Education Analysis
By University Observer | Mar 6 2017
THE role of the Education officer is more about working with committees and keeping abreast of the endless school guidelines than being the face of the Union. For both candidates, they stand a decent chance of doing a good job once in the role.Nonetheless, neither candidate impressed when pressed with questions. While Sweeney may indeed suit the role if he’s elected, a lot of work has to be done when it comes to conveying his ideas and message. The ideas are there, in regards to his ambitious “moving careers fair” though it will take work for it to differentiate from what the role is already mandated to do.Sweeney pledges to lobby for more money – as does Gorman Climax – though that task is certainly easier said than done. Sweeney is quite realistic in his view of resit fees, looking to have them capped as opposed to cut. While cuts are echoed by many candidates, Sweeney’s plan may be more attainable.He also wants to deliver on more “up-skilling” courses. While he quotes the barista and mixology workshops that proved immensely popular, his proposed touch typing workshop is unlikely to generate that kind of interest. Other career-focused workshops like CV writing have struggled for attendances in the past.Gorman Climax seems capable for the role, however it is clear he needs to work on his ideas. Ideas like a “university grind scheme” proved to be a last-minute idea, and his thoughts on it quickly crumbled after some questions. He cites a number of issues he overcame in Engineering, but whether he can translate that to the Education role remains to be seen.Much of Gorman Climax’s argument falls back on lobbying, which again, is a monumental task. Unlike candidates in the other races, he is pushing for quality over lower fees.