Spotlight on Taz Rasul

This week the spotlight is on Taz Rasul, Volunteering Development Coordinator for the

ucl.ac.uk/global-citizenship/programme" target="_self">UCL Global Citizenship Programme at the Volunteering Services Unit (UCLU).

Find out more about the annual national Student Volunteering Week which started on 22 February.

What is your role and what does it involve?

I am a Volunteering Development Coordinator, with the specific responsibility of organising the annual summer UCL Global Citizenship Voluntary Sector Programme.

Half my time is spent supporting students delivering fantastic community projects around London. The rest of it is spent liaising with UCL staff, students and alumni and voluntary organisations to put on the voluntary sector strand of UCL's Global Citizenship Programme.

How long have you been at UCL and what was your previous role?

Two and a half years. Before that, I worked at a small charity in Lewisham that focused on community activities and BME equality. There, I supported adult education initiatives and developed community event programmes for things like Black History Month and International Women's Day.

What working achievement or initiative are you most proud of?

At UCL, the first year of delivering the UCL Global Citizenship Voluntary Sector Programme filled me with pride. I got the opportunity to design the kind of programme that I would have loved to do myself as an undergraduate - learning about the voluntary sector by having in-depth conversations with its labour force and experiencing working there personally.

It is really satisfying to know that the UCL students and alumni are better acquainted and more engaged in civil society activity regardless of which sector they're working in.

Tell us about a project you are working on now which is top of you to-do list?

Student recruitment for the UCL Global Citizenship Voluntary Sector began on 12 February so that's my top thing right now. I'll be talking to hundreds of students about what the voluntary sector is, why they should pay attention to it, and how they can experience it themselves.

What is your favourite album, film and novel?

I'm not usually committed enough for albums, but I like Our Version of Events by Emeli Sande. My favourite film is Jurassic Park - or, on remembering I'm an adult, Red Dragon. And I have no favourite novel, sadly, due to my Generation Y levels of concentration.

What is your favourite joke (pre-watershed)?

Not really a joke so much as part of a stand-up set: "I've done so many drugs I suffer from memory loss and flashbacks, sometimes at the same time. That's just normal, really. Just normal consciousness." - Liam Williams.

Or

"Am I revolting? Or am I sooooo not revolting it's gone allll the way round to seeming like I'm revolting? Thats my new catchphrase!" - Russell Brand

Who would be your dream dinner guests?

Jack Monroe, if they brought the food; Edward Norton, for his poise; and Judith Butler, so I could say I'd hung out with Judith Butler.

What advice would you give your younger self?

Laminating your revision notes won't make them any better.

What would it surprise people to know about you?

I play no instruments!

What is your favourite place?

Chatime in Soho.