The Student Welcome Fair really made Universum bustle with life and energy again. Before the popular live artist Cleo entered the stage, I had the honour of welcoming all new students to Umeå University.
This university would be nothing without the presence of its students. That's why I'm particularly happy that we can again conduct our education and research on campus and that students are here to access the wide array of activities offered at the University.
Hans Adolfsson, Vice-Chancellor, Umeå University
Photo: Mattias Pettersson
Being a student is so much more than just taking a specific course or programme at a university. It's also an opportunity to get acquainted with new friends, maybe even a future partner, to get to know teachers, researchers and other staff active at the University, and to be a part of a creative environment with all it has to offer. Studying at a university does not only provide an education, but it also offers an opportunity to acquire new knowledge and skills in all fields of life. And I sincerely hope our students will embrace this opportunity during their years of studying.
Students also play an important role in making this university function as intended. By exercising student influence with attendance in both advisory, preparatory and decision-making bodies, it helps to incorporate important perspectives from the biggest group of stakeholders at a university – students. A new student may not yet be aware of all opportunities available to influence their education and studies. Therefore, we all play an important role in actively supporting and simplifying for committed students. Simultaneously, the student unions play an important part in organising student influence and appointing student representatives to bodies at all levels of the University.
Student influence is fundamentally a matter of democracy regulated in the Higher Education Act, the Higher Education Ordinance and the Ordinance on Students' Unions. Strong and autonomous student influence is a crucial part of the university's quality assurance mechanism. Our students contribute to improving the quality of our educations and our operations – they challenge us and make us better. During my years as Vice-Chancellor, I have had many spirited and developing discussions with student representatives and I am looking forward to yet another autumn semester in the same spirit.
Students and staff are back on campus, we are set to go again and it feels great.