University Court
Rectorial Election
The term of the current Rector comes to an end on 31 October 2026. An election will take place in October to appoint the next Rector of the University to serve for a 3-year term to 31 October 2029.
Nominations for Rector open at 9am on Wednesday 30 September and will close at 5pm on Wednesday 7 October.
Nomination forms will be available to download by 7 September 2026. Candidates must have a proposer who is a matriculated student and nominations from at least a further twenty matriculated students.
The election will be administered by Civica Election Services and voting will take place 15 - 16 October 2026.
All matriculated students of the University on the date that nominations close will be invited to vote in the election.
Briefing materials:
Role of the Rector 2026 (PDF)
2026 Rectorial Election Timetable and Rules (PDF)
Candidates interested in standing for election as Rector are strongly encouraged to contact the University's Court Office (court@st-andrews.ac.uk) to arrange for an informal discussion about the role.
Any queries relating to the election rules should also be directed to Court Office in the first instance.
The University Court is the governing body of the University. The Court has overall responsibility for the governance of the University, including all aspects of strategic planning and the management of financial, human and physical resources. This responsibility comes through Acts of Parliament, which give the Court authority over all of the University’s property and revenues, as well as the power to review the decisions of the Senate.
The University Court meets in 精东传媒 on a quarterly basis. Minutes from Court meetings are publicly available after each meeting. The Universities (Scotland) Acts, 1858-1966, and ordinances and resolutions made in accordance with these acts, regulate the present constitution and government of the University, and are outlined in the ordinances and resolutions section.
The University Court has a number of standing committees:
- audit and risk committee (including academic, University ethics, and health and safety assurance groups)
- governance and nominations committee
- planning and resources committee (including the investment and treasury assurance group)
- remuneration committee
- superannuation and life assurance scheme