What is a PTO?
A Part Time Officer is an individual who is elected, by fellow students, to represent their peers. Being a PTO is a paid position (£12.62 per hour, plus holiday pay), with individuals being asked to work with the SU for up to 10 hours per week in their role.
To find out more about the role, and any specific duties you must undertake, please read the full role description here. You can also find out more about the entire process by attending our Election Workshop.
Training for the role will be provided by the Students’ Union, once the successful applicant is appointed. Training is expected to take place week commencing 12th January.
How do I know if I’m eligible?
To be eligible for a Part-Time Officer position, you must be a student studying in the College of Business & Law and hold current student status until at least 18th April 2026.
If you are unsure of your eligibility for the position, please contact us at: elections.su@coventry.ac.uk and one of the team will support you with this.
How can I nominate myself for the role?
To nominate yourself for the CBL PTO position, you must write a Manifesto which contains at least 5, distinct ideas detailing what your main priorities would be should you be successfully elected, during your time in post. If you are unsure on what these priorities should be, we suggest speaking to students in the CBL college, who you will be representing and acting on behalf of in the position. Full guidance on what a Manifesto is and how to write one can be found here.
As well as this, you must also submit a head and shoulders photograph of yourself which is unfiltered, which will feature on the Elections voting page.
Who will voters be for this election?
This election will be delivered through our co-option process. This means that our current Full Time and Part Time Officers will be the only people eligible to vote in this election. This will take place during an extraordinary Union Affairs Committee (UAC) Meeting which is a meeting between all our Officers, on 26th November 2025.
Key Dates and Process
Below are the key dates for this CBL PTO Election- please note, as this is a co-option part way through the year, this Election process may look a little bit different to that of the yearly Leadership Elections:
The Elections Team will then check your eligibility for the position, and that your Manifesto and Photo meet the necessary requirements. You will be contacted with your nominations outcome, including whether you are eligible, by a member of the Elections team by 14th November. They will also give you more information on the Election, confirming rules and requirements of candidates- it is important you read and respond to these communications, as they will detail what you can and cannot do as part of the Election.
If your nomination is successful, and you are eligible, your Manifesto and Photo will be submitted to the Union Affairs Committee (UAC). Full Time Officers and Part Time Officers on the Committee will vote in a private ballot, to determine the successful applicant.
This vote will take place in an extraordinary UAC meeting, taking place on 26th November.
As an SU, we use a preferential voting system (sometimes called the single transferable vote system) for our Elections
Once votes have been received and ratified, the successful candidate for the role will be notified.
The new PTO will start in their role, on 12th January 2026. Training will likely take place during this week
If you require any support during the Election, please contact us by emailing elections.su@coventry.ac.uk.
Our full General Union Election Regulations can be found here. Please note this is a Co-Option process so some rules may not apply. Please refer to the co-option section of the document.
If you need to submit a complaint at any time please refer to our Elections Complaints Policy.