The Tribune’s Editorial Board presents its midterm reviews of the Post-Graduate Students’ Society (PGSS) executives. Tribune editors researched and communicated with each executive before leading an Editorial Board discussion on the executives’ work and accomplishments. Editors with conflicts of interest abstained from discussing, writing, and editing relevant reviews.
PGSS Secretary-General: Sheheryar Ahmed
As Secretary General, Sheheryar Ahmed represents the PGSS to the public and McGill administration, updates the society’s governing documents, and chairs executive committee meetings. Entering this role, Ahmed’s priorities were to increase transparency, pursue election reform, and lower barriers to student involvement in PGSS initiatives.
To increase member participation in executive processes, Ahmed introduced a new Deputy Secretary General position, splitting the Secretary General position into internal and external responsibilities to make the positions more approachable and decrease workload for future Secretary Generals. Ahmed’s accessibility efforts also included organizing executive-led orientation events for new students, hosting a PGSA and Council training event, and creating an interactive organizational chart on the PGSS website to clarify the organization’s composition to students.
Having recently hosted the PGSS’ Annual General Assembly, Ahmed emphasized the underrepresentation of international students and students living in residence in the PGSS, as well as growing food insecurity among post-graduate students, demonstrating an awareness of continued accessibility needs to be addressed in his second term.
PGSS External Affairs Officer: Zoe Neubauer
As the PGSS External Affairs Officer, Zoe Neubaur’s top priorities are to address austerity on campus and to mitigate the increased precarity graduate students face as a result of rising costs of living and relatively low bargaining leverage at McGill. To fulfill these commitments, Neubauer meets regularly with representatives from the Quebec Student Union (QSU), the McGill Community Council, and the Association of Graduate Students Employed at McGill (AGSEM).
Amidst their ongoing advocacy through speaking at anti-austerity rallies and attending QSU caucuses, Neubauer is focused on providing more tangible deliverables for PGSS students. They are working to establish a PGSS mutual aid fund to provide direct monetary support to grad students to offset Montreal’s high cost of living.
Looking forward, Neubauer’s goals are to make the PGSS mutual aid fund a reality, and to advocate for graduate students as both students and workers within the McGill community.
PGSS Financial Affairs Officer: Mandy Lokko
Entering the Financial Affairs Officer position, Mandy Lokko has emphasized transparency, financial equity, and responsible management as her key priorities.
This semester, Lokko highlighted the expansion of the PGSS Travel Awards program as her most meaningful accomplishment, ensuring a fairer distribution of funding across master’s, PhD, and postdoctoral applicants.
A recurring concern among PGSS members has been the accessibility of the Society’s budget. In response, Lokko has begun rebuilding PGSS’ transparency framework “from the ground up”: Tracking monthly spending and developing clearer internal fiscal projections. While the budget is currently available to any PGSS member upon request, she aims to publish more accessible financial summaries and explanations on the PGSS website to improve community understanding.
Regarding McGill’s projected $15-million CAD deficit—and its potential effects on TA hiring and departmental staffing—Lokko explained that PGSS does not expect disruptions to its core services this year, though the executive team remains prepared to adjust its support mechanisms if cuts become impactful. Lokko has also helped PGSS internally absorb part of the inflation-driven increase to the Studentcare health insurance plan, preventing a steeper fee hike for the society’s members.
Looking ahead, her goals include expanding community-based grants and subsidies and continuing to make PGSS’s financial reporting more accessible online.
The Tribune commends Lokko’s efforts to strengthen equitable grant distribution and rebuild financial transparency within the society. As McGill continues to navigate financial instability, it is essential for PGSS to maintain its strong and accessible support to ensure it meets the ever-changing needs of its constituency.
PGSS Member Services Officer: Zeina Seaifan
As Member Services Officer, Zeina Seaifan is working to expand and address gaps in existing graduate student services. This semester, she collaborated with the society’s Health Commissioner and Mental Health Commissioner to ease the student union’s transition to Digital Doctor, a new healthcare provider. Seifan also introduced paid training for coordinator roles, including the BIPOC Graduate Network Coordinator and the Community Support Coordinator.
Next semester, Seifan will oversee additions to Indigenous reconciliation initiatives, which will build upon the land acknowledgement at Thompson House to include educational offerings like field trips and Indigenous language courses. She will also further the PGSS Menstrual Equity Initiative by assessing avenues for improved sustainability, such as the provision of reusable menstrual products. This winter, Seifan will also evaluate the health and dental plan based on the results of a health and wellness survey she oversaw this semester.
PGSS University Affairs Officer: Amina Bourai
As University Affairs Officer, Bourai is responsible for ensuring equitable graduate student representation across McGill’s governance structure. Coming into the position, Bourai aimed to improve PGSS transparency and make the society more responsive to student concerns. Her main accomplishment this semester has been filling over 95 per cent of university committee positions, a significant improvement from past years, when these crucial representative roles sat vacant. Bourai has also successfully chaired the Library Improvement Fund committee, making use of its resources after this committee’s funds sat unused for years. As a member of the McGill Senate, she has worked with student and faculty senators to pass amendments that protect student rights at risk of being undermined. Looking ahead, Bourai hopes to encourage McGill’s administration to establish minimum funding guarantees for all graduate students and address food insecurity on campus. She wants PGSS to be willing to tackle political and moral issues that matter to students—even when the university would prefer otherwise.
