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Call for Nominations – STUDENT

Information Box Group

GRADUATE Student Representative to the Senate Graduate Nomination Form (Senate)

Faculty of Business

  • One Vacancy (2-year term, July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2026)

Faculty of Humanities

  • One Vacancy (2-year term, July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2026)

Faculty of Social Sciences

  • One Vacancy (2-year term, July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2026)

UNDERGRADUATE Student Representative to the Senate Undergraduate Nomination Form (Senate)

Faculty of Engineering

  • One Vacancy (2-year term, July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2026)

Faculty of Science

  • One Vacancy (2-year term, July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2026)

IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR NOMINEES

Definitions of Eligible Candidates and Nominators

The Nominee and all nominators must be members of McMaster University as defined below:

GRADUATE STUDENT means a person who is proceeding toward a Master’s or a Doctor’s degree. Students registered in McMaster University degree programs in the McMaster Divinity College shall be eligible to be candidates for election as graduate students in the Faculty of Humanities.  Any graduate student, either full-time or part-time, is eligible to be elected.

NOTE:  Graduate students registered in joint or collaborative programs under the auspices of more than one Faculty are eligible for nomination in only one of those Faculties. Those registered in interdisciplinary programs not under the auspices of any Faculty are eligible for nomination in the Faculty of their choice. For graduate students in joint, collaborative, or interdisciplinary programs, the seconders must be registered in either the same program or in the same Faculty in which the candidate intends to run for election.

UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT means: a full-time undergraduate student who has not been declared ineligible to continue at the University in the preceding Session; or a part-time student, a continuing student, or a second-degree student, registered for at least six units of undergraduate work.

Nomination Period Elections Email

The Nomination Period is from January 25 – February 8, 2024. Completed nomination forms must be received by the University Secretariat Elections email by 4:00 p.m. on Thursday February 8, 2024.

Requirements for Nominators

For Senate

GRADUATE STUDENTS
The (3) three nominators must all be graduate students registered in the same Faculty as the Nominee. For graduate students in joint, collaborative, or interdisciplinary programs, the seconders must be registered in either the same program or in the same Faculty in which the candidate intends to run for election.

UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS
The (3) three nominators must all be undergraduate students registered in the same Faculty as the Nominee.

For Board of Governors

UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS
The (3) three nominators must all be registered undergraduate students.

For University Planning Committee

UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS
The (3) three nominators must all be registered undergraduate students.

GRADUATE STUDENTS
The (3) three nominators must all be registered graduate students.

Signature Requirements

Hard copy signatures are not required for nominators. All NOMINATORS must send an email from their McMaster email account to the NOMINEE with the following statement:

“I nominate <NOMINEE NAME> as a candidate for election to the <SENATE or BOARD OF GOVERNORS or UNIVERSITY PLANNING COMMITTEE>.  I understand that the University Secretariat may contact me via email to verify this nomination.

Nominator Information:
First and Last name
McMaster email address
Student ID#”

The NOMINEE must attach a PDF copy of all 3 nomination emails to their completed nomination form in order for their nomination to be accepted.

REGULATIONS AND MANDATORY CAMPAIGN INFORMATION SESSION 

Please note that students must attend a mandatory campaign information session following the close of the Nomination Period. The details of the information session will be forwarded to candidates upon validation.

NOMINEES are advised to read the Regulations Governing Student Elections to Senate

The Senate

The University Senate has ultimate responsibility for determining academic policy and regulating the system of education, which includes new academic programmes, changes in curriculum, standards for admission to the University, examination policy, academic regulations, the conferring of degrees, the criteria and procedures for granting tenure and promotion to faculty members and so on. The Senate recommends to the Board the establishment or termination of Faculties, Schools, Institutes and Departments. The powers of the Senate are described in Section 13 of the McMaster University Act.  The composition of Senate is described in Section 12 of the Act.

Standing Committees of the Senate

The Senate has a number of standing committees where many of the matters that come to Senate for approval are discussed in detail first. The terms of reference and the composition of these committees are described in the Senate By-Laws.

 

2024-2025 SENATE MEETING DATES

All meetings of the Senate begin at 3:30 p.m. unless otherwise stated.

Note: The meeting dates below should be considered tentative. Exact meeting dates will be forwarded to successful candidates over the summer months.

  • Wednesday, September 11, 2024
  • Wednesday, October 9, 2024
  • Wednesday, October 23, 2024
  • Wednesday, November 13, 2024
  • Wednesday, December 11, 2024
  • Wednesday, January 15, 2025
  • Wednesday, February 12, 2025
  • Wednesday,  March 19, 2025
  • Wednesday, April 9, 2025
  • Wednesday,  May 14, 2025
  • Wednesday, June 4, 2025

Student Senators are expected to regularly attend Senate meetings.

