By definition, university politics encompasses actions aimed at achieving certain goals in the academic field and shaping university life. To achieve this, certain agreements must be made and decisions taken.
As a public university in Berlin, the Technische Universität Berlin is also academically self-governing. In addition, there is the student self-administration, which deals with the concerns of the students.
What is it?
Academic self-administration means that the university organises itself and its members. This is laid down in the Berlin Higher Education Act and it also regulates how exactly this administration is to be carried out. For the TU Berlin, this means that political and administrative decisions are discussed and made in various committees. These committees also decide which tasks and responsibilities are to be assigned to which institutions or persons, such as the President of the TU Berlin.
What kind of committees are there?
There are different types of committees: On the one hand, there are those with decision-making powers, such as councils or the TU Berlin Senate and Board of Trustees. On the other hand, there are advisory bodies, usually without decision-making power, such as committees and commissions. Members of councils etc. have to be elected, whereas members of committees and commissions are appointed by the members of the assigned council.
Who sits there?
The committees are made up of members of the TU Berlin, who are divided into four status groups. These consist of: Professors, Students, Academic Staff, Other Staff. Anyone who stands for election in their status group can be elected to a council.
How are elections held?
Elections are organised every two years by the central election committee. The central election committee publishes an election announcement, after which anyone can stand for election using the appropriate form. Students usually form several lists of like-minded people (~ parties), often named after student initiatives. All remaining candidates are combined on a collective list. The election then takes place a few weeks later at the university. (There is also the possibility of postal voting.) Many lists use the interim period for intensive election advertising.
You can find more information on the composition or tasks of the various committees in our committee overview.
What is it?
Student self-administration is the representation of students’ interests vis-à-vis the university and the public. This means that the student body organises itself independently to achieve its goals and make decisions. Nowadays, it is distinguished from student participation in academic self-administration. The Berlin Higher Education Act stipulates that the constituted student body, i.e. all enrolled students at the TU Berlin organise themselves into a parliament.
What kind of committees are there?
There is only one body for the administration of the students, the student parliament. This has a political mandate and the representatives discuss and make important decisions at the meetings. Among other things, the student parliament decides which responsibilities are handed over to which people. To do this, it appoints the members of the AStA, the student budget committee and the student election committee.
Who sits in it?
The student parliament is only made up of 60 TU Berlin students. The composition is not proportionate according to faculties or degree programmes, but is decided by elections. Every student at the TU Berlin can stand for election.
How are elections held?
The student election committee organises the elections for the student parliament every year. For this purpose, it publishes an election announcement, whereupon anyone can stand for election using the appropriate form. Mostly like-minded people join together and form so-called lists (~ parties). These are often based on student initiatives. All remaining candidates are grouped together on a collective list. After a short campaign period, elections take place. You can vote by post or go to one of the polling stations on campus.
You can find more information about the tasks of the student parliament and our plans here.