SHI

Stúdentaráð Háskóla Íslands (SHÍ)

The Student Council of the University of Iceland

 

Address

SHÍ
Stúdentaheimilinu við Hringbraut
101 Reykjavík
Iceland

Tel : +354-5700-850
Fax : +354-5700-709
e-mail : shi@hi.is
website : www.student.is

History

The Student Council was established in 1920 and has since then operated on both university and national level. SHÍ has a strong profile and has been a considerable force in Icelandic politics.

Aims and Objectives

The aim of The Student Council is, in short, to guard educational and cultural interests of students as well as their general welfare. In addition, various services are offered to students. The Student Council defends guards student interests, both towards the University and towards the government. The Student Council demands equal opportunity to education and adequate educational and social conditions for students

Membership

All students of the University of Iceland are automatically members of The Student Council. Election are held each year, where students vote for whom they want to represent them in the Student Council. All students at the University have the right to vote.

Finance

The annual budget is c.a. 15 million ISK (USD 150.000). There are no membership fees. The Student Council is financed with service contracts with the University and also by sponsorships from a few large companies.

Structure

SHÍ consists of 20 people. Each year 10 representatives are elected by the students to serve for two years. Traditionally two associations have their representatives in The Student Council, Röskva and Vaka. The Student Council has meetings approximately every four weeks, but in between the work takes place in six committees, in an elected board, and by the staff at the SHÍ office.

Working methods

The Student Council itself is the main decision making body. The Executive Committee consists of 7 members of The Student Council. The main role of the Executive Committee is to be the decision making body regarding the finances of the office, it is not a policy making body.

The Student Council also runs an office dealing with student rights and assists students in disputes inside the university. It provides advice on how students can maintain their rights if they think their rights have been violated. If students experience unfairness, for instance regarding exams, academic evaluation or teaching, they are encouraged to turn to the SHÍ office. All matters are treated as confidential.

The committees are in charge of carrying out the decisions and the policy of the Council within their designated fields of work, in co-operation with the staff at the office.

The committees are;

• International committee : Deals with international co-operation of the Council and all matters regarding foreign students
• Employment committee : Deals with student employment and the co-operation between the University and the business community
• Committee of student’s interests: Deals with various financial and social concerns, facility matters, and things related to taxes and students discounts.
• Equality and Security committee : Deals with all matters regarding equal rights within the University
• Student loan committee : Deals with all matters regarding the Student Loan Fund
• Committee of education : Deals with various educational matters within the University and handles relations between the Council and the faculty

What has happened since the last NOM meeting

A new Student Council took over on March 15th. The Councils work has been prolific and successful. Here are some of the highlights:

The student council presses the government to lower taxes on foreign books

Last year prices on reached new heights as the rate of the dollar skyrocketed. The student council pressed the government to stop distinguishing Icelandic and foreign books with a different rate of VAT and encourage them to lower the VATon foreign books from 24,5% to 14%. Last spring the Icelandic parliament agreed to lower taxes on foreign books and therefore it is clear that the price of 90% of University of Iceland’s teaching material will drop. Higher Student Loans

The Student Council fought hard with the government and the board of The Student Loan Fund and was successful in raising the amount of the loans.

Considerable increase in student housing

This summer Gardabaer, a town just outside Reykjavik, opened a new Student dormitory. The Student Council has aimed its focus to increase available apartments for students and has pointed out new alternatives as dormitories in the urban. In the last elections in Reykjavik city, the Student Council asked the running candidates if they had any plans regarding affordable housing for students. As a result the newly elected administration of Reykjavik City decided to donate land in the town centre to new student housing.