Meet the new Research Assistant at FSL!
Hey everyone! I am Tiya Prajapat, doing my placement with FSL for the year 26-27. I come from India and have been studying psychology at the University of Bath. It has been an amazing 2 years here with all the experiences, good and bad, I have been a part of. It has had a hand in making me become a stronger and more confident version of myself!
Work experience and skills -
I have had a lot of firsts within University of Bath, maybe because I did not feel discriminated against based on my background, color or gender. I started my first part time job as a food and beverage assistant on campus and so far it has been amazing! I was also a peer mentor last year which was quite fun as I had never been in a position where I was the guide trying to help students understand and figure out academics, extra-curriculars and uni life in general. I felt responsible for the students allocated to my group and making sure they could always ask away anything to me without the fear of being judged. It was also fun to let out about the bunch of events hosted by Student Union(SU) and let them in on the horrors of the library especially during exam times!
My most memorable but at the same time most stressful time spent at University was as the Chair of Bath Indian Dance Society. This was my first leadership role and I am proud to say I faced every hurdle with courage. Having to take up the work of 2 core committee members after they dropped out in the initial weeks of University was quite tough but having my lovely committee members helping me out made it easier. One lesson this role taught me was to always be ready for plans not working out and to be able to come up with solutions during that time while staying resilient and maintaining the team’s morale. The time I spent serving as the Chair has helped me build confidence, problem solving, communication, organisation and team-work skills.
My most recent work experience is working as the Freshers Week Captain under 2 amazing managers along with a lovely team of 70 other captains! It has been a pleasure to host and run events throughout freshers week and also interact with freshers to make sure they settle down comfortably. Arrivals weekend was one of the highlights as we got to take pizzas to freshers in order to have a chat with them and let them know about all the amazing events planned for them. Awards ceremony for Freshers Week Captains at the end of the week was also a highlight as I won 4 awards and also got to celebrate the success of the events with my fellow captains!
My targets for FSL -
Being a woman of colour and coming from a society where patriarchy is still majorly considered the norm, I have faced and seen discrimination happening in certain situations and day to day life. Joining FSL hence has been one of the best decisions as it allows me to contribute in ways which might help diminish and hopefully dismantle the patriarchal society. As I have joined FSL, I plan on using the skills I have acquired in the previous years to contribute and help build FSL further. It has been about 3 years since the launch of FSL; therefore, I would like to work on expanding the reach of FSL across universities and social media via reaching out to sports clubs and societies which advocate for equal opportunities irrespective of gender. If possible, I would love to plan and organise a conference with students from sports clubs and students with sport majors in University of Bath along with FSL members to increase awareness of what FSL truly means and what it stands for amongst the younger generation. Apart from this, I will also be assisting the FSL members, Sheree and Stephen, in their research while simultaneously working on my own little research project. Understanding how to apply and submit applications to receive funding is another agenda on my placement’s learning list!