The Board of Governors

The legal responsibilities of the Board of Governors are set out in Section 9 of The McMaster University Act, 1976.  While the President and senior administrative officers exert the central influence in policy as well as providing the dominant force in management under the authority of the Board, Board members play an important role in the governance of the University, since the Board is the legal owner and the final authority for the institution whose assets and operations the Board holds in trust.  Except for such matters as are assigned by the 1976 Act to the Senate, the government, conduct, management and control of the University and of its property, revenues, business and affairs are vested in the Board. In carrying out its financial responsibilities, the Board must accept full accountability for the finances of the University, including monitoring and authorizing the annual operating budget, prudent investments, and comprehensive fund-raising activities, as well as the obligation to ensure that financial assets are appropriately managed.  The Board receives nominations from the Senate with respect to the hiring, promoting and suspending of senior administrative and teaching personnel, and delegates the appointment, promotion, suspension or removal of all other officers, agents and employees of the University to officers of the University. The Board conducts its affairs by making by-laws, resolutions and regulations to supplement the Act. The composition of the Board of Governors is described in Section 8 of the University Act.

Standing Committees of the Board of Governors

The Board of Governors has a number of standing committees where many of the matters that come to Board of Governors for approval are discussed in detail first. The terms of reference and the composition of these committees are described in the Board of Governors By-Laws.

2024-2025 BOARD OF GOVERNORS MEETING DATES

All meetings of the Board of Governors will begin at 8:30 a.m. unless otherwise stated.

Note: The meeting dates below should be considered tentative. Exact meeting dates will be forwarded to successful candidates over the summer months.

  • Thursday, September 19, 2024 – Orientation
  • Friday, September 20, 2024 – Retreat
  • Thursday, October 24, 2024
  • Thursday, December 12, 2024
  • Thursday, March 6, 2025
  • Thursday, April 24, 2025
  • Thursday June 5, 2025

Student Governors are expected to regularly attend Board of Governors meetings.

The UNIVERSITY PLANNING COMMITTEE

The University Planning Committee’s fundamental mandate is to coordinate academic and resource planning so that the Senate and the Board may be assured that any proposal presented for approval has academic merit that supports the mission of the University and that resources necessary for the implementation of any proposal have been appropriately assessed. In this context the University Planning Committee shall:

  1. review the Plan for the University annually, and recommend revisions to it as necessary, for approval by the Senate and the Board;
  2. review, for recommendation to the Senate and the Board, major initiatives (including those which are part of submissions to external agencies) that have significant resource implications, providing comment on how the proposals fit within the University Plan;
  3. review and receive annual planning reports as prescribed by the Provost from the Faculties, the School of Graduate Studies, the Associate Vice-President (Academic), the Associate Vice-President (Student Affairs) and Dean of Students, the University Registrar, the University Librarian, and other units (as appropriate) that report directly to the Provost, providing comment on how the plans relate to overall University planning and current budgeting. Received plans are to be reported to the Senate and the Board for information;
  4. review and receive annual planning reports as prescribed by the Vice-President (Administration) from those administrative and service units that report directly to the Vice-President (Administration), providing comment on how the plans relate to overall University planning and current budgeting. Received plans are to be reported to the Senate and the Board of Governors for information;
  5. review and receive annually a report from the Vice-President (Research) on the major operations, institutes, and initiatives that receive significant support from the budget envelope of the Vice-President (Research ), and on the anticipated impact of new funding opportunities (from federal, provincial, or private agencies or businesses) as they arise. Received plans are to be reported to the Senate and the Board for information;
  6. receive annually from the Vice-President (University Advancement) a report on advancement efforts of the previous year and review, for recommendation to the Senate and the Board, future fund-raising priorities and their relationship to the University Plan;
  7. provide commentary, with reference to the University Plan and the McMaster University Campus Master Plan, to the relevant committee  of the Board of Governors on proposals for capital development and other expenditures that fall outside the annual budget (such as those encompassed by the Capital Renewals process). For all major projects, the University Planning Committee will be provided with a total impact analysis that assesses the ongoing costs of maintenance, utilities, etc.;
  8. review, for recommendation to the Senate and the Board, the annual report on the McMaster University Campus Master Plan, including any updates, amendments and elaborations; and
  9. report to the Senate and the Board any matters of concern formally identified as such by a majority of the Committee.

2024-2025 UNIVERSITY PLANNING COMMITTEE MEETING DATES

Meetings of the University Planning Committee are typically held every third Wednesday of the month from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. unless otherwise stated. Exact meeting dates will be forwarded to successful candidates over the summer months.


Students elected to the University Planning Committee are expected to regularly attend Committee meetings.