To read the full PGSC Constitution click here: PGSC Constitution v.09.08.2020

Election protocol

Nominations

• In April/May: Self-nomination for council positions for the upcoming academic year
• Nominees must be a registered grad student in psychology for the duration of the school year
• Both Masters and Doctoral students are encouraged to participate in council
• Friendly advice: Students may wish to consider participating after they have completed at  least their first year of studies (experience tells us that the first year is always quite an adjustment)
• Interested candidates are asked to complete the self-nomination form, and provide, in rank order, their preferred positions.
• Any individual can hold multiple positions on the PGSC during a term. However preference will be given to offering roles to a greater number of people (rather than duplicating). Any one individual can hold only one position on the executive council, concurrently with only one general council Multiple affiliated positions can be held concurrently with other positions.
• The elections officer will review all preferences at the end of the nomination period and try to accommodate preferences. All nominees will be emailed to confirm their nominations
• For any position that received only one nomination, that nominee is elected by acclamation. If there are multiple nominations for a role, the elections officer will try to fill any vacant positions. If needed, the elections officer will notify the candidates and the PGSC before proceeding with an election. All current students are eligible to vote. Elections will be held online , and election details will be communicated to all students via email.

 

General

• Students who are not interested in an official PGSC position are encouraged to stay involved and informed through PGSC events, and our monthly meetings throughout the academic year. Events and meetings are communicated by email via the (new) psych student listserv.

 

Council Structure

Executive Council

• The executive council may meet more frequently than the general council as necessary.
• A student may hold no more than one executive position.

General Council

• The general council meets monthly.
• General council positions may be held concurrently with executive positions, especially in cases where there are fewer students interested in holding PGSC positions than the total number of positions.

Affiliated positions

• These positions are determined by external elections or hires.
• Affiliated members are encouraged to attend PGSC meetings and maintain communication with the council and the graduate student body.

 

PGSC Positions

 

Executive Council Positions	Term	Assignment
Co-presidents (2)	1 yr – May	May election
Secretary and treasurer (1)	1 yr – May	May election
Events and student engagement coordinators (2)	1 yr -May	May election
General Council Positions	Term	Assignment
Clinical representative	1 yr – May	May election
Lifespan representative	1 yr – May	May election
CaBS, SP, INDV representative	1 yr – May	May election
GEC representative (1)	1 yr – May	May election
Ombudsperson/ liaison (1)	1 yr – May	May election
CPA representative (1)	2 yr – May	May election
GSS representative(s) (1+)	1 yr – May	May election (may include overlap)
Affiliated positions (external elections/hires)	Term	Assignment
Teaching Assistant Consultant (TAC) (1)	Aug – Apr	Hired by dept
CUPE representative(s) (1+)	Aug – Aug	(external vote)
Union representative(s) and union steward(s)	Aug – Aug	(external vote)
SCCT reps	1 yr- Sept	(external vote)

 

Position duties

Co-presidents (2)

The co-presidents are the representatives of the PGSC and its membership to the Department Head, GEC, and other members of the faculty and department administration staff. The co-presidents are sensitive to student issues and concerns, and play a key role in promoting community and academic success of psychology graduate students through visibility, accessibility, and advocacy in their roles.

NOTE: When interest allows, this role will be a co-presidency, rather than held by a single individual. This will help facilitate work load distribution.

Duties and responsibilities:

• The co-presidents are responsible for calling and chairing PGSC executive and general membership meetings;
• The co-presidents are responsible for facilitating and overseeing the activities of elected PGSC members to ensure organized, coordinated and timely action;
• The co-presidents may be required to attend committee or departmental meetings for members who are unable to attend due to extenuating circumstances;
• The co-presidents manage and update the PGSC website regularly, as well as monitor and respond to PGSC email regularly;
• The co-presidents prepare and present an annual report to general membership and to GEC or departmental meeting;
• Transition incoming executive; ensure timely and complete transfer of transition materials

 

 

Secretary and Treasurer

(Joining of roles may be revised in future years)

The PGSC secretary and treasurer is integral to the timely functioning and transparency of the PGSC. In this role, the secretary and treasurer will ensure clear communication among all elected representatives and the general membership, and will oversee and manage the financial operations of the PGSC.

Secretarial Duties and Responsibilities:

• In cooperation with co-presidents and other representatives, outline and distribute agenda for all meetings (PGSC executive meetings and meetings of the general membership);
• Take minutes during PGSC Executive and general Council meetings;
• Distribute meeting minutes to the PGSC for approval within a reasonable time frame (i.e., one week) of executive/general meeting; circulate approved minutes to general membership within 3-5 business days of executive/general meetings

Treasurer Duties and Responsibilities:

• Regularly attend and participate in the PGSC meetings
• Create a budget in collaboration with PGSC representatives, to be voted on and approved by the general membership [likely over the summer];
• Submit a report to general membership in [likely Sep] outlining estimated income for upcoming year and projected expenditures;
• Make bank deposits as required; withdraw funds as required;
• Maintain account books;
• Submit monthly reports to PGSC representatives outlining current financial standing and account balances; budget expenditure updates as required
• Provide year end report for incoming and outgoing PGSC representatives in [likely May];
• Transition of incoming treasurer; ensure timely and complete transfer of transition materials

 

 

Events and Student Engagement Coordinators (2)

