By Afreen Ahmed, BA International Relations
On the SOAS campus there are many societies that are committed to not only providing a close-knit community space but also an educational insight into the world around us.
Such societies allow students from certain undergraduate or postgraduate degrees to build upon their previous learning and engage, on a personal level, with their own academia. These societies create a space for debating and gaining perspective as they push students to drive their own political ideologies and understand others. One of these societies that provide this community within campus is the World Development Society (Devsoc), which is notably one of the oldest societies on campus.
Amal Abubakar, who is this year’s secretary for the society, explains that Devsoc is dedicated to providing students with “holistic insights into the field of development.” They perceive development as both an academic discipline and a field of work.
The society aims to connect around 1,300 students to network through platforms such as Instagram, LinkedIn and direct links via WhatsApp groups. Due to the large number of students involved in the society, it can sometimes be difficult to continuously host a multitude of events. From a committee perspective, Amal expresses how Devsoc is dedicated to hosting at least two events a month in order to push student engagement and keep up with the perpetual changes within world development. These events range from intimate documentary screenings with fellow SOAS filmmakers, which aids to further emphasise this sense of community, to hosting directors from a variety of social enterprises. Another popular event within the society is the organisation of conferences, which pushes students to voice their own personal viewpoints on world development.
“The society has created a space for people who are interested in working, researching and learning about the development field and allows them to gain specific knowledge and tips”
Amal states that it is important to have the World Development society, as it provides a representative body within the student campus. The society has created a space for people who are interested in working, researching and learning about the development field and allows them to gain specific knowledge and tips. Devsoc also works closely with the Development department at SOAS. Amal emphasises that anyone on campus is welcome to join the World Development society, regardless of degree or graduate status, and can do so by keeping updated through Instagram @soasworlddev and registering as an official member through the SOAS SU website.