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30 Mar 2022
7 Min Read
Michelle Lee (Guest Contributor), Josephine Serena (Editor)
Keen to be part of Taylor’s College Student Council but not sure if it’s for you? Michelle writes why you should definitely sign up for it! Find out how you can prepare yourself for Cambridge A Level before you embark on your pre-u journey here.
28th January 2021, Thursday
Mind contemplating, heart hesitating, palms sweating but all that was overcomed solely by my drive, determination, and my strong sense of goal pursuance. Both my hands came together, index fingers pointing vertically up towards my cheek while my thumbs supported my chin, unconsciously moving the mouse forwards. My fingers clicked on the ‘submit’ button. The screen read ‘Application Submitted to Taylor’s College Student Council (TCSC)!’. Whether I’d make the cut for an interview session or perhaps even a spot in probation was a question I had no answer to. At this point, I could only be optimistic and hopeful.
24th January 2022, Monday
Fast forward to 2022. Each morning, I start off my day with a long, refreshing morning stretch. I begin with relaxing my shoulders, interlocking both my fingers. Then, bend from the middle back and continue stretching until I feel the stretch between my shoulder blades. I turned my head to the clock, which read 10am. It’s been hours, and the only sound I hear is the constant repeat of ‘Clicks!’ and ‘Clacks!’ where one may find it exhausting, but as a secretary, I’d already been accustomed to it.
Then I check my phone after what felt like a 24-hour marathon of email fact-checking. While scrolling through the gallery app, I found an untouched album named after ‘TCSC’ and clicked on it. Going through past pictures, my mind began reconnecting months worth of memories, gradually flashing through my head one by one. It’s true that good memories, the ones which sustain us, carry us through the challenging times in life, keep us warm in the storms of living, and will constantly remind us of the importance of forming friendships, development of skills, and teamwork.
So, freshies, ask yourself this, what do you look forward to the most entering college? Is it forming new friendships? Enhancing existing whilst developing new skills? Or trying something new?
If you answered ‘Yes’ to all of the three questions above, TCSC has got you covered!
Firstly, TCSC is a good platform for you to build a branch of good connections with new people. Studies show that meeting and developing connections with new people is an excellent source of garnering new, fresh perspectives and ideas in life, which enables you to become a more innovative thinker.
Furthermore, developing new friendships is also a way to develop ‘mentoring relationships’ as you’re able to learn from one another through their good habits, skillset, or soft skills. Additionally, these opportunities can not only help boost your performance in council, but also in your everyday life!
Speaking of soft skills, joining TCSC can provide you with the ability to enhance and develop your soft skills. Likewise, growing networks can put you in positions to advance yourself. Moreover, advancing your soft skills will potentially help you in your future career. Here are some of these skills you’ll get:
You begin to develop leadership skills by taking up opportunities to take charge and be responsible for other people’s actions, be it a small group or an entire council. In TCSC, our Board of Directors will overlook their respective departments whereas our Executive Committee overlooks the entire council.
As you start mingling and socialising around with other council members, you begin to advance your social skills. Take it from me, the best part is when you’re able to meet council members from different ages or even countries! It not only allows you to learn about other cultures, but you’ll also get to meet new friends.
Teamwork refers to the combined action of a group, especially when it’s effective and efficient. You’ll learn how to get along with the people you work with to achieve a common goal. For instance, teamwork in TCSC can be easily proven when performing departmental or council projects.
Aside from meeting new people and developing new skills, TCSC is a good opportunity for you to crawl out of your little shell and try something new! In the end, you’ll feel proud, with a sense of accomplishment knowing that you’ve developed a new skill or achieved a life goal.
Learning something can help you improve your brain function, because ‘mental sweats’ actually helps your brain by building new cells and strengthening connections between them. Overall, improving your cognitive functions such as concentration, attention to detail, and problem solving!