The role of the events and engagement coordinators is to foster and facilitate community building among psychology graduate students. The coordinators organize and host orientation for new students to the department, as well as plan and execute regular social events for psychology graduate students.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Regularly attend and participate in the PGSC meetings
• Coordinate buddy system for incoming students in the summer before their first fall on campus;
• Organize and run the orientation of incoming students to the department, including at least one on-campus event (practical) and one off-campus event (social); work closely with the Department, the TAC, and be aware of GSS events to avoid conflicts or undue time burdens on incoming students;
• Facilitate and work with department’s administration staff to facilitate ice-breakers/activities at the annual full department welcome event in September;
• Organize and run one event per semester (fall, spring, summer) for all psychology graduate students ;
• Ensure that all events hosted under this portfolio are inclusive, anti-oppressive, safe events for all graduate students in the department;
• Work closely with treasurer to ensure responsible spending and budgeting for all social events;
• Engage with and include the general membership in planning and running of social events whenever possible;
• Provide summary/attendance/feedback from events at executive meetings to aid in future planning;
• Present annual report at year end to general membership; incorporate report into co-presidents annual report to the GEC/department
• Transition of incoming coordinators; ensure timely and complete transfer of transition materials

 

Departmental Representatives

There are three departmental representatives: one representative for the Clinical program; one representative for the Lifespan program; and one representative for the CaBS (Cognitive and Brain Sciences) program, SP (Social Psychology) program, and INDV (Individualized/Environmental) program. Each representative is responsible for attending to and advocating for the needs of graduate students within their respective streams at Department meetings.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Regularly attend and participate in the PGSC meetings
• Inform PGSC executive of upcoming department meetings and agenda items, solicit feedback from general membership within the representative’s respective area
• Attend regularly scheduled department meetings on which the representatives hold voting privileges

Note: the Clinical program representative is asked to establish and maintain communication with the clinical SCCT representatives throughout the academic year.

 

 

Graduate Student Ombuddy

This position is usually served by a senior graduate student. The Ombuddy is available both as peer support and as an advocate for all graduate students in Psychology. On a strictly confidential basis, the Ombuddy may discuss student problems or concerns, offer advice or guidance, serve as an advocate on behalf of a student (if requested to do so) in relevant meetings, and bring forth complaints or issues to the Department to pursue equitable resolutions for the student(s) and/or graduate student body in Psychology.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Regularly attend and participate in the PGSC meetings
• Being familiar with and knowledgeable of departmental and University policies as outlined in the Graduate Student Training Handbook
• Acting as a liaison with the UVic Ombudsperson, for guidance and as necessary
• Meeting with students upon request, and maintaining strict confidentiality when discussing student concerns
• When requested to do so, attending meetings with students and acting as an advocate
• Soliciting and monitoring anonymous student complaints and feedback, taking up issues with the PGSC, the Department, and prompting action where appropriate and/or necessary

 

GEC Representative

A grad student representative on the Graduate Executive Committee within the psychology department

Duties and Responsibilities

• Serve in a consultative role to the Grad Exec
• Regularly attend PGSC and GEC meetings, and report issues of relevance between the two committees
• Initiate/assist the PGSC in polling grad students about various issues as requested by the GEC – e.g., annual evaluation process, graduate funding, annual review of the Grad Regulations – and report back to Grad Exec

 

 

GSS Representative

This student represents the interests of psychology graduate students at the Graduate Student Society (GSS). They attend and have voting privileges at GSS assembly meetings, and provide input to the GSS on matters relevant to the experiences of graduate students at UVic.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Attend GSS assembly meetings and report on relevant updates to PGSC at executive/general meetings
• Regularly attend PGSC meetings

 

CUPE Representative(s) and Steward(s)*

*The role of representative and steward may be held by one student or separately by two or more students.

Both the CUPE 4163 Representative and Steward roles are established at the first union meeting in September, which is mandatory for all students holding TA positions in the upcoming The CUPE Representative is the Psychology department’s representative to the CUPE 4163 union (TA union). The CUPE representative is well-versed in the collective agreement between the TAs and the University of Victoria and liaises between psychology TAs and the union.

CUPE Department Representative Duties and Responsibilities

• Attend union meetings;
• Be familiar with all terms of the collective bargaining agreement for TAs and sessional instructors;
• Inform executive/general membership of updates from union meetings to be included in meeting minutes and circulated to student membership

The union steward is approachable and visible within the department and attends psychology TA events. The steward is a sounding board for TAs and sessional instructors, providing validation and support. The steward is aware of TA trends within the department and provides support for students on matters that do not necessarily require union intervention.

Steward Duties and Responsibilities:

• Attend steward meetings and report on trends within the department
• Communicate with union rep. and PGSC representatives as necessary

 

CPA Representative

The CPA representative is responsible for providing graduate psychology students with information regarding CPA membership and relevant psychology-related news.  This is a 2-year term and the individual who holds this role receives the CPA membership at no charge.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Regularly attend general PGSC meetings to inform executive/general membership of relevant CPA updates as necessary;
• As per the CPA program requirements for this position, in collaboration with the undergraduate CPA rep (if present) and/or PsiChi (if applicable), the CPA rep must organize and implement one event relevant to psychology students and the CPA within the academic year. In our department, this has typically been an information session for undergraduate students on the process of applying for graduate programs in psychology.

 

 

NOTE: Affiliated positions are determined by external elections or hires. Affiliated members are encouraged to attend PGSC meetings and maintain communication with the council and the graduate student body.