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Graduate Student Association GSA
  1. Graduate & Professional Student Association
  2. About
  3. The Structure of the GPSA

The Structure of the GPSA

The Executive Committee

The Executive Committee comprises the senior leadership of GPSA, including the positions specified in the organization's constitution. Chaired by the GPSA President, the executives are responsible for executing all operational and programming-related business of GPSA, enacting the decisions of Council, and working to promote the interests of graduate students through its interactions with University faculty and staff. During periods when Council is not in session, the Executive Committee functions in its place.

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The GPSA Council

Council includes representatives from every graduate program at UCSD, and meets on a regular basis throughout the school year. When called into session, Council has the authority to pass resolutions and other documents expressing the official position of GPSA on any number of issues. As expressions of the unified voice of the graduate and professional student community, such position statements serve as powerful tools for campus administrators to gauge the practicality and effectiveness of various policies and initiatives. 

In addition to its deliberative capacity, Council maintains the power to appoint graduate student representatives to the standing and special committees of the Academic Senate and other University offices. Furthermore, Council oversees the dispersal of funds to campus departments, programs, and organizations. 


Council Meetings 

Council meetings are held every other Monday during the academic year (weeks 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10) in the Price Center 4th Floor Forum, except during holidays or when otherwise stated. Meetings are open to public. The list of the GPSA meetings for the 2021-2022 academic year can be found here.

The Council meeting agendas are generally structured in this way (example agenda):

  1. Call to Order
  2. Approval of previous council meeting minutes
  3. Approval of current agenda
  4. Guest Presentations
  5. Vote on finance bills
  6. Vote on executive appointments
  7. Vote on council documents (e.g. resolutions, charges, bylaws, etc.)
  8. Presentation on council documents to be considered
  9. Presentations from council or executive members
  10. Call for next council meeting agenda items
  11. Adjourn 

To place an item on the agenda, email the President (president@gsa.ucsd.edu) and the Chief of Staff (chief@gsa.ucsd.edu) by the Friday before the council meeting with the item. If the agenda item is not received by this time, the agenda must be amended during the approval of the current agenda in order to present or vote on the item. 

When presenting an item to council, ensure that the item is shared with all of council. If presenting a Google Doc, ensure that the sharing settings are set to “Anyone with the link can comment”. Additionally, agenda items to be voted on will be locked when the agenda is distributed to prevent changes from being made. Amendments can be made during the council meeting or using the suggesting feature in Google Docs.

For a list of documents that have been passed by council, visit the Meeting Schedule and Agendas, Meeting Minutes and Resolutions, or Committee Charges sections. 

The GPSA Executive Officers also produce several reports throughout the year which may be presented to the Council. Visit the our news section for more information.


Full Departmental Representative Responsibilities

  • Participate in annual representative training
  • Attend, at a minimum, three Council meetings per quarter
  • Serve on, at a minimum, one GPSA committee or seek appointment to a campus-wide committee
  • Forward directly or provide for the dissemination of regular emails from the GPSA News listserve to department constituents
  • Provide for the allocation of Department Per Capita (DPC) Funds and ensure the proper use of this money by the department community
  • The council responsibilities are described in full in the GPSA Constitution.
  • GPSA Code of Conduct 


Alternate Departmental Representative Responsibilities

  • Participate in annual representative training
  • Attend Council meetings in the absence of department representatives
  • Strongly encouraged to serve on a GPSA committee or seek appointment to a campus-wide committee
  • Assist department representatives with other duties as needed


Robert’s Rules of Order


Elections

  • The Department Representatives on GPSA Council elect new officers in the first meeting of the Spring Quarter each year in accordance with the Election Bylaws
  • Visit the Elections section during that time for platforms, information about nominees, etc.
  • For questions or comments, contact the Elections Committee at elections@gsa.ucsd.edu