Society Spotlight: Politics, International Relations and National Security (PIRaNaS) Student Association
By Ruby Thomas
PIRaNaS is the University of Canberra’s Politics, International Relations and National Security student association. The club might be unrelated to the toothy deep-sea creature, but when I met with the association’s president, Daniel, it was clear the group nonetheless puts on some sharp events.
Like many groups on campus, PIRaNaS organise a combination of academic and social activities.
“Our main goal is kind of to help people who are doing that degree at UC and provide a space that gives them academic support, that social support, so interacting and meeting people who have the same interests,” Daniel said.
The PIRaNaS association flagship social event is their annual lake cruise around Lake Burley Griffin in March. Students enjoy food and an open bar, so it’s no surprise it’s the group’s most popular event.
Students enjoying this year's boat cruise
But before all members take to the lake, PIRaNaS host ‘meet and greet’ sessions at the start of each semester, with the semester one event targeted towards first year students. Daniel said it’s a general social event between students and the PIRaNaS committee with pizza for everyone to share.
Joining the PIRaNaS association appears to be a fail-safe way to stay social, as the group also holds a weekly social event at the UC bar.
Daniel said that once exams are over, PIRaNaS will also co-host an end of year event at a bar in Civic with the law society.
PIRaNaS offer many opportunities for like-minded students to make friends, but the group’s primary focus is on academia.
“We are an academic club first and foremost, that’s kind of our priority,” Daniel said.
PIRaNaS offer an annual essay workshop, as well as their weekly study sessions in the library.
2024 is still a great year to join PIRaNaS as the association is hosting ‘watch parties’ for the ACT and US elections.
Daniel said that just as the University of Canberra values the practical nature of its courses, PIRaNaS try to offer multiple opportunities for students to grow professionally.
Last month, PIRaNaS hosted a panel of professionals from the US embassy. On the panel were Operations Sergeant Roy Shaw, Assistant General Services Officer Bill Clark and Head of Media and Strategy Communications Sarah Talalay.
Daniel said there was a great turnout for the event, as students were offered the opportunity to network and hear about the panellists’ experiences working in the field.
Importantly, the panel event gave students an insight into the kinds of careers available to politics, international relations and national security graduates.
“People just think ‘Oh, the only things are just going into intelligence or the public service or working as a diplomat at DFAT,’ and there’s so much you can do,” Daniel said.
Students attending the panel event with professionals from the US embassy
Asking experts for their time can be a daunting prospect, but Daniel said that he’s noticed many of these people want to engage with youth.
“The US embassy has a lot of youth engagement projects – [such as] their youth council, and so when I reached out they were more than happy to engage with us to do an event.”
Daniel said PIRaNaS also have a partnership with a major international relations think tank, the Australian Institute of International Affairs (AIIA).
The group sends students to the AIIA’s annual conference every year, which Daniel says expresses a desire to engage with youth in a trend he hopes is ongoing.
It’s readily apparent the association’s activities have contributed to the group’s popularity.
PIRaNaS has been running at UC for about 10 years, and Daniel says the club is sitting at 60-70 members currently.
While those are certainly healthy numbers, Daniel said that PIRaNaS are still recovering their awareness on campus post-COVID, like many other clubs and societies.
Fortunately for PIRaNaS, the Business, Government and Law faculty is supportive.
“We do partner with them for events sometimes, where they’ll help with organisation, or financial stuff, catering, that sort of thing, but if we’re not formally partnering with them they’re always kind of more than happy to help advertise and promote the event, you know, tell people in their classes,” Daniel said.
Daniel said the club’s social media is the best way to stay on top of events, but members also receive a fortnightly newsletter.
All University of Canberra students, regardless of degree, are welcome to join PIRaNaS.
Students can sign up in-person on market days or online through the UCX website for a fee of $5.