We will give you training when you begin your role as a Student Ambassador. Sometimes, you might need to do a quick training session before a specific job to ensure you know what you are doing.

Most jobs will have a briefing 10-15 minutes before the job starts, whichis usually all that is needed to ensure you know what you are doing and how to do it.

When you become a Student Ambassador, you’ll be given a green Student Ambassador t-shirt.

Unless we tell you otherwise, this will be what you need to wear for jobs. Sometimes, for events like charity dinners, you may be asked to wear a black skirt or dress pants, and a white shirt.

While representing the Polytechnic as a Student Ambassador, we need you to act and behave in a professional manner.

This means:

1. Being committed
   Please only commit to work if you are available. We understand that timetables can change, or emergencies happen, if a job has been allocated to you and you cannot complete it, please let us know as soon as possible.
   
   
2. Being proactive
   If you find yourself at a loss for something to do once you have completed your task, see if another Student Ambassador needs a hand with their task or if any other staff need support.
   
   
3. Be encouraging
   Students or visitors can be shy. Try to encourage them in conversation, so that they can get the most out of the event you are helping at. Smiling can be a simple thing but can sometimes be forgotten.
   
   
4. Be punctual
   Please be on time as people are relying on you. Please check your start times carefully.
   
   
5. Be reliable
   Staff, visitors, and other Student Ambassadors are relying on you. If you don’t show up for work or leave your post, you are putting others under pressure.
   
   
6. Be positive
   We want to encourage and promote higher learning as well as the Polytechnic. We do not do this by putting other institutions down, but instead by promoting our best assets.
   
   
7. Be you
   We want you to be honest with your experiences and knowledge but do think about your audience and the context within which you are giving this information.

Orientation

We have a large orientation week during late February every year and a much smaller one in July for the start of second semester. If you’re involved in this event, your main task will be to make sure students know where to go and when, and to answer any questions they might have. We usually have talks, mihi whakatau, and other events in The Hub.

Open Days

Tertiary Open Day(s) is usually in May and is a couple of days where both the Polytechnic and the University open their doors to prospective students.

Typically, you might expect to be handing out information in the form of a programme guide, chatting to prospective students and their whānau, taking someone to a place somewhere on campus or to meet/see someone, or taking someone for a tour. Sunday typically has less attendees than Monday.

You might need to do quite a lot of walking during this event so please wear comfortable shoes.

Gown Room duty

Dunedin has a graduation in March and September.

This is probably the biggest job of the year. You’ll be handing out gowns and trenchers to graduands in the Gown Room during the week before graduation and taking them back in after the ceremonies are finished. There can sometimes be some washing and ironing involved.

Symposiums

Each year, the polytechnic hosts symposiums on various topics. Tasks for these typically involve helping on the registration desk, showing people where to go, and meeting and greeting.

Te Pā Tauira ‘Move in’ day

This is a fun day where you’ll help new students move into their rooms in our Student Village. You’ll help them find the right room, help them with their luggage and belongings, and be a friendly welcoming face.

Other jobs

A variety of other jobs also come up during the year such as:

• business school morning tea for prospective students
• job fairs
• helping set up pre-graduation events, lunches and charity dinners
• career and study ready events
• campus tours
• OP staff day
• data entry or admin-style jobs.

We have a Microsoft Teams group set up and you will be added to this group when you start your role. All jobs are posted here.

If you’re not getting notifications or are having issues with this, please email Carly.Nesbit@op.ac.nz

When a job is posted in our Teams group, you can put your hand up to be considered by commenting on the post.

Please let us know if you are available for the entire job, or what hours you are available within the time frame of the job.

If you are unavailable, you do not need to do anything, but it can be useful to know (so please also comment on the post).

We try and be as fair as possible when allocating jobs.

It comes down to who is available, and who has had jobs/hours overall. We like to give people a chance to work some hours if they haven’t had a chance to work previously (or for a while).

You’ll be tagged in a comment to let you know if you got the job. And added to the calendar using your student email address.

Once you have received confirmation that you have received a job, please note this down in your diary or calendar.

