Students' union
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A students' union or student union, also known by many other names,, organizational activities, representation, and academic support of the membership.
In the United States, student union often only refers to a physical building owned by the university with the purpose of providing services for students without a governing body. This building is also referred to as a
Purpose
Depending on the country, the purpose, assembly, method, and implementation of the group might vary. Universally, the purpose of students' union or student government is to represent fellow students in some fashion.
In some cases, students' unions are run by students, independent of the educational facility. The purpose of these organizations is to represent students both within the institution and externally, including on local and national issues. Students' unions are also responsible for providing a variety of services to students. Depending on the organization's makeup, students can get involved in the union by becoming active in a committee, by attending councils and general meetings, volunteering within a group, service or club run by the union, or by becoming an elected officer.
Some students' unions are politicized bodies, and often serve as a training ground for aspiring politicians. Students' unions generally have similar aims irrespective of the extent of politicization, usually focusing on providing students with facilities, support, and services.
Some students' unions often officially recognize and allocate an annual budget to other organizations on campus. In some institutions, postgraduate students are within the general students' unions, whereas in others they have their own postgraduate representative body. In some cases, graduate students lack formal representation in student government.
Variations depending on country
As mentioned before universally the purpose of students' union or student government is to represent fellow students. Many times students' unions usually focusing on providing students with facilities, support, and services. Simple variations on just the name include the name differences between the United States (student government) and other countries (students' union or student association). Depending on the country there are different methods of representation
Asia and Oceania
Australia
In Australia, all universities have one or more student organizations.
Australian student unions typically provide such services as eateries, small retail outlets (e.g., news agencies), student media (e.g., campus newspapers), advocacy, and support for a variety of social, arts, political, recreational, special interest and sporting clubs and societies. Most also operate specialized support services for female,
In 2011, the Government passed legislation to allow universities to charge students a compulsory service fee to fund amenities such as sporting facilities, childcare and counselling, as well as student media and "advocating students' interests".[3]
The
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan Students Union (ASU) was established by students from Baku on 15 September 2008. ASU is an organization which was established on basis of international experience and it was the first student organization which united students irrespective of gender, race, creed, nationality.
During its action period ASU has formed stable structure, presented new suggestions about student policy to appropriate bodies, made close relations with international and regional student organizations, prepared new action plan according to the universities-students-companies' relations in Azerbaijan.
ASU considered international relations very important. For the first time ASU's delegates were participants of the First Asia IAESTE Forum in Shanghai during 12–15 November 2009. After that forum ASU established close relations with IAESTE which is one of the biggest student exchange organizations. As a result of relations on 21 January 2010 ASU was accepted a member of IAESTE. The union gained right to represent Azerbaijan students in IAESTE. That membership was the union's first success on international level. During 20–27 January Azerbaijan Students Union was accepted as associative member of IAESTE in 64th Annual Conference in Thailand. Azerbaijan Students Union has been a full member of European Students' Union until 2015.
China
In China, the student body is usually referred to as 学生会 (pinyin: xuéshēng hùi; lit. 'student union') or 学生联合会 (pinyin: xuéshēng liánhé hùi; lit. 'student league').
Membership in different universities has different functions. Some universities may give the membership a task of recording the students' attendance and the complex grades. Student associations of Chinese universities are mostly under the leadership of Communist Youth League of China, which to a large extent limit its function as an organization purely belonging to students themselves.
Hong Kong
All
India
India has developed a complex tradition of student politics dating from the era of Indian National Congress movement domination. Student unions are organised both within universities, like the Student Council of IISc and across universities,
Indonesia
In Indonesia, every university, college and higher education school has a student union.
The official student union in junior and senior high school is usually called Organisasi Siswa Intra Sekolah (Intra-School Student Organization, abbreviated as OSIS), is formed by the school. A general election to choose the leader is usually held every year. OSIS organizes the school's extracurricular activities such as music shows and art gallery (pentas seni/pensi).
The student union in universities is commonly called Badan Eksekutif Mahasiswa (Student Executive Board, abbreviated as BEM), though the official name could be vary between universities or faculties. Most of BEMs are affiliated with several national unions, such as All-Indonesia BEM (BEM SI) or BEM Nusantara (BEMNUS).
