FAQ

Letteren Vooruit is currently the only student party in the Faculty Council of the Faculty of Arts. As a progressive party, we focus on student wellness, the quality of education, and improving student participation at our Faculty. In the spring of 2014, the party was founded by Léon Melein and Reinard van Dalen. During the first elections in 2015, the party managed to win three out of the nine seats with a brand new electoral list. Every year we do our best to defend the interests of students as well as increase transparency within the Faculty. Currently, Letteren Vooruit holds nine out of the nine student seats.

The University of Groningen is divided into several faculties. The Faculty of Arts is one of the largest faculties, with about 5000 students and 700 employees. In total, Arts offers 15 different bachelor programs and over 40 master programs. For a handy A-Z overview we would like to refer you to: http://www.rug.nl/let/faculty-of-arts-az.

The Faculty Council is the participation council of the Faculty of Arts at the University of Groningen. The council advises the Faculty Board on policy regarding research and education, as well as on the yearly budget. In addition to this advisory role, the council has the right of consent in two cases: when amending the faculty regulations and when amending the education and examination regulations. Topics discussed within the council have included, among others; sustainability at the Faculty of Arts, the mental health and wellbeing of students, making the Faculty an inclusive space, and harmonizing thesis procedures across programmes. The Faculty Council consists of 18 members in total. 9 members are elected by and from the staff (the staff faction). The other half is elected by and from the students (the student faction). Currently, Letteren Vooruit has all 9 seats on the council. The Presidium (the chairs) of the Faculty Council consists of the chair from the staff section and the vice-chair from the student faction.

Of course, the main difference between the Faculty Council and the University Council is that the Faculty Council deals with a specific faculty and the University Council deals with the entire university. In addition, the University Council is considered a full-time occupation, whilst the Faculty Council is considered a part-time job. At the University Council there are currently three parties (Lijst Calimero, SOG and De Vrije Student) and one independent member (Member Bin Israr) and at the Faculty Council of Arts there is only one party (after the dissolution of De Vrije Student): Letteren Vooruit.

The support faction consists of the persons who were in the top nine of the electoral list, but did not get elected to the Faculty Council. The support faction supports the faction by reading documents and preparing for upcoming meetings. Since Letteren Vooruit currently occupies all 9 student seats in the council, there is no support faction for 2024-2025.

Faculty Council elections are held once a year, usually in May. If you are interested in serving on the council, you must stand for election. You can do this by applying for a spot on the electoral list, usually around February. Parties will advertise for the recruitment of candidates well in time before the elections. Speaking of the elections, it is during this time that it is determined how many seats each party gets. The number of votes for the party in combination with one’s place on the party list determines whether one will become a council member.

The working language in the council is Dutch. This means that all documents are first written in Dutch, and English translations of them are provided. As a progressive party, we find it important that our council reflects our multilingual faculty. Although Dutch may be the working language and have legal precedence over English, the council also holds a number of its discussions in English. Non-Dutch-speaking council members are provided with live translations into English during the meetings. If you are interested in becoming a council member, it is helpful to have at least a basic understanding of the Dutch language. However, a number of our current and previous faction members are/were international and are/were still able to function as a council member. We value international perspectives, especially considering that our Faculty is made up of people of many different nationalities. The council should be- and is- linguistically accessible to all students who study at our Faculty, whether their programme is in Dutch or English.