Hi Everyone!
My name is Niall, and I am the Community Connector here in NUI Galway.
What is a Community Connector I hear you ask? Hopefully by the end of this post, you will have a much better idea!
The Community Connector is a new post in NUIG, with the specific purpose of working with students in a friendly, non-directive way to support them to make new social connections. Accessing the service can be done through an easy to use online self-referral system, and meetings are informal, relaxed conversations around your particular interests. After finding out what your hobbies and interests are, we can explore the various options available to you to pursue these, both on-campus, and around Galway city.
The Global Lounge and T.G.I. Friday are weekly social events for students which are help in The Hub, Aras na Mac Leinn. These are great ways for students to meet and engage with other students in a chilled-out environment. Students can enjoy complimentary tea/coffee, use of the fully kitted out kitchen, a variety of snacks, play some board games, listen to music, have a singalong, talk with friends, you decide!! The project is completely student driven, and what happens during these weekend events is decided by students in attendance.
Another way of providing students with the means of forming new social connections is via the NUIG Meetups page. While college is an exciting new time in a students life, for students that are new to Galway or haven't yet made friends here, making social connections can be a daunting prospect. Some students would rather miss out on going to social events than attend on their own. NUIG Meetups hopes to address this by advertising a range of activities/gigs/events etc. going on around campus or in the city, and coordinating interested students to attend as a group.
The aim of this blog is to give the personal experiences of students who are/have been involved in a wide variety of social activities, training programs, volunteering, etc. These will hopefully give you an idea of what it's like to take part in these kind of activities, from the perspective of students who have taken part.
I hope this will give you all a better idea about what it is that the Community Connector does! The role is still changing and evolving, but what remains at its foundation, is supporting and helping students to form new social connections.
For more information, please visit:
www.nuigalway.ie/communityconnector
www.facebook.com/CommunityConnectorNUIG
http://www.hub.nuigstudents.ie/community-connect/
Take care!
Niall