Japan
In
There is no nationwide student union in Japan that participates in university administration or university management.[6]
Malaysia
Every year, the Malaysian Ministry of Higher Education would set meetings and arrange programmes with all MPPs. Nevertheless, each MPP has their own autonomous right to govern their own membership. The size of MPP differs from each university, from as little as 12 to as many as 50, which may include non-associate members from student leaders representing their respective student body. All MPP members are part-time and unpaid officers.
In 2011, Universiti Sains Malaysia established Students' Consultative Assembly (Malay: Dewan Perundingan Pelajar, DPP), the first student parliament established and the oldest of its kind in Malaysia, to involve participation of more student leaders in decision and policy making as well as to establish a legislative branch in its Students' Union system instead of having the only executive branch. A university student parliament is composed of MPP members and other elected or appointed student leaders representing their respective student body, along with the presence of the management's and students' representative as observers. In 2020, Universiti Utara Malaysia revived the Students' Parliament (Malay: Parlimen Mahasiswa) as the legislative branch in its Students' Union system which was left dormant since its last meeting at 2013 and the next meeting since its revival was held in April 2021. As at May 2021, 8 public universities in Malaysia had their student parliament established.
However, there were several disputes regarding the autonomy of the MPP, since executive decisions were depending upon the advice of the Students' Affairs Department (
New Zealand
Students associations have a strong history in New Zealand of involvement in political causes, notably the
Previous to 1998 membership of Students' Associations (pep) was compulsory at all public Tertiary Education providers (universities, polytechnics and colleges of education). In 1997 the centre-right
However the National Party relied on support from the centrist New Zealand First party to pass legislation. The New Zealand First party preferred that Tertiary Students themselves choose whether their provider should be voluntary or compulsory and pushed through a compromise to the amendment that allowed for a Compulsory Vs Voluntary referendum to be held at every public Tertiary Education Provider. The amendment also allowed for subsequent referendums which could not be held until at least two years had passed since the previous referendum and only if a petition was signed by 10% of the student populace.[citation needed]
The first wave of referendums were held in 1999, in which several Polytechnics and two Universities (the University of Waikato and the University of Auckland) elected to become voluntary.[citation needed] In 2002 a second referendum was held at the University of Waikato and students choose to return to compulsory student membership.[citation needed] Similar referendums at Auckland University in 2001, 2003 and 2005 have all elected to retain voluntary student membership.[citation needed]
Most of New Zealand Tertiary students' associations are confederated under the New Zealand Union of Students' Associations.
Philippines
In the Philippines, student unions are referred to as "student government" and "student council." They are vital organizations for student representation and advancing the struggle of the people for their democratic rights and freedoms. At the primary and secondary level, student unions are referred to as pupil government handled by the Department of Education under their Student Government Program. Meanwhile, at the tertiary level, private and state colleges and universities have their own student councils. A university may further be subdivided into colleges with their own specializations (e.g., College of Law, College of Medicine, College of Arts and Sciences, etc.); in this case, the highest student representation will usually be referred to as the university student council while the student representation of these colleges will be called college student council(s). Aside from student unions, students are further represented in the through the student regent (e.g., UP Office of the Student Regent for the students of the University of the Philippines System). The student regent is a consequence of tireless and continuous struggle of the students to be represented in the highest policy-making body of their respective universities such as the school board where the student regent has voting powers, among others. Student regents are very common for universities with campuses in different locations and most especially in state universities and colleges. On the other hand, these student unions are also connected throughout the country via an alliance or network such as the National Union of Students of the Philippines (NUSP), which serves as a nationwide alliance of student councils/governments/unions committed to the advancement of the students' democratic rights and welfare since its establishment in 1957.[citation needed]
Sri Lanka
In Sri Lanka, each state university has several Students' unions with formal links to respective faculties. Inter University Students' Federation is the umbrella organization of 14 unions of university students. However, most of these have political affiliations and function as proxies of these political factions. Many unions take an active political role within the university and in the country as a whole. This frequently lead to much clashes between rival students' unions or the authorities.
