Senate

The university is governed by three bodies in a more or less successful triangular relationship: The Rectorate, the University Council and the Senate. The Senate is the only democratically elected body. The other two are appointed by each other or by the responsible federal ministry, making the Senate the highest democratic body of a university.

The Senate is established in accordance with § 25 UG 2002. This section of the UG lays down all the legal foundations. There are also rules of procedure for the Senate (Geschäftsordnung des Senats, only in German). These set out how the Senate works, how its meetings are conducted and what the Chair of the Senate may do even without a meeting. The Senate is responsible for the university's statute(s) and can impose further regulations on itself.

Composition

The Senate of TU Graz consists of 26 members. Of these, 13 members belong to the professors' curia, six members belong to the “Mittelbau” curia, six are student members and one representative belongs to the general university staff. The student members are delegated by the Students' Union, the remaining members are elected by the respective curia for a term of office. The Senate's term of office is three years.