We asked previous winners about their experience receiving an award, why we should celebrate awards this year and their advice to people who aren’t sure about nominating.

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• Name: Halim Kim - Editor-in-chief (President) of the Strand Magazine
• Award: Silver Crown

What did it mean to you winning an award? 

“I felt over the moon as it felt like a compensation of the hard work I put into the society this year. We’ve developed a lot as a society as well – The Strand Magazine received the 2019 Student Publication Awards for best publication in London, we had over 200+ members and we successfully published issues on significant topics such as female empowerment and diversity. This award felt like an acknowledgement of not only what I did as the president but what The Strand Magazine achieved.”

 

What can you say to someone unsure about nominating a club, a society or an individual? 

“For those who are unsure, it’s crucial to nominate a club, society, or an individual for the KCLSU awards as it’s a space to celebrate and thank your members. It’s not easy to balance academic workload alongside a committee role and they should be recognised for it and so should you! It’s important to the KCLSU community as it keeps people motivated to keep going."

 

What’s your favourite thing about Awards

“My favourite thing is nominating my society members and writing down all the great things they achieved this year. It really makes me proud to see what each individual has contributed.”

 

• Name: Ken Besuijen
• Award: Student Representative of the Year

What did it mean to you winning an award?

“Not to be nominated by an organisation but by the very people you’ve worked for all year means the world to me. I had never dreamt about being awarded for my work in any shape or form. Therefore, first the nomination and then the actual winning of the award is an absolute honour to me. It feels extremely good to be appreciated for the things you love most: helping people, cheering them up and organise extracurricular activities to introduce students to London life and its rich history.”

 

What can you say to someone unsure about nominating a club, a society or an individual? 

“With nominating a club, society or individual, you show your appreciation for what they stand for and it is an indirect recommendation for future students to sign up for that club or society. Honouring an individual may inspire future students to make themselves available  for positions alike and contribute to the well-being of students, but foremost to give your peers a voice and help with the continuous development of all what King’s stand for.”

 

What’s your favourite thing about Awards?

“My favourite thing is the fact you are appreciated for something that won’t cost you any energy but means so much to the community you’re active in. I will never forget that I have been recognised for the work I have done and it inspires me to continue doing the same in my future career.”

• Name: Hosna Sherzai - President
• Award: Harris Ahmed Award
• Club: AWS Society (Afghan Welfare Society)

What did it mean to you winning an award?

“It meant heaps. It meant that our hard work as a small group of young student advocates and volunteers had been recognised by the wider student community. It reminded us that the work we do to raise funds for Afghan charity causes and the importance of bringing the diaspora youth together for such a worthy cause is significant and should be celebrated. It was an absolute honour to accept the award on behalf of the huge group of inspirational, young outspoken Afghanistan have established a voice for themselves through this initiative and platform. The award means more than I can articulate.”

 

What can you say to someone unsure about nominating a club, a society or an individual? 

“I’d say, there is no harm in nominating someone you think is doing significant and inspirational work! KCLSU  will judge who seems most worthy of which award. The winning of an award can inspire the students to do more, and continue to collaborate and do more with their extracurricular time! KCLSU clearly do plenty to acknowledge the great work of everyone, maintaining inclusivity on their approach toward meriting achievements.”

 

What’s your favourite thing about Awards?

“My favourite thing about the awards? Winning one, of course! But no, seriously it’s lovely to see what everyone is getting up to and it definitely helps to put different groups and individuals on the map, whilst increasing networking opportunities, as well as, of course, providing recognition for the inspirational work of many.”

 

• Name: Alexandre Deslandes - VP then and President now
• Award: Vice President’s Cup
• Club: KCL Fencing

What did it mean to you winning an award?

“For us, winning the Changemakers Award was a way to promote our effort for diversity and inclusion in the club, and to show the community that as a Club, we are open to fencers of all abilities. We are setting up wheelchair fencing as part of our sessions, and we had to cancel our launch event because of the pandemic, so the Changemaker award was an occasion for us to reflect that, and in a sense confirmed we had succeeded in bringing about positive change in the King's community.”

 

What's your favourite thing about Awards?

“Our favourite thing about Awards is how it brings the Committee together at the end of the year, and how rewarding it is. After a year of hard work, the Awards give us an occasion to reflect on it together and celebrate our achievements and what we have done for the community. Although we couldn't attend the Awards ceremony together as we usually do, this year it was significant to us in bringing us together and concluding the year after an abrupt interruption in March.”

 

What did it mean to you winning an award?

“Being awarded the Vice President's Cup meant a lot to me, as it represents what I tried to do for the King's community and for the club. After dedicating over 150 hours to the KCL Fencing Club, it was gratifying to be recognised as having made a positive impact, in particular helping the club become more inclusive and helping beginners in fencing, also contributing to the most successful fundraiser in club history to help disability sport, and leading a team to an undefeated league run. It will also serve as a reminder to always strive to improve and as president to help my new committee do even more for the community.”

 

• Name: Siddarth Raj - President
• Award: 2020 Club of the year - Full Colours 18/19/20 - Laurel 2019 - Gold Crown 2020
• Club: GKT Cricket Club

What did it mean to you winning an award?

“I was absolutely over the moon to receive awards from KCLSU as it is a privilege to be recognised by the wider KCL community for the work that we have put in for our clubs and societies behind the scenes. In particular, winning a Laurel was an absolute honour as it was great to be recognised for contributing to the KCL community through multiple avenues.”

 

What can you say to someone unsure about nominating a club, a society or an individual? 

“For those who are unsure about nominating a club, a society or an individual, definitely go for it! Personally, it was amazing to see GKT Cricket Club win "Club of the Year" after being a part of the committee since 2017. I know that we have grown leaps and bounds over the last few years by winning multiple competitions, expanding our membership numbers and becoming an overall more holistic club that prioritises charity and well-being. The award was a great reminder of why we all work so hard to improve our club, whether that's on the pitch or off the pitch.”

 

What’s your favourite thing about the Awards?

“I've seen a few of my close friends win awards like Sportsperson of the Year or the Burt Brailsford Award and I know it means a lot to them to have their achievements recognised by the wider KCL community. My favourite aspect of the awards is that its are the culmination of hours of commitment to one's respective sport or society and that can be something as simple as organising extra training sessions or as grand as setting up a collaborative charity event or establishing a new national competition.”

 

We hope that these testimonies made you think of an inspiring person who is having an impact on KCLSU’s and King’s student life! Don’t forget that you have until April 23rd to nominate someone for the KCLSU Awards!

 

NOMINATE SOMEONE AMAZING