Taiwan
In
Myanmar
The role of students' unions in Myanmar were attached with Politics. From 1920, the students' union were outcoming and tried to get the Interdependence of Nation. There were many students boycotts in Myanmar: 1920, 1936, 1962, 1974-75-76, 1988, 1996, 2007 and recently 2015 March. Most of them were connected with political issues.
Africa
In South Africa student representative councils are the executive and plenary body of student governance and charters and provides most of the funding for other student groups, and represents students' interests when dealing with the administration. In several instances representatives of these bodies are members of the university's Senate.
In 2012 the first student union in Libya, after 42 years of suppression, was founded. Students from Al Mimona Ebem Alharth school public school in Tripoli-Libya successfully established the union and promoted for other schools around the country to do the same. The founder Alaa Amed received local media attention for this achievement.
While higher education and student activism might vary depending on the country the National Association of Nigerian Students' is an organization with well over 50 university union across the nation.
Tunisia has many students unions including the Union Générale des Étudiants de Tunisie founded in 1952, and Union Générale Tunisienne des Étudiants founded in 1985.
Europe
While each students' union varies by countries the European Students' Union is an umbrella organization of 45 national unions of students from 36 European countries.
Armenia
The Armenian National Students Association was established in September 2003 and represents 90 thousand students across Armenia. It is a member of the European Students' Union.[7] The National Youth Council of Armenia was established in 1997 and represents 70 student and youth structures throughout Armenia.[8]
Denmark
In
Every university has a student union (In Danish, Studenterråd). Membership is not mandatory. The student unions are funded by the university and the Ministry of Science on the basis of the percentage of votes received every year at the university election. The student union is autonomous, its internal life organized by its by-laws. The student unions are responsible for all representation of the students and elect the student members of different administrative organs. They usually coordinate and finance the activities of smaller, more specialized student organizations. For the financing of their activities, some student unions exact a membership fee and/or engage in different businesses.
In the Ministry of Culture institutions there are also local student organisations. In the Ministry of Education institutions, The student activities are very much related to a student division of the Labor Union in the different areas. For instance, the teachers' students are organised in the national labor union for teachers and so forth.
The Upper-Secondary schools (In Danish, Gymnasier), It is in Denmark a law that there has to be a student council at the Upper-Secondary schools. The student councils are organized in the following organisations:
Finland
France
The central organization of the French higher education system means that local university bodies have restricted decision-making power. As a consequence, student unions are generally established at national level with local sections in most universities. The largest national student unions have a strong political identity and their actions are generally restricted to the defense of their vision of higher education rather than being focused on the particular interests of the membership of a single university. Union membership is regarded as an essentially political decision, without any particular advantage for students. The strength of unions is often measured by their effectiveness in national protests rather than by membership figures. The National Union of Students of France (UNEF) is the oldest French student union created in 1907. It laid the modern foundations of student unionism in France in 1946 when it adopted the Charter of Grenoble.
There are also class-struggle student unions such as the Solidaires Étudiant-e-s (formed in January 2013 through the fusion of the former organizations SUD Étudiant and Féderation syndicale étudiante (FSE)) which refuse to cooperate with the universities' direction and work to organize students. Or radical-right student organizations like the student cockade
In the
High school students' union
The first high school organizations appear sporadically with social movements since the mid-1960s.
Modern French high school unionism appeared after the Devaquet Law Project which had sparked a mass mobilization of high school and university students in November and December 1986 : In 1987 the Independent and Democratic Lycee Federation was founded.[9][10] This organization was the first to claim syndicalism. It is the oldest French high school students union still in operation.
Others high school students unions referring to
Germany
In
Greece
In Greece every university department has its corresponding student union (in Greek: Σύλλογος Φοιτητών) and all students belonging to the department have the right to register as members. The main objective of a student union is to solve students' problems that can either be related to academic life or have a general political and social nature. Furthermore, student unions organize and support numerous activities such as political debates, demonstrations, university occupations, educational lectures, cultural and artistic events, conferences and so on.
