Behind the numbers

The Studentenraad VUB is a special case. While its range of services is somewhat limited, it stands out in terms of representation. Its 5th place ranking in the 2024 edition of the Index can be attributed to its well-structured policy plans, detailed reports, successful advocacy campaigns, and effective external representation of students. Is this student union a model of prioritizing representation efforts while providing only the essential services? Let’s find out.

The Student Union of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) is light on services. It offers occasional legal/mediation assistance and counseling. It is active on social media and there are extracurricular activities organized for students. The Union provides financial support to students who want to create projects that improve student life at VUB. In a way, the Union outsources the organization of student services through financial support.

Behind the scenes, the student representatives work hard to defend the interests of the students at the university. The VUB Student Council is a member of the Flemish Student Union. The policies and regulations of the union can be found on its website. The Union makes effective use of its structural power by reviewing university regulations, making the school administration aware of students’ concerns, and conducting regular surveys of the student community. The Union conducts advocacy campaigns that produce tangible results. The Union also represents students at the community level; the most recent successful result of this representation is the night bus on Thursday evenings between the VUB main campus in Etterbeek and the center of Brussels.

At the end of the day, the Studentenraad VUB operates on a lean governance model, focusing its resources on representation and advocacy rather than directly managing a wide range of services. This approach allows it to leverage partnerships and financial support to enable students to create their own initiatives. Can this model be replicated elsewhere? Possibly, but a representative structure is not built in one academic year, and it requires trust between student representatives and the school administration. The Studentenraad VUB seems to have succeeded at building this trust.

The Tweaks

The Studentenraad VUB is good at organizing various surveys, both online and face-to-face. The archive of results of such surveys on a website would help to see the impact done by the Union over the years in polling the student opinion.