UCLifex is proud to present the 2023 Student Experience Awards night!
On Friday 13th October, we recognised and celebrated all the events and efforts by our clubs and societies in 2023.
On Campus Event of the Year
The On Campus Event of the Year honours clubs or societies making a genuine effort towards enhancing the campus culture and providing a vibrant campus experience for students. The on-campus event can be social or a professional development opportunity for students, all on campus club events are eligible big or small.
Highly Commended: UC Stars Rugby League - Tertiary Challenge
Winner: UC Latin American Student Association - Latin Week
This years on campus winner goes to a club that celebrated over a full week of activities – celebrating an incredible culture with diverse events from Monday to Friday, they explored dance, language classes, food, horror stories by the fire, and a full market day at UC.
Off Campus Event of the Year
The Off Campus Event of the Year is designed to recognise clubs and societies that are willing to step outside the comfort of working with UC Life on campus and willing to stage physical events off campus.
Highly Commended: UC Snowsports Club - Falls Creek Trip
Winner: UC Health Clubs (Occupational Therapy, Pharmacy, Physiotherapy, Diagnostic Imaging Association, Nursing, Midwifery and Optometry) - Scrub Crawl
This years winner of the Off Campus Event is a bit of a weird one – we actually have to give it to 8 different clubs for holding an event that helped bring 8 different facets of health together for a ‘Scrub Crawl’ over many different bars and eats in Canberra for our biggest collaboration of clubs ever!
UC Community Engagement Award
The community service award is to honour a club that has contributed to the UC community or has strived to improve connections within the UC community. Community Engagement can be demonstrated in a variety of ways, including clubs volunteering time towards multiple UC events or projects, Orientation Week, Open Day, faculty-led initiatives or even other clubs events at the University.
Highly Commended: UC Kung Fu Assocation
Winner: Rotaract Club of UC
This years winner was born from community engagement, and continues to show that each year, this year including activities such as donating blood, and Rotaract activations in the wider Canberra community.
Club's Choice Award
The Club's Choice award is for club executive members to nominate the Executive team of another club. This executive team must have contributed to the engagement of students within and outside their club and stayed active within their community.
Winner: Canberra Student Pharmacy Association
This years winner has managed to successfully run a number of community engagement events, involving not just themselves but other clubs, and so they’ve been widely noticed for their involvement in the club space.
Social Media Engagement Award
The Social Media Engagement Award is to honour the club that has strived to establish a strong online presence, regularly engaged with their club members online, and made a name for themselves within the broader UC Community.
Highly Commended: UC Latin America Student Association
Winner: UC Outdoors Club
This year's winner has also grown exponentially, showcasing photos of events, having high engagement with their community and postings, consistently sharing content, and also having a Messenger community chat for their club.
Club Upstart Award
The Club Upstart Award is a long running award to recognise the best new club this year. The club must have affiliated for its first time in 2023 and made a genuine contribution to campus culture.
Highly Commended: UC Outdoors Club
Winner: UC Stars Basketball Club
This year’s winner has become one of our largest clubs on campus, particularly in the sporting area. They’ve started their own social competitions, and have gone on to create 2 A Grade Men’s teams and 1 A Grade Women’s team, of which one of the Men’s teams managed to make the Grand Final.
Unsung Hero Award
The Unsung Hero Award is to acknowledge individuals who may not hold a leadership position within their club, but have made a positive impact on the club or society. These are the people who can make a huge impact on leaders and members in the club without realising or asking for acknowledgement.
Highly Commended: Shaun Payne - UC Politics, International Relations and National Security Student Association
Winner: Matt Jolley - UC Outdoors Club
This years winner has been an integral part of the club they are from, working beyond their position to complete various paper works, using their previous knowledge to set up specific activities, organising complete events for the club, completing full risk assessments and attending all club events.
Club Person of the Year
The Club Person of the Year is awarded to a member of the campus community who stands out as having made the most outstanding contribution to their club, the university and the broader community over the course of the year that is above and beyond what is expected of them. This can be any executive committee or club member from the UC Community.
Highly Commended: Reshma Jacob - UC Indian Association
Winner: Claire Bousfield - Canberra Law Student's Society
This year’s winner has been named as the ‘glue’ of their club, consistently striving to bring fun and engaging events to their students. Advocating for social justice, running multiple panel events and creating a safe space for students to come together, as well as being listed as a nominee for Australian Law Student of the Year outside of the club.
President of the Year
The President of the Year award has been established to recognize an outstanding individual who embraces the mission of their club while challenging its executive committee and members to advance new initiatives, acquire new skills, encourages engagement at all levels within the UC community and promotes an environment that inspires others to think outside the box. This can only be achieved if this individual shows great leadership qualities and commitment that spearheads the club and lays the foundations for ongoing success.
Highly Commended: Martin Maldonado - Latin America Student's Association
Winner: Caitlin Grimmer - UC Stars Netball Club
Despite injury, this president has organised sporting events with external parties for the first time, has been hands on with players and teams, organised charity donations to overseas villages and helped organise and raise money for the club through BBQs at sporting games.
Club of the Year
The Club of the Year Awards are divided into four categories reflecting the vast array of clubs on campus. They are: Academic, Sporting, Social and Cultural.
The club of the year is awarded to a club working at its best in each category. These clubs have practiced and refined the ways in which they engage with students and members to create an exceptional student experience.
Academic Club of the Year
Highly Commended: UC Student Led Association of Physiotherapy
Winner: Canberra Law Student's Association
This year’s winner has gone above and beyond what we expect clubs to do, including non-club related events that helped bring awareness to different issues, creating publications to enhance student access and resources regarding their degree, collaborating with ANU to network their members together as well as putting into place a Student Textbook Equity Program, which helped reduce costs for students and textbooks.
Social Club of the Year
Highly Commended: UC Snowsports Club
Winner: UC Outdoors Club
In it’s first year, this club has run so many events we’ve started to lose count – building such a tight-knit community they’ve started running events outside the club that help to foster something intangible. With a range of social and outdoors events to suit different members, this club has been extremely exciting and engaging to watch blossom over the year.
Cultural Club of the Year
Highly Commended: UC Indian Association
Winner: UC Latin American Student Association
This year’s Cultural Club of the Year has been able to create a strong cultural community, full of engaging events, classes, social gatherings, competitions, bowling nights, gaming evenings and collaboration with Fiction and Latin DJs. Besides being heavily involved with Moonlit Markets, they managed to host bonfire stories, barbecues, soccer tournaments with other clubs, a recent full market week and all of this within their first year.
Sport Club of the Year
Highly Commended: UC Stars Ultimate
Winner: UC Stars Basketball Club
This year’s winner has become one of our largest clubs on campus, particularly in the sporting area. They’ve started their own social competitions, and have gone on to create 2 A Grade Men’s teams and 1 A Grade Women’s team, of which one of the Men’s teams managed to make the Grand Final!
