraceful that they intended to discriminate against students in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. It seems unbelievable that they thought that this was within the law.”
Indeed, it remains to be seen how QUB intend to remain an institution of esteem; and how, or if, its individual schools will ever ‘manage’ to live up to such a portrayal.
The Gown can confirm that QUB have since retraced their steps, and have made applications for the bursary open to all students. Meanwhile, the controversial GB clause has been amended on new advertisements detailing the bursary, and QUB have done their utmost to remove old fliers from the campus.
However, when The Gown spoke to a Management School representative on 4th February, the original rules of eligibility were still in place. To quote the initial conditions: “Queen’s University Management School is offering 5 MSc Scholarships for Great Britain students enrolling on any full-time postgraduate taught programme within the School for September 2009 entry.” The flier then goes on to say, “All Great Britain applicants who apply for the full-time MSc programmes will automatically be considered.”
The Gown spoke to the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland which, after a long discussion, concluded that it did not have sufficient details on the case to comment. Undeterred, The Gown spoke to a leading representative from the School of Law on the legality of the matter. Given the fact that there exists no legitimate aim or reason for stipulating that GB students need only apply, the Management School have left themselves susceptible to claims of discrimination.
Now that the fliers and advertisements have been amended and extended to all home and EU students, eligibility is solely based on academic performance. This does indeed sit more comfortably with QUB’s self portrait as a Russell Group institution. No other school within the university has ever incurred such controversy in relation to rules of eligibility, as all schools rely predominantly on academic performance.
When The Gown quizzed senior employees from the Management School, they were extremely hesitant to speak on the matter. The first person we spoke to simply stated, “I don’t know”. The Marketing and External Relations officer of the school remained extremely evasive on the matter. When pursued for comment, said representative dismissed The Gown’s rights of enquiry. At this conjecture then, The Gown wishes to reiterate that it stands independent from the University, and is simply continuing the newspaper’s responsibility to hold the institution to account.
When asked whether or not the old fliers had been successfully retrieved from universities in GB, The School’s representative said: “I cannot answer that.” When further pressed for an answer to that question, and why indeed such a rule was implicated in the first place, the lady in question told The Gown, “I am not having this conversation with you. The important
thing for you to know is that all students are now eligible.”
The Management School, it seems, does not know whether the old fliers, which include the discriminatory rules, are actually completely out of circulation. They also refused to inform The Gown why these rules were implemented in the first place.
We spoke to a student from Co. Tyrone who was outraged at the prospect of being discriminated against. “I cannot believe that the university would have the audacity to tell me I am not eligible for a bursary when I have performed very well academically. I should have as much chance as anyone else to receive a bursary for a postgraduate course which offers financial help.”
The Gown suspects that this oversight may have been part of
a bid to enhance the university’s status on the Mainland. After all, it has been suggested that QUB were welcomed into the Russell Group for nothing more than geographical balance.
Shane Brogan, VP Equality and Diversity told The Gown, “I was stunned when I heard about the actions of the Management School. It is absolutely disgraceful that they intended to discriminate against students in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. It seems unbelievable that they thought that this was within the law.”
Indeed, it remains to be seen how QUB intend to remain an institution of esteem; and how, or if, its individual schools will ever ‘manage’ to live up to such a portrayal.
We're Back!
The March/April copy of The Gown is now available from all the usual pick-up points. Apologies for abandoning the blog for the past month, but expect us to well and truly make it up to you all with numerous articles posted for comment and debate.
Enjoy...and debate wisely!
Enjoy...and debate wisely!
Wednesday, 24 December 2008
Good Tidings we Bring!
The entire Gown team would like to wish the student population of QUB a very safe and happy Christmas, and we look forward to a new year of news, opinion, scandal (We certainly hope so!) and top class academia!
Have a Gownie Christmas!
Have a Gownie Christmas!
QUB - Officially an Esteemed University at the Top
With the recent release of the UK-wide Research Assessment Exercise, QUB has been celebrating its success as a leading University in the UK.
A member of the esteemed Russell Group, QUB can now boast that it has been firmly placed in the top 20 universities in the UK in terms of research.
Leading achievements in particular schools include Medicine and Dentistry, Engineering, Music and English.
While this success is a key endorsement of QUB’s prestige, The Gown begs the question as to whether such success will sway the decision of Queen’s to support its peers within the Russell Group and campaign for the cap to be removed on tuition fees?
For more on the possibility of higher tuition fees, check out the front page story in the November issue.
A member of the esteemed Russell Group, QUB can now boast that it has been firmly placed in the top 20 universities in the UK in terms of research.
Leading achievements in particular schools include Medicine and Dentistry, Engineering, Music and English.
