At New Zealand’s oldest university, nestled on the chilled and rugged southern edge of the country, Otago students have not escaped the financial struggles and housing challenges that have plagued Kiwis nationwide.
In the face of this, a shifting campus culture heralds a new era for the student body that is far from the infamous antics of yesteryear headlines.
Otago University Students’ Association (OUSA) president Keegan Wells said it is not an easy task speaking on behalf of the near 20,000 student body, more so given its ever-increasing diversification.
“You constantly are asked, ‘How do students feel about this?’, when the student body has changed so much,” Wells said. “There’s not really one answer anymore.”
Wells said the past year had been fantastic on a range of levels, despite its inescapable challenges.
“I hope my contributions were helpful ... It’s always tricky because, you know, everyone in the room has way more experience than you, but your voice is so important in it.”
The arrival of Grant Robertson as Vice-Chancellor brought a familiar face to the university.
“As Grant was an ex-president of OUSA and NZUSA ... I didn’t have to really teach him anything,” she says.
“It’s really cool to see an alumni [sic] of OUSA get to places like that.”
The year’s financial challenges weighed heavily on both OUSA and the broader university community.
“The lack of students enrolling in Dunedin is significantly lower than previous years ... Any time there’s less budget, it does squeeze us a little bit as well.”
On a personal level, Wells acknowledges the strain of hearing students’ financial struggles.
“I’ve heard anecdotal stories from people not having enough money to buy dinner ... It just feels like we get told throughout growing up to go to university, come study, and then when we are here, we don’t get much support.”
In terms of housing, many students were faced with the same flatting issues that have been notorious in Dunedin’s student quarter for decades.
“It’s exactly the same as it looked in the eighties. There’s very little improvements,” Wells said.
This year saw the emotional inquest into the death of Sophia Crestani, a former student who tragically died at a flat party in 2019.
Wells attended the coroner’s in-person findings.
The OUSA is involved in the Sophia Charter, a working group that includes representatives of the University of Otago, the police, the Dunedin City Council (DCC), Fire and Emergency New Zealand and the Otago Property Investors Association and focuses on improving student safety and wellbeing.
On a personal level, the inquest stirred emotional memories from her own experiences as a second-year student.
“I was at the party on the night as well ... It doesn’t escape you, really,” Wells said.
While Keegan believes student culture has evolved, particularly post-Covid-19, she recognises ongoing challenges.
“The big party scene isn’t what it used to be. Noise complaints are down across the board. Incidents are really dropping down from the stats. Students in general are acting in better practice year on year, which is good.”
“Since Covid is where you had the real flip and switch ... You don’t really have that much time anymore. You have to work to afford your rent costs, you get to go to uni ... so you have very little time you spend with your flat or with your close friends.”
Socialising remains a cornerstone of student life, and events like the Hyde St Party, co-organised by OUSA, continue to be highlights.
“Organising the Hyde St Party has become an art form ... It went great, we have an incredible events team that run it year on year,” Wells said.
However, smaller events like Bring the Noise have struggled to draw crowds.
“It is just so tough to get people to those local gigs, especially when it’s four nights at U Bar in a row.
Her successor, Liam White, plans to continue addressing critical issues like housing through a comprehensive survey.
Despite challenges, Wells was optimistic about the University of Otago’s place in New Zealand’s tertiary education landscape.
“I think Otago is still a very, very good place to be, in all honesty. Even despite some of the tough moments it’s had over the past year ... I would much prefer to be in our green campus with our grass than, honestly, the city campus any day.”
Ben Tomsett is a Multimedia Journalist for the New Zealand Herald, based in Dunedin.
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