About västgöta nation in uppsala

THE NATION GATHERING

The nation is a democratic organization which means that our members are responsible for all decision-making. The highest decision-making body of the nation is nationssammankomst, (NSK), or the nation gathering. These meetings are where members vote to elect our trustees (usually called officers), accept budget proposals and financial statements, and vote on changes in the nation statutes. NSK gathers three times per semester.

CURATORS

The overall responsibility of the daily activities at the nation is carried out by the nation’s curators. In Uppsala, a curator is a student that has put their studies on hold for a year to work full-time at their respective nation. At VG, we have four curators under the titles of first, second, third and fourth curator, each with different responsibilities within the operation of the nation. The curators are usually just referred to as “Q” and the titles are often shortened to 1Q, 2Q, 3Q and 4Q.

THE NATION BOARD

Västgöta’s nation board consists of the curators, an inspector, a pro-inspector, treasurers, the nation’s lawyer and elected board members. The board members elect the chairperson for the board once a year. The board is responsible for long-term planning of the nation’s operations and prepares and plans projects such as renovations, budget propositions and annual reports. One of the board’s other main tasks is to support the curators in their work at the nation.

INSPECTORs

When the nations were founded in the 17th century, the University required every nation to have a so-called inspector. Originally, inspectors were meant to instill some order to the otherwise reckless nation life. Today the inspector’s roll is more about monitoring the nations activities, representing the nation at different occasions and supporting the nation’s curators and officials. Västgöta nation’s inspector is Bertil Wiman, a professor of tax law at Uppsala university. If Bertil is unavailable or otherwise unable to fulfuill his duties as inspector, the nation’s pro-inspector fills in for him. Our pro-inspector is Margareta Svahn, a professor of Scandinavian languages at Uppsala university.

TREASURERS

The nation has two treasurers: treasurer of the capital and treasurer of the property. The treasurers are an important resource to the curators in their work with the nation’s finances and any issues with the nation’s property.

NATIoN’S OFFICERS

The nation’s activities are run voluntarily by students that have signed up for a position that lasts one or two semesters a time. Someone that holds a position at the nation is called an officer (ämbetsverkare in Swedish). As an officer you do not get any financial compensation for your efforts, but you are entitled to many other benefits: invitations to dinners and parties, food during your work shifts, discounts on food at the nation and much, much more. Being an officer at the nation is a fun way of getting involved in student life in Uppsala. It is a great opportunity to gain valuable experience running operations in an active student organization and making friends for life!

COMMITTEES

The nation has several committees that work within different fields at the nation. The scholarship committee manages scholarship applications, the library and cultural heritage committee works to preserve and maintain that nation’s library and historical belongings. The marketing committee works on strategies to promote and advertise the nation. We also have two election committees, “ledamotsvalberedning” that manages the applications for the more responsible positions, such as curator and nation board elections, and “ämbetsvalberedning” that manages applications for officer positions and committees.