The political and administrative structure As a student it can be very useful to know a little about the University’s structure and know who makes what decisions so you know where to contact if you encounter problems or want to exercise some influence!. The University Board is the highest authority at the University. The University Board consists of 11 members. There are six external members and five employees of the University. There are two spaces for students in The University Board. Heidi Klokker Andersen and Benjamin Bilde Boelsman from the Student Council were voted into these spaces by students in the Autumn 2012 election. The student members maintain their positions for one year and it is their task to represent the students’ interests and fight for their cause. The University Board’s job is to manage the University’s interests within education and research as well as establish guidelines for the organisation, long-term running and development of the University. In addition to this, it is The Board’s responsibility to decide how the University’s funds should be distributed among the various faculties and to approve the University’s budgets. Underneath The University Board
4 Arts 4 Science and Technology 4 Health 4 Business and Social Sciences
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Aarhus University
in the administrative hierarchy is the Rectorate, which consists of the University Rector, Brian Bech Nielsen, Vice Rektor, Søren E. Frandsen and the University Director, Jørgen Jørgensen. The Rectorate is in charge of the day-today running of the University, the framework of which is established by The University Board. The Rectorate, along with the Deans of the four faculties, comprises the Senior Management Team at Aarhus University. Each faculty has a Dean as its senior authority figure. The Dean is employed by the Rector and is responsible for ensuring the quality of the education, teaching and research in his or her faculty. On top of this, it is the Dean’s task to approve the curricula, which describe and define the faculty’s various educational programmes. At the institute level, the senior authority is the Institute Leader. The Institute Leader is employed by the Dean and is responsible for the daily management of the Institute. The Institute Leader must, just like the Dean, ensure the cohesion between the Institute’s teaching and research. Each education or group of educations also has a Board of Studies and a Director of Studies. The Director of Studies is a member of the Board of Studies, which is a committee consisting of an equal number of students and employees of the University. The Board of Studies is responsible for organising and developing the educational programmes. The Board of Studies is in charge of following up on evaluations and suggestions for changes to the curriculum and approving the lesson plans. It is the Board of Studies that you should write to if you wish to apply for dispensation to take an exam under different conditions or if you wish to lodge a complaint over a grade you have been given.