N·U·S (?n ju? ?s) n. 1. The National Union of Students. The peak representative body of undergraduate students in Australia and the organisers of NatCon. 2. A good time.

Nat·Con (nat k?n) n. 1. The word generally used to refer to the National Union of Students’ national conference. Policy is debated, roles are elected, and a fun time is had by all. 2. A good time?

bin·ding ('b??nd??) n. The practice of voting the same way as all members of one’s faction. Undertaken by most Labor factions and SAlt.

Busi·ness Com·mit·tee (also BizComm) ('b?zn?s k?'m?ti) n. A committee of seven delegates who decide the agenda for NatCon.

de·le·gate ('d?l?g?t) n. 1. An elected representative from each NUS-affiliated university who represents their faction university and votes on the motions moved at NatCon. 2. Masochists.

head kick·er (h?d 'k?k?) n. Generally refers to a factional leader. They are the political commissars of NatCon. They can be seen shouting phrases such as “NLS up”, “Unity up”, or “No solution? Revolution!”

What’s the solution? #nusnatcon

— Polls at Natcon (@pollsatnatcon) December 14, 2016

cau·cus ('k??k?s) n. A conference (or the act of conferencing) with members of the same faction, in which policy positions, tactics and strategy are discussed and decided on.

purge cau·cus (p??d? 'k??k?s) n. Like a normal caucus but instead of discussing strategy, members of a faction come together to kick people out of the ~group~.

fac·tion ('fak?(?)n) n. 1. A group of people with common political affiliations and/or ideological leanings. Students in the same faction caucus together and will often vote similarly on many issues. 2. Groups of friends who frequently disagree with other groups of friends. It all comes to a head for one week every year, like high school really.

fac·tio·nal punch ('fak?(?)n(?)l p?n(t)?) n. A worrisome mix of alcohol and other fluids. Isn’t fit for human consumption, but I guess that explains its existence at NatCon.

Na·tio·nal La·bor Students ('na?(?)n(?)l 'le?b? 'stju?d(?)nts) n. 1. Often simply NLS, and generally considered Labor left. NLS binds votes and has held the office of presidency since 1987. 2. Froths freedom of voting and diversity of opinion.

NLS confirmed to have the cutest shirts #nusnatcon https://t.co/iuhT7IGIV0

— Polls at Natcon (@pollsatnatcon) December 14, 2016

Na·tio·nal In·de·pen·dents ('na?(?)n(?)l ?nd?'p?nd(?)nts) n. 1. A faction of independents, based mainly around a broad range of opinions and an opposition to vote binding. 2. Froths being an independent but in a group; revels in glorious mediocrity.

So·cia·list Al·ter·na·tive ('s???(?)l?st ??l't??n?t?v,?l't??n?t?v) n. 1. The socialists at NatCon. Often called the Trots (referencing ya boi Leon Trotsky) or SAlt, they’ve probably tried to get you to sign a petition outside the Baillieu. 2. Froths looking poor but not that poor.

What do the trots hate more? #nusnatcon

— Polls at Natcon (@pollsatnatcon) December 12, 2016

Stu·dent U·ni·ty ('stju?d(?)nt 'ju?n?ti) n. 1. The faction with the most votes at NatCon this year. Often called just “Unity”, they are generally considered Labor right. 2. Froths HECS and lobbying.

What happens when a member of Student Unity forgets to declare that they’re a “proud member of Student Unity”? #nusnatcon

— Polls at Natcon (@pollsatnatcon) December 13, 2016

Shorts (???ts) n. 1. A Labor right subfaction, generally aligned with Unity. Named after national opposition leader Bill Shorten, aligned with the Australian Workers’ Union. 2. Froths Lambros Tapinos.

Cons (k?ns) n. 1. Another Labor right subfaction, named after another national Labor figure, Stephen Conroy, aligned with Health Workers’ Union. 2. Froths the Diana Asmar and Kimberly Kitching.

S·D·A (?s di? e?) n. 1. Yet another Labor right subfaction, which makes up the main body of Unity and is the largest subfaction in Victoria. Named after the Shopkeepers, Distributive, and Allied Employees’ Association—they are generally considered one of the most socially conservative Labor subfactions. 2. Froths Papa Francisco.

The aforementioned Papa Francisco for reference

Aus·tra·li·an Li·be·ral Stu·dents’ Fe·der·a·tion (?'stre?l??n,??'stre?l??n 'l?b(?)r(?)l 'stju?d(?)nt f?d?'re??(?)n) n. 1. The Liberal faction at NatCon. Consists of a broad base of right-leaning student politicians but a narrow base of beige chinos and ‘nice’ jumpers. 2. Froths men representing women.

Na·tio·nal E·xec·u·tive ('na?(?)n(?)l ?g'z?kj?t?v,?g'z?kj?t?v) n. Often called NEx, it is a body that oversees the NUS’ activities between conferences. It consists of state branch presidents and general members. National office bearers are also in this body but are non-voting members.

of·fice bea·rer (also officer) ('?f?s 'b??r?) n. Often referred to as NOBs (national office bearers), they are the elected head of a department in the union. They are voted in by the delegates of NatCon and represent their office. There are 12 offices. These include the presidency, welfare office and ethno-cultural office, to name a few.

stu·pol ('stju?p??l) n. 1. A portmanteau of “student” and “politics”. 2. This word was forged in the fiery pits of hell.

favourite thing about stupol is you can tell who was bullied in highschool and are now reliving their glory days of being cool. #nusnatcon

— overheard at natcon (@heardatnatcon) December 15, 2016

quo·rum ('kw??r?m, 'kw??r?t) n. 1. Fifty per cent of delegates and 50 per cent of votes need to be present at all times for conference to run. This is called “quorum” and the conference is “quorate” when the minimum number is reached. 2. *Spoilers* Is rarely reached before 2pm.

pho·to·gra·phy/fil·ming (f?'t?gr?fi/, f?lm??) n./v. Obviously a sin.