AUSA Election Candidate Interviews: PG Education VP

Craccum interviews Sakshi Patil, and Harisankar Menon on their campaigns for Postgraduate Education Vice-President.

Note: All candidates running for this role were contacted for an interview. Gauri Jeejesh, Naveed Ahmad Fariady, and Abu Saleh Mohammad Eisa Akib did not respond.

Question 1. How would you describe yourself in 5 words?

Sakshi: Cheerful, determined, grounded, curious, supportive.

Harisankar: I would describe myself as resilient, driven, practical, creative, and collaborative.

Question 2. Which of your policies/visions are you most excited to implement next year?

Sakshi: I’m most excited about building clear and transparent supervision support pathways for postgraduate students. As a Masters in AI student, I’ve seen how easily PG students can feel lost when academic expectations or supervision processes aren’t clear. A simple, structured pathway can make a huge difference in reducing confusion and stress. I’m also passionate about strengthening PG‑centric wellbeing check‑ins and improving communication channels between students and teaching teams. These are small changes that can create a big shift in how supported PG students feel. Overall, I’m looking forward to creating systems that are easy to understand, easy to access, and genuinely helpful, so PG students don’t have to navigate everything alone.

Harisankar: As for the policies I am most excited to implement next year as AUSA PGEVP, it is definitively building out a localised representative network and ensuring a fair allocation of the Student Services Fee. The current structure leaves postgraduates as an afterthought. Without local PG reps to advocate and organise, generic promises of more events fall flat. I am excited to scale my existing partnerships, like the one with the Newmarket Innovation Precinct, to create direct employment pipelines, but establishing equitable representation and funding is the foundational change that makes everything else possible.

Question 3. Would you say that undergrad students have more support and resources catered to them? If so, what would you do to even this out for postgrad students?

Sakshi: Undergraduate support is often more visible, structured, and widely communicated. Postgraduate students, on the other hand, deal with specialised challenges like supervision, research pressure, academic expectations, but the support available to them is not always easy to find. To even this out, I want to:

• Improve visibility of PG‑specific resources

• Strengthen communication channels between PG students and teaching teams

• Introduce PG‑centric wellbeing check‑ins

• Create clear academic and supervision guidance pathways

My goal is to ensure PG students know exactly where to go, who to contact, and what support they can access, without feeling like they’re navigating a maze.

Harisankar: I do believe undergraduate students currently have more support and resources catered to them by AUSA. This is not necessarily malicious, but rather a structural issue. The budget and decisions are predominantly controlled by undergraduates, so they naturally reflect undergraduate interests. To even this out, I would fight for a transparent, proportional allocation of the 2.5 million NZD AUSA budget to guarantee that PG students see the benefits of the fees we all pay, regardless of which campus we are on.

Question 4. What do you think are some of the issues that postgraduate students face and need help for? 

Sakshi: Postgraduate students often face challenges around supervision clarity, research expectations, workload balance, and mental wellbeing. Many struggle with navigating university processes, accessing PG‑specific resources, or receiving consistent communication from teaching teams. International students and first‑time PG students face additional hurdles like adjusting to new systems, managing cultural differences, and understanding academic expectations. As a Class Rep and AUSA Buddy Leader, I’ve seen how much difference clear guidance and supportive communication can make. PG students need structured pathways, accessible wellbeing support, and better visibility of the resources already available to them.

Harisankar: Postgraduate students face unique challenges that often get overlooked. We need more than generic CV workshops; we need direct connections to employers who value our specialised skills. We also struggle with isolation, especially for those of us on satellite campuses, and the lack of localised events or representation exacerbates this. We need dedicated support networks and events tailored to our schedules and specific academic pressures.

Question 5. Why should students care about AUSA elections? 

Sakshi: AUSA elections decide who represents student voices for the entire year. The people elected advocate for student needs, influence key decisions, and help shape the academic and wellbeing experience across the university. When students vote, they ensure their concerns and priorities are heard by people who genuinely understand their community. It’s one of the simplest ways to make sure student experiences translate into real action and meaningful change.

Harisankar: Students should care about AUSA elections because AUSA controls how millions of dollars of our Student Services Fees are spent. If we do not vote, we surrender our voice in how those resources are allocated, which directly impacts the quality of our academic and social experience at the university.

Question 6. If you win this election, you will be a part of the team that decides Craccum’s budget for next year. Would you increase Craccum’s funding in 2027 to at least $120k? (Yes/No). If you were in the executive this year, why was the budget decreased to the lowest it’s ever been in recent years? 

Sakshi: Yes, definitely. Craccum plays an important role in student expression, representation, and campus culture. Supporting student‑led media is valuable for the wider community, and ensuring they have the resources they need helps strengthen student voices. I was not part of the executive this year, so I cannot speak to the reasons behind the previous budget decisions.

Harisankar: Regarding Craccum funding, while I strongly believe in a robust student media, I cannot unilaterally commit to increasing the budget to 120k without a full review of the financial position of AUSA and competing priorities, especially my primary mandate to secure equitable funding for postgraduates. Furthermore, we must acknowledge that Craccum is never seen anywhere outside the City Campus; for those of us based elsewhere, the publication is practically nonexistent. That being said, the recent cuts and the resulting decrease in print issues and staff hours are concerning, and I would certainly advocate for a transparent review of their funding structure to ensure they have the resources needed to fulfil their role. As I was not on the executive this year, I cannot speak definitively to why the budget was decreased, though publicly it appears to stem from broader AUSA budget allocations and a shift towards online content.