The structure of a student union is rather simple and comprises two bodies:
Every year in early spring the student elections take place nationwide, during which students vote for their representatives. All student unions in Greece are members of the "National Student Union of Greece" (ΕΦΕΕ - Εθνική Φοιτητική Ένωση Ελλάδας).
Ireland
Most of
All Universities and Institutes of Technologies in the Republic of Ireland have Students' Unions.
Netherlands
There are several students' unions in The Netherlands which act as labor unions for students. The largest ones are VSSD[12] in Delft and ASVA Studentenunie[13] in Amsterdam. These students' unions are all members of LSVb,[14] the national students' union. There's also a similar organization called ISO (Interstedelijk Studenten Overleg), which consists of several formal participation organizations, as well as ASVA Studentenunie and VSSD. Both ISO and LSVb are members of European Students' Union.
Lastly, the Netherlands has an (unofficial) student union for its students that study abroad: Netherlands Worldwide Students or simply NEWS.
The Netherlands is also home to an unusual case of student representation in which a local political party completely run by student gained seats during local town hall elections, STIP.
Norway
In Norway, every university is instructed and required by law to have a student union elected by the students at the university. Additionally, Norwegian law requires two students to be appointed as members of the board of directors for all universities. The goal for every student union is to act as the official voice of the students towards the university's administration and rector, informing them on the students' perspectives on most issues at the institution, either academic or administrative. They often additionally seek to improve their school environment through encouraging social, cultural and other extracurricular events in the local community. Each student union in Norway is governed by a board of directors that is elected directly from the Student Council. In addition, most upper secondary schools in Norway are affiliated with the School Student Union of Norway.
Portugal
In
Sweden
At
The unions are usually governed by a general assembly of elected representatives. Students' unions generally provide
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom has a long history of student unionism at a local and national level. The oldest students' union in Britain (as distinct from a primarily social union society) was the
Under the Education Act 1994, the role and purpose of students' unions is defined as being "promoting the general interests of its members as students". This has limited the ability of students' unions to campaign on issues not directly related to their members as students, such as Apartheid and the 1984–85 miners' strike.[16]
The Americas
Canada
In
Most students' unions are charged by their membership to protect their best interests at the university, municipal, provincial and federal government levels. Advocating for support from the provincial government for areas such as lower tuition fees, support for sexual and gender based violence, and financial support, as well as creating position papers and providing research to support various causes. Many students' unions in Canada are members of one of the national student organizations, the
Different provinces have different rules governing student unions. In British Columbia under section 27.1 of the University Act, student unions may only raise or rescind mandatory student union fees through a democratic referendum of the membership.
Students' Unions in Canada typically offer a variety of services such as LGBTQ2+ groups, Women's Centre's, Food Banks, Bicycle Repair Shops, Campus First Aid teams, Walksafe programs, Peer Support groups and Racialized Student Support, among other offerings and independent student groups.[20] Unions also generally offer health and dental plans, termly bus passes at costs negotiated with the local transit authority, and other student assistance programs.[21][22] Funding options are also a part of many student unions' including endowment funds, funding for student clubs and for orientation.[21] Students' unions are also programmers for the beginning of term events such as Welcome Week, Frost Week and other events throughout the term that provide social connections and wellness for students. Advocacy is also a main portion of what a students' union does including connecting with the university or College to advocate for changes to programs, co-op, and affordability. They also advocate for housing and tenant rights, safety, quality of education, academic rights, transportation concerns, accessibility, diversity and equity and health and wellness.[23]
Mexico
In Mexico, students unions are mostly predominant in universities. Mexican universities have an elected student committee each year, but the faculties or schools within the universities have also their own union. This practice is also extended to other levels of education, such as high and junior high school, but to a lesser extent. An example of this is the Sociedad de Alumnos de HPA Mexico.
