UniQ Victoria (UniQ) is the Queer Students’ Association of Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington. We are a student-led group, controlled by queer and queer-allied students, working in the interests of all queer students, advocating for and representing their views.

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Our Story

Beginning in 1997, UniQ Victoria grew from its precursor groups including the Gay Students Group and Lesbians on Campus. We were set to provide a united voice for queer students on campus, raising queer visibility and ensuring queer issues were recognised and acted on while also providing a social environment for queer students.

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The name 'UniQ' comes from the work of Matt Soeberg, the Queer Project Worker for the New Zealand Union of Students' Associations (NZUSA). Originally 'UNIQ - Creating Support for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Students', the work was centered around creating solutions to the problems the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender student face by creating alliances. The name was then adopted by various university student queer groups across Aotearoa New Zealand and we've decided to stick with it.

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Today, UniQ is a community group dedicated to providing queer students with social support and services that have a positive impact on their health and wellbeing, and ensuring that Victoria University of Wellington is a safe and inclusive environment. We also advocate for the interests of queer students, pursuing policy and legislative change to the benefit of our community.

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Among the events we host are social spaces to give people the opportunity to connect with others and find a community away from home where they are supported. We also contribute to the various events that make up student life like O-Week, the Welcome Festival, Sex Week, and more. Our main event though is our annual Pride Week. Hosted traditionally in week 2 of trimester 2, UniQ pulls together a variety of events from quiz nights, educational talks, movies and games nights,  and parties to deliver a week full of fun that all students can enjoy.

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