While this success is a key endorsement of QUB’s prestige, The Gown begs the question as to whether such success will sway the decision of Queen’s to support its peers within the Russell Group and campaign for the cap to be removed on tuition fees?
For more on the possibility of higher tuition fees, check out the front page story in the November issue.
Tuesday, 2 December 2008
SRC Meeting Thursday 27th November 2008
The first Student Representative Council meeting of the year took place on Thursday 27th November. Lasting almost four hours, the meeting was a combination of two meetings due to the cancellation of the meeting scheduled for Tuesday 11th November. Due to the absence of Stephen McIlveen, Jay Downs acted as temporary speaker on the night, and Fergus McAleavey VP Welfare was unavoidably absent due to work commitments in London.
After nominations were cast by the council for various positions, the main issues were then put forward for discussion. Each Student Executive member was requested to submit a report previous to the meeting which was then challenged by the council. Paul Courtney VP Clubs and Services, and Kevin Kelly VP Education faced more questions from the council than any of the other Executive members. Shane Brogan VP Equality and Diversity, took this section of the meeting as an opportunity to praise his colleague Laura Hawthorne VP Community. He told council that over the past few months he has witnessed Hawthorne's dedication and unrelenting determination to fulfill her job to the best of her potential. This was then seconded by a member of council.
President Ciarnan Helferty was asked to explain what perks the Executive members receive from the Union due to their positions of responsibility. He told council that members receive tickets for Mandela Hall on Mondays and Thursdays by way of contacting Rod Martin in the early part of the day, and then purchasing their tickets at the porters' desk. Other perks included entrance to gigs taking place in Mandela Hall.
Speaking about the infamous Qsis system, President Helferty commented that the failure of the system has effected everyone, and that students should expect to receive an email which will include an explanation and an apology within the next few days. He added that there wasn't one single member of the QUB staff that was not aware of students' concerns in regard to the system.
Paul Courtney promised that a fully functional Resource Centre will be opened by the start of next semester, and revealed intentions of applying to the Alumni Fund for a grant.
When questioned on his removal from the Union by security staff, James Murphy VP Campaigns and Communications assured council that he had apologised to the staff involved, and commented that since the incident he had been “sticking to the orange juice”. He went on to defend his editorial in The SU Magazine by asserting that all comments were made in jest, and that the purpose of the magazine was to entertain. When council member Joe Corina asked Murphy if he thought he had acted maturely in regard to the magazine and if he expected people to take it seriously, Murphy replied that he had merely used the everyday language of QUB students. At this stage, Seamy Og Mac Giolla Cheara pointed out that the magazine printed a disclaimer, and so Murphy cannot be held accountable for the views expressed in the magazine. Paul Courtney also commented that the Irish News and Belfast Telegraph refer to the “Poly” in sports reports. A member of Dance Committee raised his hand to offer a point of information at the end of this section of the meeting, in order to point out that Murphy allegedly did not apologise to the security staff involved in his removal from the Union. Dominic Doherty, Deputy General Manager, dissmissed this point as irrelevant.
Next on the agenda was still on the topic of The SU Magazine, and this time it was in regard to the photo which was included alongside Anne Pauli's abortion article. Murphy accepted responsibility for this, citing it as an overseen mistake in which there was absolutely no intention to insult. Council member Joe Corina took this opportunity to commend Murphy on his willingness to apologise and accept responsibility. Anne Pauli spoke to The Gown after the meeting and put forward her certainty that his decision to include the photo was not an accident and that it was a massive insult to German people. She went on to say, “It's a reflection on society. When Iris Robinson wasn't removed from office for her homosexual slurs, then why should James Murphy be removed for his insults?”
Next council meeting will take place on Thursday 4th December 6pm in The Space.
ALL STUDENTS WELCOME.
After nominations were cast by the council for various positions, the main issues were then put forward for discussion. Each Student Executive member was requested to submit a report previous to the meeting which was then challenged by the council. Paul Courtney VP Clubs and Services, and Kevin Kelly VP Education faced more questions from the council than any of the other Executive members. Shane Brogan VP Equality and Diversity, took this section of the meeting as an opportunity to praise his colleague Laura Hawthorne VP Community. He told council that over the past few months he has witnessed Hawthorne's dedication and unrelenting determination to fulfill her job to the best of her potential. This was then seconded by a member of council.
President Ciarnan Helferty was asked to explain what perks the Executive members receive from the Union due to their positions of responsibility. He told council that members receive tickets for Mandela Hall on Mondays and Thursdays by way of contacting Rod Martin in the early part of the day, and then purchasing their tickets at the porters' desk. Other perks included entrance to gigs taking place in Mandela Hall.
