University of Western Australia Student Guild
The UWA Student Guild is the official student representative body at the University of Western Australia, representing the interests of students to the university, government and the wider community, as well as providing services to students. As of 2021, the Guild is affiliated with the National Union of Students, the peak representative body for Australian tertiary students. In 2021, 96% of the 21,265 UWA students were members of the Guild.
Guild Council is the overall governing body of the Guild and consists of voting and non-voting members democratically elected at the annual Guild elections or at department annual general meetings.
Governance
Annual Elections
Student representatives are elected to their positions by students in annual elections held in September. Elections are conducted by the Western Australian Electoral Commission. Elected office bearers take office as of 1 December in the year they are elected.Guild Executive
The Guild Executive consists of the Guild President, the Guild Vice-president, the Guild General Secretary, and the Chair of Guild Council. Both the Guild Vice-president and the Chair of Guild Council are elected by and from Guild Council at the first meeting for the Guild Year.Guild Council
The Guild is administered by a council of student representatives elected for one-year terms, beginning on December 1 and ending on the 30th of November in the following year. There are twenty-one voting members of council, and several more non-voting members. Members may hold a voting and a non-voting role concurrently. Unlike some other student unions, there is no financial compensation for student representatives, with the exception of the President and Postgraduate Representative who work at the Guild full-time and part-time respectively during their term.Members of Guild Council are:
- Guild President: the peak student representative at UWA. The 2025 Guild President is Nikhita Talluri.
- Vice President: is responsible for assisting the President as a member of the Guild Executive. The 2025 Vice President is Oliver Barrett.
- Chair of Guild Council : is responsible for chairing all meetings of Guild Council as well as presiding over statutes and by-laws of the Guild. The 2025 Chair is Aidan Kirby-Smith.
- General Secretary : sits on several committees, publishes the agendas and minutes for Guild Council, and assists with organising the budget for the Guild. The 2025 General Secretary is Annika Leunig.
- President of Education Council: chairs Education Council which provides a forum for students to have a voice on educational issues. The 2025 Education Council President is Jay Williams.
- President of Public Affairs Council : is responsible for overseeing the activities of PAC as well as reporting to Guild Council. The 2025 PAC President is Aimee Chan.
- President of Societies Council : is responsible for overseeing the activities of SOC as well as reporting to Guild Council. The 2025 SOC President is Ethan Tan.
- President of the Postgraduate Students' Association : oversees the PSA which is the representative body for postgraduate students at UWA. The 2025 PSA President is Charlotte Backshall.
- President of the International Students' Department : is responsible for overseeing ISD which represents international students studying at UWA. The 2025 ISD President is Archit Menon.
- The 2025 Western Australian Students' Aboriginal Corporation Chair: is Ashleigh Petkovic.
- Women's Officer: is responsible for overseeing the Women's Department which represents women and non-binary students on campus. The 2025 Women's Officer is Ruby Membry.
- 13 Ordinary Guild Councillors. The 2024 OGCs are:
- * Oliver Barrett.
- * Ritika Menon.
- * Kassidy Anderson.
- * Jude Kamalddin.
- * Katrina Soares.
- * Naveen Nimalan.
- * Lachy Flavel.
- * Ojaswi Shrestha.
- * Finn Penter.
- * Aidan Kirby-Smith.
- * Olivia Stronach.
- * Archana Ashok.
- * Rama Sugiartha.
- Immediate past Guild President.
- Wellbeing Officer: is responsible for overseeing the activities of the Wellbeing Department which co-ordinates and organises the wellbeing activities. The 2025 Wellbeing Officer is Jeffrey Tang.
- Environment Officer: is responsible for overseeing the Environment Department which seeks to promote sustainability for the Guild and University. The 2025 Environment Officer is Julia Suffell.
- Sports Officer: is responsible for overseeing the activities of the Sports Department which seeks to promote active lifestyles for UWA students. The 2025 Sports Officer is Damian Zhang.
- Residential Students' Department President: oversees the activities of RSD which is the peak representative body for students living on-campus. The 2025 RSD President is Elizabeth Bailey, Bailey was appointed following the resignation of Anthony Sims.
- Pride Officer: is responsible for overseeing the Pride Department. The 2025 Pride Co-Officers are Aryaman Bhoosreddy and Ashel Siby.
- Access Officer: is responsible for overseeing the Access Department. The 2024 Access Co-Officers are Tabarek Alhaffar and Lucinda Bartlett.
- Ethnocultural Officer: is responsible for overseeing the Ethnocultural Department which serves as a representative voice for culturally and linguistically diverse students to Guild Council. The 2025 Ethnocultural Co-Officers are Selina Al Ansari and Reihaneh Gholilou.
- Volunteering Chair.
- Mature Age Students' Association Chair.
- Any other Department officers.
Services provided
The Guild supports and assists a network of more than 140 affiliated clubs and societies on campus through the Societies Council, catering to a very wide range of interests. The Guild runs the majority of catering outlets on campus, including the Tavern, and a volunteering centre.
The Guild's Student Assist provides one-on-one academic advocacy, financial counselling, a food pantry, and interest-free loans.
Student media
The Publications Committee oversees print publications from student departments. This includes publications such as Pelican, Damsel Magazine, and Lighthouse Magazine.Pelican was established in 1930, making it one of the oldest student publications in Australia.
PROSH is a Guild initiative that began in 1931 and is the oldest and most successful single-day charity event in the country run entirely by students. The tradition sees UWA students dress up in costumes and sell the satirical newspaper to raise money for charity.