How it works the union
Uppsala Student Union is Sweden's oldest trade union for students. We are a member-led organisation that works to ensure that your education is of high quality and that the student voice is heard on important issues that affect all students! This is done by appointing student representatives in all meeting rooms where students are affected, and by being heard by universities and politicians on important student issues. At the moment the union is pushing for campus cafés to be much cheaper and for coffee to cost a maximum of SEK 5.
Student Council
The Student Union Council is the highest decision-making body of the Student Union and represents the members of Uppsala Student Union. The Student Union Council meets several times a year and takes decisions on the most important issues, such as budget and business plan. It is the student union's equivalent to the municipal council or parliament, and Uppsala Student Union members vote in the student union elections every April, where they decide who will govern the union during the coming fiscal year.
Uppsala Student Union has a party-political council where it is parties and not individuals who stand for election - just like in the Swedish elections. The parties do not have to be affiliated with an established party but can run without any affiliation or connection. All that is required is a party name and people running on the party's list for the union elections.
Board and Presidium
The Uppsala Student Union Board is the second highest decision-making body in the Union and is appointed by the Student Union Council. It is the student union's equivalent of the government and decides on a large part of the student union's day-to-day work. The Board consists of 9 or 11 members, divided between the governing parties, and the allocation of seats is determined by negotiations between the parties. Four of the members are appointed by the four sections of the union to ensure better cooperation throughout the union and to provide greater proximity to the students.
The Board is chaired by a Presidium consisting of a President and one or two Vice-Presidents. The Presidium is appointed by the Student Union Council and is remunerated on a full-time basis, and the persons elected to the Presidium are determined by negotiations between the parties.
Who runs the union?
Political leadership and distribution of seats
Under mandatperioden 2024-2025 styrs Uppsala studentkår av en koalition som består av Gröna studenter, S-studenter och Uppsala universitets studenter. Tillsammans har de tre partierna 19 av 33 mandat i kårfullmäktige. Vänsterstudenter är en sammarbetspart till koalitionen då de är representerade i presidiet och kårstyrelsen. I Uppsala studentkår fördelas mandaten i fullmäktige mellan fem partier sedan valet: Vänsterstudenter, S-studenter, Gröna studenter, Uppsala Universitets Studenter, och Högerpartiet. Ordförande för Uppsala studentkår är Elsa Ewert från Gröna studenter, och vice ordförande för Uppsala studentkår är Johannah Rybrant från Vänsterstudenter.
S-studenter (S), 7
Gröna studenter, 6
Uppsala universitets studenter (UUS), 6
Högerpartiet (HP), 3
Office
Uppsala Student Union has an office with fifteen staff working on many different things but with one thing in common: promoting student benefit. It is the office that manages the day-to-day operations under the leadership of the Presidium and the Head of Office. On the tab "Office" under "About us" you can see who works in the office.
Frequently asked questions
Why is the union politically controlled?
Uppsala Student Union has a partisan council because that has been the will of its members since the 1960s until today. A party-based system forces those who run in the student union elections to tell what they want to do with the resources of the student union and what their ideas of a good student union are, instead of it being a popularity contest where the one with the most friends gets personally voted in. Having parties running instead of individuals makes it easier for students to see the differences between those running in the election and why it is important to vote to get the change they like best through. After all, there are many things a student union can do better and develop and many different ideas about what they should be. A more transparent and less personalized union is a better union for everyone.
Who can stand in the union elections?
All members of Uppsala Student Union who have paid their membership fee by 1 March may stand for election for a union party. It is up to the union parties themselves to decide who can stand on their list and in what order. Anyone wishing to stand on the list for a party should contact that party and say that they wish to be on the party's list. It is also possible to start a new union party that has its own list.
Who has ruled the union historically?
There are many different parties and constellations that have governed Uppsala Student Union over the years. You can read more about them here: https://wiki.sfs.se/wiki/Uppsala_studentk%C3%A5r
What are the most important issues for the union?
Uppsala studentkår har som huvudsakligt syfte att bevaka och medverka i utvecklingen av utbildningen och förutsättningarna för studier vid Uppsala universitet. Studentkåren ska tillvarata, främja och bevaka sina representerade studenters intressen. Utöver det driver kåren flera viktiga frågor för studenter, såsom höjt studiemedel och fler studentbostäder. Sedan Vänsterstudenter och S-studenter började styra kåren tillsammans har kåren också arbetat för att campuskaféerna ska bli mycket billigare och att kaffet ska kosta max fem kronor. Våra campus är vår arbetsplats och till för oss studenter, inte företagen, så därför måste priserna vara anpassade till en students plånbok och inte för att någon ska tjäna pengar på oss. Gröna studenter har arbetat mycket med frågan om campusplatser och hyreshöjning från Akademiska hus som påverkar utbildningskvalitén.