Jesuit student groups played an important role in Mexico's history, particularly in opposing the imposition of socialist education in Mexico in the 1930s. Leaders from the Unión Nacional de Estudiantes Católicos (UNEC) had long-term importance in Mexico's political history, since a number of them helped form the conservative National Action Party (Mexico).[24]
United States
In the United States, these groups are often known as student government, associated students, student senate, or less commonly a students' union. In the U.S., the phrase "student union" often refers to a "
Brazil
The Brazilian Society
This society has existed since 2003 and now has 190 members, where only one third are Brazilian. The other two thirds are people who are just interested in Brazilian politics, famous parties and culture. This is one of the societies that students may join if they so wish. The society has social events and it hosts lectures. They also have a Brazilian discussion group on a weekly basis in order to discuss current events.[25]
Middle East
Israel
The National Union of Israeli Students (NUIS) is the sole organization that represents over 300,000 students of 61 higher education institutes and vocational schools in Israel. We believe that the young age group of Israel, comprising almost half of the Israel's population, is the living force of society. NUIS was established in 1934, before establishment the state of Israel.
The Student Union's main activity is to widespread and include a variety of activities portraying its worldview regarding the students' role, responsibilities and benefits within the Israeli society. The union is composed of professional departments enacting the decisions made for, and with the student community, in addition to local student unions in each of the higher education institutes. The central role of the union is to protect the student's status and rights, while strengthening its social purpose as the leading organization driving lively activities among the students.
See also
Notes
- ^ including students' council, student government, free student union, student senate, students' association, guild of students, or government of student body
References
- ^ "Students' union definition". Collins Dictionary. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
- ^ "Debate rages over voluntary student unionism". ABC. 27 Apr 2005. Retrieved 1 February 2017.
- ^ "Student Services and Amenities Fee". Department of Education and Training. Australian Government. Retrieved 1 February 2017.
- ^ "The Death of Hong Kong's University Student Unions".
- ^ HKFSU. "About FSU 關於我們 - HKFSU 香港學生會總會 hkfsu.org". hkfsu.org.
- ^ (NIAD-UE), National Institution for Academic Degrees and University Evaluation (2014). "Quality Assurance System in Higher Education (p13)" (PDF). NIAD. Retrieved February 23, 2020.
- ^ "Armenia – ANSA – The Armenian National Students' Association". ESU Online.
- ^ "Հայաստանի երիտասարդության ազգային խորհուրդի մասնակցությամբ կայացել է Եվրոպական երիտասարդական ֆորումի հավաքը | Առավոտ - Լուրեր Հայաստանից".
- ^ .
- ^ Krop, Jérôme; Lembré, Stéphane. Histoire des élèves en France. Vol. 2 : Ordres, désordres et engagements (XVIe - XXe siècles). p. 333.
- ^ Morder, Robi (December 2020). "Cinq questions pour mieux comprendre l'affaire " Avenir lycéen "". The Conversation. Retrieved 2021-09-13.
- ^ Vereniging voor Studie en Studentenbelangen te Delft. Vssd.nl. Retrieved on 2010-10-25.
- ^ ASVA Studentenunie > ASVA. Asva.nl. Retrieved on 2010-10-25.
- ^ LSVb home. Lsvb.nl. Retrieved on 2010-10-25.
- ^ Day, Mike; Dickinson, Jim (6 September 2018). David versus Goliath: The past, present and future of students' unions in the UK (Report). Higher Education Policy Institute.
- ^ Alex Bols (26 June 2014). "The 1994 Education Act and students' unions". WONKHE. Retrieved 8 June 2019.
- ^ "Act respecting the accreditation and financing of students' associations". October 20, 2020. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
- ^ a b "University Act [RSBC 1996] CHAPTER 468". February 24, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
- ^ "Bill 184, College and University Student Associations Act, 2011". Retrieved March 7, 2021.
- ^ "Clubs, Services and ISGs - Students' Society of McGill University". ssmu.ca. Retrieved 2021-03-08.
- ^ a b "Fees". Waterloo Undergraduate Student Association. 2017-09-22. Retrieved 2021-03-08.
- ^ "SUNSCAD – The Student Union of NSCAD University". Retrieved 2021-03-08.
- ^ "Student Advocacy". Waterloo Undergraduate Student Association. 2017-09-21. Retrieved 2021-03-08.
- ^ David Espinosa, Jesuit Student Groups, the Universidad Iberoamericana, and Political Resistance in Mexico, 1913-1979. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press 2014.
- ^ "União Nacional dos Estudantes".