Speaking about the infamous Qsis system, President Helferty commented that the failure of the system has effected everyone, and that students should expect to receive an email which will include an explanation and an apology within the next few days. He added that there wasn't one single member of the QUB staff that was not aware of students' concerns in regard to the system.
Paul Courtney promised that a fully functional Resource Centre will be opened by the start of next semester, and revealed intentions of applying to the Alumni Fund for a grant.
When questioned on his removal from the Union by security staff, James Murphy VP Campaigns and Communications assured council that he had apologised to the staff involved, and commented that since the incident he had been “sticking to the orange juice”. He went on to defend his editorial in The SU Magazine by asserting that all comments were made in jest, and that the purpose of the magazine was to entertain. When council member Joe Corina asked Murphy if he thought he had acted maturely in regard to the magazine and if he expected people to take it seriously, Murphy replied that he had merely used the everyday language of QUB students. At this stage, Seamy Og Mac Giolla Cheara pointed out that the magazine printed a disclaimer, and so Murphy cannot be held accountable for the views expressed in the magazine. Paul Courtney also commented that the Irish News and Belfast Telegraph refer to the “Poly” in sports reports. A member of Dance Committee raised his hand to offer a point of information at the end of this section of the meeting, in order to point out that Murphy allegedly did not apologise to the security staff involved in his removal from the Union. Dominic Doherty, Deputy General Manager, dissmissed this point as irrelevant.
Next on the agenda was still on the topic of The SU Magazine, and this time it was in regard to the photo which was included alongside Anne Pauli's abortion article. Murphy accepted responsibility for this, citing it as an overseen mistake in which there was absolutely no intention to insult. Council member Joe Corina took this opportunity to commend Murphy on his willingness to apologise and accept responsibility. Anne Pauli spoke to The Gown after the meeting and put forward her certainty that his decision to include the photo was not an accident and that it was a massive insult to German people. She went on to say, “It's a reflection on society. When Iris Robinson wasn't removed from office for her homosexual slurs, then why should James Murphy be removed for his insults?”
Next council meeting will take place on Thursday 4th December 6pm in The Space.
ALL STUDENTS WELCOME.
Attention all Students...
ARE YOUR PERSONAL DETAILS STILL PERSONAL?
A QUB student warns of what can happen when you fail to be meticulous about keeping your details infinitely personal...
When the first loan installment arrives in September we all sign up to new services, new clubs, and new societies. As students, we live in halls or a shared house, where everyone has access to everyone else’s mail, and we regularly check our all-revealing Facebook/bebo profile pages. Little do we know that, in doing this, we become a gift to identity fraudsters.
Personal identity these days means much more than your name, address and telephone number. With the amount of door to door and online services available, we have a host of crucial login details, account numbers, passwords and pin numbers to remember. But it will never happen to you, right?
Imagine my horror last year when I realised that my weekly food shop would not go through at the local supermarket, because someone had stolen my identity through tracking my use of a public computer and taken £900 from my bank account. I had no money and faced weeks of phonecalls to make sure the banks insurance could cover the fraud. It cost me much more than expected, not to mention the stress caused during a very busy term time which became almost unbearable.
You’ve probably guessed that there’s a moral to this story. Always stop and question yourself when giving out your personal details. Think - Is the environment I am in secure? Can I really trust giving out my details in this instance? There’s only one simple answer if there’s even a shadow of a doubt over the answer to this. Protect yourself - or you could find yourself like I was; £900 down and not a happy bunny.
A QUB student warns of what can happen when you fail to be meticulous about keeping your details infinitely personal...
When the first loan installment arrives in September we all sign up to new services, new clubs, and new societies. As students, we live in halls or a shared house, where everyone has access to everyone else’s mail, and we regularly check our all-revealing Facebook/bebo profile pages. Little do we know that, in doing this, we become a gift to identity fraudsters.
Personal identity these days means much more than your name, address and telephone number. With the amount of door to door and online services available, we have a host of crucial login details, account numbers, passwords and pin numbers to remember. But it will never happen to you, right?
Imagine my horror last year when I realised that my weekly food shop would not go through at the local supermarket, because someone had stolen my identity through tracking my use of a public computer and taken £900 from my bank account. I had no money and faced weeks of phonecalls to make sure the banks insurance could cover the fraud. It cost me much more than expected, not to mention the stress caused during a very busy term time which became almost unbearable.
You’ve probably guessed that there’s a moral to this story. Always stop and question yourself when giving out your personal details. Think - Is the environment I am in secure? Can I really trust giving out my details in this instance? There’s only one simple answer if there’s even a shadow of a doubt over the answer to this. Protect yourself - or you could find yourself like I was; £900 down and not a happy bunny.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
