To the four or so people that will actually read this during the course of the year – hello!

The education portfolio is the portfolio that probably has the least overt presence in the student life; while everyone is (hopefully) attending function run by the activities portfolio and taking part in competitions run by the competitions portfolio and reading the newsletters from publications and marketing and using the careers guide to help them through clerkship applications, the education portfolio is not to be seen. So what does the educational portfolio do?

Well firstly, two of the DLSS’s yearly publications come under the umbrella of education. They are the education guide and Me Juris. The education guide contains all the procedural rules that Deakin University lays down for a range of things such as academic conduct, applying for special consideration and transferring your course. Me Juris is a subject guide that comes out about re-enrolment time and gives both a student’s and teacher’s perspective of every unit offered in the upcoming year.

The rest of the work for the education portfolio is in a representative function and mostly takes place behind the scenes. The education portfolio is responsible for bringing the concerns of the students directly to the School of Law , as well as conferencing with representatives from law schools all over Australia through our peak body the Australia Law Students’ Association (ALSA). To that end I would encourage anybody that has an issue to bring it up with me, or at least another member of the DLSS committee. After all, we can’t address issues we don’t know about.

In 2008 I would also like the portfolio to become more involved in helping new students, with their study skills. Deakin already runs a few skills sessions during the year, but nothing can really substitute for being told some tricks by a fellow student. While I’m not a model student, I’ve managed to pick up a trick or two along the way, and I think I speak for the whole DLSS when I say we are happy to pass those tricks on to the new generation of students.

Thank you for reading this. Now, stop procrastinating, and get back to your study.

Craig Rossi
VP (Education) 2008
vp-education@deakinlss.org