Just as you are members of your students’ union, your students’ union is a member of NUS. Through your local union you get access to all of NUS’ services. The most visible and obvious one is the NUS card which gives you access to literally tens of thousands of discounts. The NUS card you receive at the start of your university career is a national identity card that guarantees great discounts in museums, art galleries, cinemas, theatres, travel agents and many clothes shops and outlets, both national and locally. There are also special deals for students through Endsleigh Insurance, the insurance company originally set up by NUS to provide cheap and secure insurance for students.

Your students’ union also takes responsibility for the social side of student life and other activities outside studying. The events, clubs and societies in your union will be diverse and hopefully inspiring enough for you to get involved! Some of the things students unions organise are: entertainments; student radio and TV stations, websites and publications; any kind of sport from ping-pong to water-skiing; training for your future career. All are there for you and we hope you make the most of them.

The diversity and various interests of the student group are represented by NUS. Every union has student officers who are elected each year by you, the student members of your university and they are there to represent you and your needs. If you have anything you’d like to discuss or change about your union or university then you can talk to the student officers about it. Around 1,500 of these representatives meet at our National Conference each year at Easter to decide policy and elect the NUS executive. There are also conferences in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. If you get involved in your students’ union this year, you could be there too.
Your students’ union represents you at local level to the management of your institution, but NUS also represents you and your students’ union at national level to government, Parliament, the media and other opinion informers and decision makers. NUS employs a team of researchers who specialise in different areas of student life, from housing to student funding to women’s issues. We also have a team of solicitors who can give you and your local union free legal advice. NUS trains over 3,000 student officer every year and the chances are that your students’ union officers are among them.

Services for International Students
Most universities and colleges will have an individual International Students Society where you and other students from overseas can meet and support each other. As an international student, your experience of studying in the UK will perhaps differ from students living in Britain. As well as studying for a degree, you’ll be dealing with a new culture and might find the British teaching methods and ways of doing things different, so its often helpful to have the support of a society to know that its not just you who’s new here!

There is also an organisation called UKCOSA (UK Council for Overseas Student Affairs) who help students coming in from abroad. They offer information about living in the UK and advice about everyday problems such as setting up bank accounts. If you’d like to get in touch with them, their address is:

UKCOSA
9-17 St Albans Place,
London N1 0NX.

One of the most recent focuses of NUS has been the Regeneration Campaign, which aims to increase the involvement of international students, mature students and others in their unions. Part of this campaign’s aim is to try and see more international students elected to sabbatical roles in their local students’ unions, helping them to extend their visas, and encouraging their involvement.

NUS is a union which is here for you and we hope that you make the most of it. However you chose to spend your time studying in the UK, I wish you all the best for the future.