Make sure you know what the job is, what time it starts, where you are to report and who you are reporting to.

Ensure you have clean clothes (including your Student Ambassador t-shirt), as well as anything else you might need.

You will need comfortable shoes on any days where you are doing a tour or showing people around as you will do a lot of walking.

Ensure you arrive on time for the briefing and job. If you are running late, please let them know.

If you do not have a contact number for the person you are reporting to, please let Carly and someone else who is doing the same job know.

As Student Ambassadors, we do what needs to be done.

If you get asked to do something you are unsure of, please ask for more information/detail.

If you are asked to do a specific task that you cannot do due to injury and there is another Ambassador working the same job, ask if it is ok to swap with them.

You will find that most people working at the Polytechnic are happy to accommodate you and we have a very good reputation.

We work hard and are friendly with the people around us. Where people might need to stand outside in the sun or winter, we try to swap roles so that no one is outside too long.

You are entitled to an unpaid meal break if you work longer than a six-hour shift. You can take a paid 15-minute tea break once every 4 hours.

We understand that timetables can change, and things can come up!

If this does happen and you find out that you cannot do a job you have accepted well before the job date, please let Carly know as soon as possible so that she can arrange someone else.

If you find out on the day, please get in touch ASAP. You may be asked to see if there is someone else who can cover for you from the Student Ambassadors, or Carly may find someone.

When you have completed a job, you will need to submit your hours to receive payment for them.

The Polytechnic pays on a fortnightly basis.

Hours are emailed to the Student Ambassadors email (StudentAmbassadors@op.ac.nz) and the data is put into the system. Please note this is different for Peer Tutors (please see document in Teams).

Your hours are then approved by Carly.

When emailing your hours through, please use the following template:

Full Name:
Total Hours:
Name of specific job:
Date of job:
Time: (from – to)
Number of hours:

For multiple jobs, you would do the following:

Full Name:
Total Hours:

Job 1

Name of specific job:
Date of job:
Time: (from – to)
Number of hours:

Job 2

Name of specific job:
Date of job:
Time: (from – to)
Number of hours:

Etc.

And you would list as many different jobs as you’ve done in that pay cycle.

The total hours at the top of the email would be your total hours across ALL of your jobs.

PLEASE NOTE: If you submit your hours late in a pay cycle, we cannot guarantee they will be through on the following pay day. However, they will make it in time for the next pay day. There is usually a small break over the Christmas and New Year period also.

Pay will be deposited into your allocated bank account every fortnight on a Tuesday (it’s usually there late in the day).

There is a small break over Christmas as the admin staff are on leave and it picks up again in early January.

Please note that it can take a few days for the hours to be processed, and then it gets added to the payment schedule. And there is a cut off for hours, of around 10.00am the Thursday before. So, we have very long lead times for you getting paid.

That means, for example, if you work today and submit those hours today, you probably wouldn’t get paid until the following pay cycle.

As a worker, when you are working you must:

• take reasonable care of your own health and safety, and reasonable care that others are not harmed by something they do or don’t do.
• follow any reasonable health and safety instructions given to them by the business, as far as they are reasonably able to.

And workers must:

• cooperate with any reasonable business policy or procedure relating to the workplace’s health and safety that they have been told about.

Note: Workers have the right to stop work if they believe it is unhealthy or unsafe.

Some health and safety tips

• Please keep an eye out for the flip charts that cover various issues you may encounter.
• Always know where the exits are and any assembly areas for buildings that you are situated in.
• Wherever possible, use a crossing, and follow safe road guidelines.
• If you are unsure who to call/contact in a specific situation, please ask a nearby staff member or call 0800 762 786.

Dial 111 for emergency services (Fire, Ambulance, Police).

For Campus Services or security concerns, please call campus services on 03 474 7290 or call the Contact Centre on 0800 762 786 number and they can put you through.

Student Ambassador Coordinator – Carly Nesbit (Carly.Nesbit@op.ac.nz)

Student Ambassador email (to submit your hours) – Student.Ambassadors@op.ac.nz

Phone: 0800 762 786