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How can the UC Student Association (UCSA) Serve You?
The UC Student Association (UCSA) is the official voice of over 240,000 undergraduate, graduate, and professional students from all ten UC campuses. It is our mission to advocate on behalf of current and future students for the accessibility, affordability, and quality of the University of California system. Since every undergraduate student is a member of ASUCR, you are automatically a part of UCSA, so don’t miss out on the chance to use their resources to further your student activism efforts on a systemwide level!
For more information about all of these incredible opportunities, visit www.ucsa.org.
Request a workshop.
UCSA offers a number of workshops that the professional staff members provide for free for the benefit of your organization. From lobbying and media trainings to self-care workshops, workshops are an incredible resource to utilize for your student organization. After filling out the workshop request form, a UCSA staff member will be in contact with you regarding the next steps!
Have UCSA cover your events.
If you are involved with a student organization or club that holds events you want more attention toward, UCSA offers event coverage in our UC-wide newspaper, State Of. Send us an email with information about your event (preferably 2-3 weeks in advance) and we’d be happy to feature your organization’s work.
Attend a conference.
Attend a conference.
UCSA puts on three major conferences each year: the Student Organizing Summit, Students of Color Conference, and Student Lobby Conference. All travel and lodging expenses are paid by the External Affairs office, and is a great opportunity for students to get involved with systemwide issues that affect them. Applications are sent out during the academic year, so keep an eye out for the applications in your R’Mail!
As the conference approaches, there are typically additional applications for performing, leading workshops and facilitating caucuses, which provide additional opportunities to get engaged. You can also sit on the steering committee that helps plan each conference by emailing the Director of Communications, Anais LaVoie at commdirector@ucsa.org.
Intern with UCSA.
UCSA offers a variety of internship opportunities to gain experience in organizing, managing communications, and tracking legislation. They can be done from their headquarters in Oakland or remotely from your campus. Applications are taken on a rolling basis, so be sure to reach out to a UCSA staff member about being involved.
MEDIA INTERNSHIP: As a media intern, you have the opportunity of working with the Media Director to learn the ins and outs of communications. As a media intern, you will work on a variety of projects including coordinating State Of (UCSA’s UC-wide newspaper), writing press releases, tracking higher education news coverage, looking for influential social media news about higher education, developing short videos, and more.
LEGISLATIVE INTERNSHIP: As a legislative intern, you will be assisting the Government Relations Director. Every legislative session, UCSA sponsors and supports bills that relate to bettering the accessibility, affordability, and quality of higher education. Applicants are highly encouraged to work in the Sacramento office so you can also attend Senate hearings of the bills the Association supports, but remote interns are also vital for researching information about the bill.
ORGANIZING AND UCSA CAMPAIGNS: As an organizing and campaigns intern, you will be working with the Statewide Organizing Director. If you have ever been curious about the groundwork behind each campaign and initiative that the Association creates, this is the perfect opportunity for you! You will be working on a variety of different projects, from creating power maps to understanding the processes behind coordinating a systemwide action or protest.
OPERATIONS AND FUNDRAISING: A vital part of the Association is the day-to-day operations behind the organization and the resources we provide. As an operations and fundraising intern, you will be working with the Operations Director to learn what it takes to run a successful fundraising campaign and share your recommendations with UCSA staff.
CONFERENCES: If you have been to a UCSA conference, you’ll know that we go all out for the students we serve. As a conference intern, you will be the ‘magic behind the magic’, assisting with the planning and execution of our three annual conferences!
Be a Student Advocate to the Regents.
The Student Advocate to the Regents (STAR) program allows you to be the direct representative of a quarter of a million UC students at the monthly Regents meetings. Although you have to pay up-front for travel and lodging expenses, you will be reimbursed. During your time as a STAR, you will be able to make a public comment at the Regents meeting about campus and systemwide issues, have lunch with the UC Regents, attend meetings with the UC Office of the President, and meet other passionate student advocates.
Be a Student Advocate to the Regents.
Be a collective bargaining representative
The collective bargaining representative is a recognized third-party representative who sits at the negotiating table for all UC contract negotiations. As a collective bargaining representative, you will be able to represent the University of California by attending negotiations, paid by UCSA. This is a great immersion into labor studies and becoming more aware of faculty negotiations.
Be a collective bargaining representative.
Participate in a systemwide committee
The systemwide committee members sit on official boards of the UC Regents and UCSA led committees regarding specific campus issues, such as student fees and high school engagement. This is your chance to highlight the student experience through committees, and create tangible action towards issues you are passionate about.
Participate in a systemwide committee.
Be our next Student Observer
This is your opportunity to work directly with the regents on specific issues, such as academic and student affairs, to budgeting and finance. Each Regents meeting, you will make a speech and present your ideas with relation to the Agenda items. Be our next Student Observer.
Be the next Student Regent
This is the perfect opportunity to have the voting power of an actual Regent and advocate for student concerns. Student Regents go through an intense screening period and are expected to serve for two years. Previous Student Regents have worked on developing programs such as the Global Food Initiative and the Student Advisor program systemwide. You can also apply to be the Student Advisor, a one year position where you will serve as a non-voting student representative on the UC Board of Regents.
Be an Appointed Officer
Appointed Officers advise the UCSA Board of Directors on issues related to the UC, such as sustainability, campus climate, and financial aid. At each Board of Directors meeting, the Appointed Officers state their monthly findings and work to the Board of Directors.
Write for State Of.
State Of, the UC-wide newspaper, is YOUR source to hear what’s happening across all ten University of California campuses. From op-eds to news events, we want to hear what your experience has been like at the UC. Submissions are accepted on a rolling basis, and edited by our media intern team.
With so many ways to be involved, you don’t want to miss out on the opportunities present to take your advocacy to the systemwide level!
Write for State Of.