Applying to be a One Young World Delegate
This blog is to give a bit of insight to any future students who are interested in applying to be either the School of Management or the Faculty of Humanities & Social Sciences' OYW Delegate. I will be speaking through what I specially mentioned in my application, and then what my interview was like and post-application.
Before applying
First Step - Do your research!
It's crucial before even writing an application to do your research to improve your chances of getting recognized. There are quite a few blogs that I and this year's other delegate Clemence have written on different topics regarding One Young World. Read them! They should hopefully give you an insight into what we got up to. I'd also recommend reading last year's impact report, which is in essence a One Young World Bath Guide.
Second Step - Watch videos!
To get a bit more insight into what the summits are like, the type of people that attend them, and the overall atmosphere of the event I found it super useful to watch various youtube videos about the summit. As with an interview or application, they would expect you to understand the context or nature of the business, it's the same here. They just want to hear that you actually know what the event is about and what's previously been done; not that you've just applied for the sake of it.
The two main things you need to do:
- Explain is how you would benefit from attending and,
- Outline a project/idea you’d like to develop post-summit.
For the first point, the following bullet points are what you would benefit from attending:
- Network with committed activists, young leaders, and global figureheads
- Attend inspirational keynote lectures from some of the world’s most powerful individuals
- Debate, formulate, and share innovative solutions for the pressing issues the world faces
- Represent the University of Bath
I recommend not just writing that as a sentence, but try to incorporate into what experiences you've already had that could be useful to be able to fully benefit from each aspect. But also be honest if you haven't got much experience in one area, and you want to attend the summit to fill that. There is no harm to being honest! Not all negatives are seen as negatives. At the end of the day, this is meant to be an opportunity to develop you, they aren't expecting you to be perfect and already have experience in all areas.
Third Step - Be concise!
The actual application form is very limited on words so you'll need to re-write it on Microsoft Word before writing it on the form. This helps you read over it properly, and monitor the word count so you manage to get your point across concisely. This is a great skill to learn, as in reality, you'll never have an abundance of words to work with when producing reports, applications, or assignments. I recommend splitting it up into paragraphs so it's easier to read and to ensure you cover all aspects of the application they want you to speak about.
My application
My application highlighted the following aspects:
Networking Skills
For those who are unaware, I am a recipient of the Gold Scholarship Program, and within my first year, I was fortunate enough to be provided various opportunities to learn and practice my own networking skills with fellow students, alumni, staff, and business individuals. This was a great way to illustrate within my application that I have previous experience with networking, and speaking to individuals I have never met. Overall this emphasized to the reader that I could be trusted to represent the university and make full use of the people I would meet at the summit.
My passion for widening participation
As an Outreach Ambassador I try to go the extra mile for each student I come in contact with as I know the difference it can make to their journey to Higher Education and their self-confidence. I am extremely passionate about making students aware of the opportunities Higher Education can provide. With my own experiences, I hope to raise awareness of what's possible for students who are from diverse backgrounds, and the opportunity Higher Education can provide.
One of the key topics that will be discussed during the summit is Education. I look forward to hearing about the struggles of other young individuals on their own experience in education. I hope to use this to enrich my understanding and hopefully make me more equipped to mentor students from various backgrounds. Whilst also creating possible solutions to these same problems.
My interest in Climate Change
I’m also eager to hear and participate in discussions with those that are actively trying to solve Sustainability issues in our society. In particular, I am passionate about social inequality, global warming, and how business has a part to play in change. As a Management student, I’m looking forward to formulating ideas with others on such issues. Some of my best ideas have come from what I have learned from others.
The interview
Daunting I know.
My interview was with Ali Bevan, Benjamin Smith, and Tim Wakeley. All of them work within the School of Management and were the ones ultimately deciding who they wanted to represent the School at the summit. They were all very friendly and I would say the interview wasn't too difficult as I basically had to speak through my application and previous experiences that I mentioned in my application.
In preparation, I asked for what I specifically sent off with my application as unfortunately, I didn't save a copy. From this, I made sure to reiterate and develop what I had already mentioned. They will ask you a small number of questions, they know you won't have everything all figured out. They just want to sense your passion to attend the summit, and that they are offering it to the right person. In terms of formality, it wasn't highly formal as they wanted to get to know me as a person, and as it was over Microsoft Teams I just had to make sure I looked professional on camera. But overall, I would say it felt more of a conversation and discussion rather than a line of questioning.
Post-Acceptance
Something I didn't realize is that I was going to be asked to Co-Chair the student organizing committee for OYW 2021/22. This was something I welcomed with open arms as a role like that is hard to come by.
After being told the good news it was a while until we could actually publish anything about it to allow for other applicants to be informed, and for the university to announce the news within the department first. But once I could it was a nice feeling to put it on my LinkedIn profile and share the amazing news. For any students reading, start building your LinkedIn today, as the more natural your posts and updates look, the more active you will look as an individual.
Part of the announcement process was being asked to provide two sets of quotes:
- Providing quotes for the university's social media i.e. Facebook, Linkedin, and Twitter. These can be seen below.
- Providing a quote for an end of year OYW impact report for the university.
- "Being selected to be the SoM Delegate for this year's summit was a complete surprise and a pleasant one at that. I am extremely invested in my work as an outreach ambassador, and I want to do as much as I can to share with the students I work with just what's possible if you just believe in yourself. This opportunity is also a chance to hear what OYW ambassadors have to say about the economy and climate change. As an emerging businesswoman and new generation, I am eager to work with businesses to mitigate their impact on the environment before it's too late. I can't wait to share what we learn from the OYW academy and the summit. I hope to encourage others to make the effort to lead change, rather than be a bystander."
Conclusion
If you're looking for a unique and enriching opportunity, this is it! Applications are now open until 17th Oct 2021, to apply follow this link.
I would also recommend applying as both a delegate or a committee member. Applications to be a part of the One Young World Bath Student Organising Committee are also open until 17th Oct 2021, to apply follow this link.
Regardless of which you get, you'll be just as involved in the OYW community, and will gain a lot of experience. Please do not hesitate to reach out to me or Clem on LinkedIn or email, if you have any questions, want to talk through the process, absolutely anything! We don't bite, so don't be shy!
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