Academic Governance Membership Typology
Academic Governance Membership Typology
The following typology defines the role and route to membership of each member of academic governance body within the University's Academic Governance Framework.
Committee Role |
Role Description |
Method of Appointment |
Voting Rights/Decision-Making Authority |
Membership |
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| Chair | Chairs meetings. Details of the formal role of a chair can be found in the Committee Guidance. | Can be ex officio (see below) for senior committees, e.g. Education Committee: PVC Education (Chair), or elected by the members. This is defined in the committee Terms of Reference. | May have a casting vote, however, in practice at Warwick Chairs don’t usually vote. |
| Secretary | Supports and guides the committee; has a role in maintaining good governance practice. Secretariat information and resources can be found here in the Committee Guidance. | An individual’s substantive role may be linked to the remit of the committee, or the Secretary may be appointed. This is defined in the committee Terms of Reference | Not usually for the more formal committees, however in certain cases a member within another category and with voting rights can also take on the Secretary role. |
| Independent/External Member | Not a member of the University. They are appointed (no election usually) to a committee because of their skills and expertise. All external members are asked to fill in a register of interest form, including SU members who are technically non-university staff. | They are appointed (no election usually) to a committee because of their skills and expertise. For Council and its sub-committees this happens through a formal process and the Nominations Committee (of Council). The process can be less formal for other committees and groups. | Yes |
| Appointed/Elected/'Representative member of' or Co-opted Member | A member of the committee that represents a department, Faculty, area of expertise or a designated part of the wider University community. | A committee member may be Ex officio (from the office). They may be appointed by a person (e.g. the VC) or a group (e.g. Academic Governance Nominations Panel, Assembly to Senate, Faculty Board to Senate). In some cases, there is a call for nominations and election process. There may be combinations of ex officio, nominated or elected members on a single committee. The method of appointment and number of committee members is defined in each committee’s terms of reference. |
Yes |
| Ex Officio Member | A member of the University due to the role or office held. A member of the committee as a representative of a department, Faculty, area of expertise or a representative of a designated part of the wider University community. | A member by virtue of holding another role / office which has a link to the remit of the committee. In some cases, an ex officio role can nominate someone else usually from within their team/area e.g. PVC Education or nominee. |
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| Student Member | A student or Full-Time Officer of the Students’ Union that acts as a representative of collective student interests or as a representative of a defined part of the wider student community (department, protected characteristic, lived experience). | This is usually one or more of the core elected Students’ Union Full-Time Officers on formal University committees. Student representation is drawn on more widely for sub committees, often from other SU roles/ SSLCs/taskforces/interest groups, etc. | Yes |
In attendance |
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| Regular Attendee | Attends all meetings, usually by invitation from the Chair or members by virtue of their substantive role, skills and/or expertise but is not a formal, decision-making member. | Attends all meetings. Usually by invitation from the Chair or existing members by virtue of their substantive role, skills and/or expertise but is not a formal, decision-making member | No |
| Attendee for one or more items at a meeting/Presenter | Attends parts of meetings to present/co-present an item or provide advice as part of an item’s discussion. | By invitation of the Chair or nominee. | No |
| Observer | Attends one or more meetings for the purposes of development and succession planning. | By invitation of the Chair or nominee. | No |
Interested in getting involved?
Joining a committee is a great way to shape decisions that impact education, research, and University life. It's an opportunity to develop new skills, expand your network, and make a real difference. We've established a new way of recruiting committee members to make governance more inclusive, diverse and representative of our University community. We want to hear from staff and students with different backgrounds, experiences and perspectives.