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Hello, I'm Lucy, and I’m excited to apply for the position of Co‑President for Cutting Edge.

This past year, I’ve had the privilege of taking on the role of Vice‑President, Secretary. I have particularly valued the opportunity to support the Co‑Presidents and contribute to organising the conference. Gaining first‑hand experience of the planning and coordination involved has been extremely valuable, and I hope to bring this insight to the committee next year.

I hope to use my experience from my previous role as Research Director for Cutting Edge, which allowed me to establish a new position and launch initiatives. I hope to take forward these skills and support the new Research Director to expand research at the conference, taking poster presentations to the next level by offering oral presentations and providing members with meaningful opportunities to present at a national level. I would also like to build on events focused on different specialties, especially those underrepresented in other societies, such as paediatrics and maxillofacial surgery, to inspire members exploring different surgical pathways.

Alongside previous experience and building on new ideas, a key priority for me will be creating a collaborative committee environment. Each member should feel confident leading their own events, with clear access to guidance and practical support when needed. Establishing a culture where workloads are shared and the conference is approached as a collective will be central to this. Strong leadership, to me, is about enabling others and forming a well‑connected committee, underpinned by a motivated exec, this will enable the society to achieve an enjoyable and successful year.

Attending the Worsley and Riley Awards, where Cutting Edge received recognition for Best Academic Society and Best Event, highlighted the impact of the society’s work. This success has motivated me to help continue that momentum into the coming year!

Thank you,
Lucy

Hi, my name is Emma, and I’m currently in 4th year. Over the past year, I’ve had the privilege of being Skills and Education Coordinator, I have learnt so much in this role and feel I have a lot to offer as Co-President!

As Skills and Education Coordinator, I have worked with other members of committee to successfully organise multiple teaching series, including the Surgical Skills Crash Course and our annual Suturing Series. From the feedback we received, I believe I have the knowledge and experience to allow positive improvements to be made. I am excited to work with the next committee to ensure these sessions are even more engaging, hands on, and accessible to students across all years. Through my current committee role, I feel that the networking relationships I have made with surgeons will be invaluable to my role as Co-President.

This year, I also had the exciting opportunity to attend the ASiT annual conference with Cutting Edge. At the conference, I was able to network with other national surgical societies and learn from their events. It was an incredible experience that made me even more motivated to help shape the future of our society through implementing new ideas.

I’m particularly interested in plastics and neurosurgery, and I will be completing my elective in plastic surgery in Sydney this year. I’m passionate about increasing exposure to a wider range of surgical specialties. I hope to build on this year’s speciality series and collaborate with other societies to create more targeted sessions. The laparoscopic session we ran as part of this year’s Surgical Skills crash course was a great example of the kind of unique, practical experience students don’t usually get on placement. I’d love to make such opportunities a bigger part of our programme and our annual conference.

I would be extremely excited, honoured and feel privileged to be part of Cutting Edge for another year as Co-President! From being an initial member of the society attending Cutting Edge events, to progressing to being a committee member, if I was given the role as Co-President, I would be hard-working and motivated to moving the committee forward!