Association of Students at the University of Zurich
| Association of Students of the University of Zurich (VSUZH) |
|
|---|---|
| legal form | Public corporation |
| purpose | Student body , student representation |
| Seat | Rämistrasse 62, 8001 Zurich, Switzerland |
| founding | October 1, 2012
|
| place | Zurich |
| president | Lukas Buser |
| President | Polina Pokrovskaya |
| Members | approx. 13,000 |
| Website | vsuzh.ch |
The Union of Students of the University of Zurich (VSUZH) is the public body of the students of the University of Zurich and represents them in their educational policy concerns towards the University and the Canton of Zurich . It also offers services to its members.
organization
The legal basis for the tasks and structure of the VSUZH can be found in Section 17 of the University Act of the Canton of Zurich and in the VSUZH's statutes.
The VSUZH is divided into the following bodies:
Members
All students at the University of Zurich are automatically members of the VSUZH, but can withdraw at the beginning of each semester. While the members as a whole are not an organ in the actual sense, they can exercise their say in the form of initiatives and referendums, as well as in the election of the council.
advice
The council forms the legislature of the VSUZH and elects all other organs as well as the student representatives in organs of the university and the association of Swiss student bodies . It is elected every two years (for the first time in May 2013) by all students at the university, whereby only members have the right to stand for election. The Council's 70 seats are allocated using the Saint-Laguë procedure .
Board
The board of directors is the executive branch of the VSUZH and conducts day-to-day operations. This includes, among other things, the accounting, the preparation of the council meetings, as well as contact with the media and the university. He also prepares and conducts the elections in the VSUZH. The board is responsible for fulfilling the tasks and assignments assigned to it by the VSUZH council. It can be, for. E.g. questions, consultations or resolutions, or the organization of actions.
It consists of seven members, including a usually two-person co-presidium. He is supported in his work by a managing secretariat and a communication office.
Appeal Committee
The task of a judiciary is fulfilled by the objection committee (ESK). It handles objections to the decisions of the other bodies. The decisions of the ESK can be referred to the appeals committee of the Zurich universities and from there to the administrative court of the canton of Zurich.
Student Commissions
The council forms various commissions to deal with certain topics and to fulfill certain tasks. Commissions exist, for example, for business auditing, auditing, services, educational policy, etc.
history
The General Student Assembly and Student Corporations (1833-1919)
When the university was founded in 1833, no organized student body was planned. Soon, however, a loose, occasional meeting of students emerged - the General Student Assembly (Coreper). During its fifty years of existence it took on an increasingly organized form and, despite the lack of an official basis, was seen as the credible voice of the students. Since in fact only fraternity students took part (which made up only a fifth of the student body), Coreper decided in 1888 to dissolve it.
The next few decades, however, remained marked by the contrast between incorporated fraternity students and the “wild” remaining students. During this chaotic time, despite several attempts and complex compromise solutions, there was no body that could speak for all students. The incorporated, who were the clear minority, saw their delegates' convention - which, by the way, explicitly exclude women - as the only legitimate representation of the students. This parallel existence of incorporated and non-incorporated student bodies ended with the formation of the student body.
The student body at the University of Zurich (1919–1978)
In 1919, on the initiative of the students, the cantonal education council issued the first regulations on the organization of the student body. The thus established student body of the University of Zurich (SUZ) differed from all its predecessor organizations in two essential points: the compulsory membership of all enrolled students (and the associated semester fees) as well as the equal treatment of incorporated and non-incorporated students.
With its new financial stability and legitimation, the SUZ was able to achieve what was not possible before. It offered a travel agency, the Zürcher Studentenzeitung (ZS), loans and grants, student shops (through the ZSUZ central office), housing brokerage and many other services.
After 1968 the SUZ was increasingly dominated by the political left, which made it many enemies. In 1977 two students filed an appeal against the compulsory SUZ fee, arguing that there was no legal basis for such compulsory membership. When the government council approved the appeals, the fate of the SUZ was sealed. After more than 50 years, the student body was dissolved. The government council tried to establish a new corporation with the right to resign on the basis of a regulation, but this was not seen as legitimate by the students and was finally dissolved by the federal court due to a lack of a legal basis.
Many of the services of the SUZ live on: the ZS is supported by its own association, the loan office and the central office of the student body were spun off as foundations (whereby the ZSUZ had to file for bankruptcy 40 years later) and the housing agency became today's WOKO.
VSU and StuRa (1978–2012)
In order to be able to continue to elect student delegates in committees of the university, the directly elected Extended Large Student Council (EGStR) was formed, which was, however, a purely electoral body without a political representation function. The task of political representation of student interests was unofficially taken over by an association under private law: the Association of Students at the University of Zurich (VSU). Although the VSU was a clearly left-wing group, which of course made relations with the university and the education department more difficult, it was long considered a partner for the media and de facto took over the tasks of the SUZ.
The VSU's mandate ended for two reasons: firstly, the financial and personnel situation of the association deteriorated faster and faster from the 1990s. The number of members sank from thousands to hundreds, the board was almost impossible to fill. In 2005 the association was finally dissolved. The legal successor to the VSU was taken over by an association that is still active at the university today: critical politics, better known as kriPo.
Second, in 1994 the EGStR was transformed into the Student Council (StuRa) through a total revision of its general rules of procedure. The significant difference: the StuRa was no longer a mere electoral body, but now officially had the task of representing the students politically. Despite the lack of legal personality and financial dependence on UZH, he successfully completed this task, but with the constant goal of re-establishing a student body - a public corporation.
The VSUZH (since 2012)
After 35 years without written representation of the students, the Cantonal Council approved a motion on August 29, 2011 with 99 yes, 72 no and 0 abstentions to anchor the Union of Students of the University of Zurich (VSUZH) as a public body in the University Act. New with the right to withdraw, independent professional associations and without a general political mandate. When the change came into force on October 1, 2012, there was officially a new student body. The statutes were approved by the university council, the first elections were held, and the VSUZH began its work at the constituent meeting on May 28, 2013.
literature
- Hans Erb: History of the student body at the University of Zurich, 1833-1936 . Student body of the University of Zurich, Zurich 1937.
- Student Council of the University of Zurich (ed.): We are what we remember. On the history of the students at the University of Zurich from 1968 to 2008 . Theodor Schmid, Zurich 2008, ISBN 978-3-906566-70-2 ( vsuzh.ch [PDF; accessed November 12, 2019]).
Archives holdings
- Portfolio: Student administration, student body of the University of Zurich. State Archives of the Canton of Zurich . 1870-1984. Signature: W II 12. Link
- Existing portfolio: Association of Students at the University of Zurich (VSU). UZH archive . 1978-2005. Signature: PA.001. link
- Existing portfolio: Association of Students of the University of Zurich (VSUZH). UZH archive. 2012–. Signature: L.2. link