Eva Curran was first elected President of Strath Union in June 2023. In her first term, she saved Strathclyde students £800,000 on rent. “That was probably what I was most proud of,” Curran, a recent Strathclyde graduate, says in Roasters.
As the “main point of contact” between the University and its students, she successfully negotiated with the University when it had planned to raise student accommodation prices. It was just one part of her drive to “push forward students’ wants and needs in those conversations” with the University.
Curran now works to bring that motivation into the 2024-25 academic year with further plans to revitalise student life after Covid. “A lot of the work I’m doing is on community building,” she says. “We’ve got a new generation of students that almost don’t know how to be students because they’ve not got anyone showing them the way.”
Curran experienced that herself. Her path to becoming Strath Union President ranged from pulling pints behind the Union bar to joining Strathsnow on a whim. It is the type of journey she is strongly encouraging incoming Strathclyders to embark on this September.
If there is one thing she wishes she knew before starting university, it would be to “take every opportunity available to you,” she says. “Join every society, go to the club try-out days and just engage with everything, every opportunity that’s available to you, because you don’t know where it’s going to take you.”
Curran’s own engagement with the Union’s activities – “I could not ski nor snowboard when I joined” – has taken her, indirectly, to employment in the Alps after finding work off the back of Strathsnow ski trips.
Re-building an environment at Strath Union which encourages students to follow such a trajectory will be supported by a new ‘buddy’ scheme this academic year. After witnessing its success in Oslo’s universities, Curran has overseen a project which pairs first-year students with existing students to help this year’s intake settle into university life.
“It’s so beneficial for international students, but even the home students that are travelling half an hour that haven’t lived away from home before,” she says. “People are just looking for a bit of community.”
Another planned addition to boost the buzz on campus is the re-introduction of gigs at Strath Union with “local talent” performing. Before closing in 2021, its historic former headquarters on John Street hosted numerous stars, with Elton John, Fleetwood Mac and Talking Heads all performing at the old Strathclyde Students’ Union on John Street. “[Gigs] used to be such a massive part of our identity,” Curran says. “We had a renowned reputation, we had the most amazing acts.”
Its first gig night was headlined by indie band Cloud House on 17 October, with further acts to come throughout the semester. For now, Curran’s first recommendation for new and international students is “to be a tourist” around Glasgow. “Just get involved, do your research, check out things,” she says. “There’s just so much amazing stuff in Glasgow, like Pollok Country Park – that is my new obsession!
There’s so much to see and there’s no better way of getting excited and getting settled into an area than going out and exploring it.”
Fourth year Journalism & Spanish student. Mostly writing about sport, politics and culture. X: @_archiewillis
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