This skill comes along with having to listen and understand your fellow team members. People only think of communication as having to talk. However, body language is also a form of communication that’s equally important. As you interact with your members and the rest of the community, you’ll learn to improve your communication so that others can understand you better and you, them.
You’ll become more organised and have better planning skills as a person. Take it from a secretary, being neat and organised is a very helpful skill. You’ll be able to work out the details by diving deep into the nitty gritty of what’s needed by a team or group. If you’re a project manager of an upcoming event, you’ll have to form project timelines and meet them on time which’ll train you to be organised even if you’re not.
The ability to manage yourself is also a crucial future skill. With TCSC, you’ll learn to independently complete your work without constantly being checked on. Self-management also means to stay on top of your deadlines and delegating tasks for people to complete. For example, I’d make sure to prepare a daily, weekly, and monthly to-do list as a secretary to plan ahead, avoiding last minute work. This’ll keep you from procrastinating and burning out.
1. Through our social media platforms for any enquiries regarding recruitments or to stay up-to-date on our ongoing and upcoming events!
2. Through members of TCSC. Don’t worry, we’re warm and friendly people who are more than happy to help and serve fellow Taylorians!
PS. Did you know that you can also reach out to us regarding any of your concerns through the Student Concerns Form linked in our Instagram’s (@tcscstudentcouncil) bio!
Kuberan Hansrajih Kumaresan, Former TCSC Vice President
Jan 2019 - Aug 2019
"TCSC was an incredible experience in my life where I got to hone my skills of discipline, time management, and event organisation. More importantly, I’ve been privileged to make friends that’ll last me a lifetime and craft experiences that I’ll never forget. While there’s no doubt joining TCSC can be tiring sometimes, I promise that the time you spend being part of such an amazing team will be exciting, rewarding, and incredibly fun."
Winnie Ho, Former TCSC Vice President
Aug 2019 - Aug 2020
"TCSC has been nothing but a fruitful and memorable journey for me. It was the best period of my time I've spent at Taylor's College. I found a home in the council and all of us look forward to spending time together planning events for students and also learning new skills along the way. The cCouncil room was always our go-to spot after classes because the feeling of gathering together there hits differently. TCSC will always stand a spot in my heart."
Chong Hong Xuan, Former TCSC President
Jan 2020 - Jan 2021
"TCSC is honestly a great place to learn both soft and hard skills to boost yourselves! Not only that, people you’ll meet will also play a big part in your college life. As I’d always say, join TCSC for a better college life and for a better version of yourself."
Ludwina Anela Rumuat, Former TCSC President
Aug 2020 - Aug 2021
"When I thought of college, I never expected to be a part of the student council, to work towards ensuring the best college experience a student can have. Yet, my journey in TCSC has been an experience like no other. It showed me how ‘work’ can be fun when it’s done with amazing people."
Heng Jui Ching, Current TCSC President
Jan 2021- Jan 2022
"Being a TCSC member, the opportunities to take on leadership roles, befriend, and learn from exemplary individuals around me has shaped me into who I am today. Times do get tough when bearing a higher level of responsibility. Nevertheless, nothing beats the adrenaline rush and sense of achievement of handling them with amazing TCSC members."
Wong Jin Ru, Current TCSC Vice President
Jan 2021 - Jan 2022
"If I had to summarise my journey in TCSC with 1 word, I would say it’d be ’growth’. Ever since day 1 of entering TCSC, I’ve never stopped learning and coming out of my comfort zone. I was able to enhance my communication skills and leadership skills while having opportunities to apply them directly onto any events happening. I honestly couldn't imagine what my online college life would turn out if I had not joined TCSC. Never once regretted hopping onto this 1 year journey with TCSC which was definitely short and sweet."
Michelle Lee Shu Ling is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Laws (Hons) at Taylor’s University. She’s a Secretary of Taylor's College Student Council and Director of Taylor’s Model United Nations who enjoys writing from time to time!
