"Our voice carries weight."

Willi Kröning (24) is in his 12th semester of German Grammar School Teacher Training (Gymnasium) in Physics, Maths and Astronomy. In addition to his studies, he is not only involved in the Physics Student Council and the Student Representative Council, but is also a member of the Faculty of Physics and Astronomy Council and the Senate. In this interview, he explains exactly what he does there and why he appreciates the work in the committees so much.

Students at the University of Jena can get involved in various committees – you are active in almost all of them. How did that come about?

In my lecture on quantum physics, the professor, who is very close to the students, told us that the Physics Student Council (FSR) is always looking for people who are studying Physics to become teachers. And after my school placement semester, I didn't just want to study according to the recommended study plan, I also wanted to do something new. That's why I simply went to a meeting in the summer semester of 2022 without really having a clue what the University's committees actually do. And that's when the chaos started (laughs). But I've never regretted it – it was absolutely the right decision.

What happened next?

After joining the FSR during an ongoing term of office and initially "running along" as a voluntary member, so to speak, I then got myself nominated and have been officially active there since October 2022. In this role, I was a guest at the Student Representative Council (StuRa) meetings for a year and reported back to the Student Council. After that, I was also nominated for the StuRa and the Faculty Council. And now, in my third term of office, the Senate has been added. I thought to myself, I can fill up my stamp card with all these committees (laughs). I was interested in how the University's committees differed from those of the student body, but the lack of staff also played a role.

In your opinion, what are the differences between the student committees and the cross-status group committees?

I do notice that in student self-government – i.e. in the Student Representative Council and Student Council – you can work more actively and also get something back. In the Faculty Council and the Senate, where you have to deal with professors and other status groups, we students are a bit at the bottom of the food chain. But I have to say that, at least in our faculty, we have an almost familial relationship with the professors – our voice carries weight, we are listened to.

What are your specific tasks in the various committees?

In the FSR, I mainly take care of the finances. Depending on the size of the student representatives, the Student Councils receive a share of the semester fee. As Physics, for example, we receive 1,600 euros per semester, which we then have to manage, organize and account for events. That's my main task, but I also help organize events from time to time, such as the student orientation days.

When I joined the StuRa, they needed someone to do the finances for everyone – i.e. manage all the accounts, distribute the contributions to the departments and Student Councils and deal with bookkeeping, the tax office and the Internal Audit Office. As I already had fun with finances in the FSR, I thought I'd do the same. I was also a deputy on the StuRa board for a few months last year, but my main interest lies in finance.

In the Faculty Council and the Senate, it's more my job to find interested students for committees, e.g. for appointments. One topic in both the Faculty Council and the Senate is, for example, the budget, i.e. the University's budget and the faculty's budget. How is the money distributed, for material items or for assistants? The appointment committees are concerned with how teaching positions are filled. This is where we can really exert influence to ensure that people who teach well are brought to the University. And we generally make sure that the students are considered in these committees – because we are the largest status group at the University. We are always in contact with the Student Councils and the student Faculty Council members, also thanks to the StuRa Department for University Policy, which has the explicit task of liaising between all the committees.

What motivates you?

Some peopöe have political motives for getting involved, some simply want to help others. I myself was a bit lost during my time at school and felt more like an outsider and would have liked someone to help me. That's why I now want to support people and organize cool events so that they can get out of the rut of normal university life.

In the beginning, I really just wanted to give it a go because I thought it might be fun. When it came to allocating the positions in my first FSR legislature, I honestly didn't feel like organizing finances at all, but someone had to do it and I've grown with the task.

But I'm also involved in the administration to make things a bit less bureaucratic and to facilitate things so that people really enjoy doing their voluntary work and aren't restricted in the process.

What do you like best about working in the committees?

The interaction with the students. At the FSR, I can talk to people at events and we can also inspire others to join – that's really cool. And it's always nice to be able to talk to people, exchange ideas and relax away from lectures or tutorials, for example at barbecues.

What is the feedback from your fellow students?

I get very good feedback from the people who come to the events that we organise with the FSR. I definitely have the feeling that the effort we put in is appreciated. But it's also a very appreciative relationship at StuRa, e.g. in the finances when interacting with people from the various Student Councils.

You mentioned the lack of staff. How do you think we can get more students involved in the committees?

I think that many people don't even realize what opportunities they have to get involved or are perhaps intimidated by the various committees and structures that exist. I think we need to create more awareness of what opportunities there are and also overcome obstacles by making it clear to people what the exact tasks are.

And we should set a good example. Of the 32 Student Councils we have, there were only two last year for which more people stood for election than there were places. These were my Student Council, Physics, and the FSR Medicine. Both are Student Councils that organize a lot of events and are generally very active and therefore, I think, very present in their respective student bodies. The more people get involved in the Student Council, the better tasks can be distributed and then everyone has more fun.

Why should students get involved or at least vote in the committee elections?

I can say from my experience that it is a great enrichment to be involved in the committees. And it's a small and very easily recognizable democracy that we have. If you look at the Bundestag and the Landtag, it seems so far away. The threshold for becoming active here at the University is much lower. The right to stand for election is very easy to exercise and the right to vote is even easier. You don't even have to go to the ballot box – we do that online!