Unlike other universities in Scotland, Glasgow does not have a single students' association. Instead, representation and welfare services are provided by the Students' Representative Council and students may also join one of two students' unions which provide other services.
Neither of the University's students' unions are affiliated to the National Union of Students - membership has been rejected on a number of occasions, most recently in November 2006, on both economic and political grounds.Neither does the representative body take the form of a Students' Association, as it does at other Scottish universities. However, every student is automatically represented by the Glasgow University Students' Representative Council (SRC) and has the right to stand for election to this body and elect its members. The President of the SRC, along with one other SRC member, the Court Assessor, sit on the University Court and a number of SRC members sit on the Academic Senate (which also has the responsibility of overseeing student discipline). Each student has the right to opt out of being an SRC member, although this rarely happens.
Rector
See: Rector of the University of Glasgow
See: List of elections for Rector of the University of Glasgow
Students also elect a Rector (officially styled "Lord Rector") who holds office for a three year term and is legally entitled to chair the University Court. This position is in practice largely an honorary and ceremonial one, and has been held by political figures including William Gladstone, Benjamin Disraeli, Andrew Bonar Law, Robert Peel, Raymond Poincaré, Arthur Balfour, and 1970s union activist Jimmy Reid, and latterly by celebrities such as TV presenters Arthur Montford and Johnny Ball, musician Pat Kane, and actors Richard Wilson, Ross Kemp and Greg Hemphill. In the past, few Rectors have actually been present to perform the duties of their office, although in recent years there has been a trend to elect people on the expectation that they will be working rectors. Ross Kemp was asked to resign by the SRC (which he did) for what they felt was a failure to act as a working rector. In 2004, for the first time in its history, the University was left without a Rector as no nominations were received. When the elections were run in December, Mordechai Vanunu was chosen for the post, even though he is unable to attend due to restrictions placed upon him by the Israeli government. The current rector of the University, elected on the 28th of February 2008, is Charles Kennedy, the former leader of the Liberal Democratic Party and University of Glasgow alumnus.
The Glasgow University Union's historic building at the bottom of University Avenue.
Student Unions and representation
In addition to the Students' Representative Council, students are commonly members of one of the University's two students' unions, Glasgow University Union (GUU) and the Queen Margaret Union (QMU).
Both unions are steeped in a long history. Historically the GUU was all-male, and the QMU was for female students. These are largely social and cultural institutions, providing their members with facilities for debating, dining, recreation, socialising, and drinking, and both have a number of meeting rooms available for rental to members. Postgraduate students, mature students and staff can join the Hetherington Research Club although postgraduates are entitled to join one of the student unions in addition to the Research Club.
Glasgow has led the UK's university debating culture since 1953. The Glasgow University Union has won the World Universities Debating Championships five times, more than any other university or club in the series' multi-decade history.
Sporting affairs are regulated by the Glasgow University Sports Association (GUSA) (previously the Glasgow University Athletics Club). There are a large number of varied clubs, who regularly compete in BUSA competitions. Students who join one of the sports clubs, affiliated with the university such as GURFC, Glasgow Tigers American Football Team, Glasgow University Shinty Club, and the Glasgow University Canoe Club, must also join GUSA.
Student clubs and societies
The University has an eclectic body of clubs and societies, ranging from the Glasgow University Penguin Society to the Anthropological Film Society. The Glasgow University Engineering Society was once presided over by Percy Pilcher, giving it the claim to fame of having been the birthplace of controlled glider flight.
Student Theatre at Glasgow has been highly active on campus throughout its existence and the likelihood is that if you studied at Glasgow University during the later 20th century, particularly in the faculty of Arts, you will have come across one or more STaG productions.
Media
There is also an active student media scene at Glasgow University, part of, but editorially independent from, the SRC. There is a multi award winning newspaper, the Glasgow University Guardian;a magazine, Glasgow University Magazine (GUM); a television station, Glasgow University Student Television (GUST);and a radio station, Subcity.In recent years, independent of the SRC, the Queen Margaret Union has published a fortnightly magazine, qmunicate,and Glasgow University Union has produced the GUUi.