About Student Government

Administering the AMS, one of the best and largest student associations around, requires a lot of work. The AMS Executive and Student Council are just the tip of the iceberg that is your student government.

Your AMS

By registering in a credit course at UBC Vancouver or one of its affiliates, or enrolling in a degree or diploma program at UBC Vancouver or one of its affiliates, you become a member of the AMS.  Membership entitles you to vote in AMS elections and referenda, and utilize the many services your students’ society and the University have to offer.

AMS Council

AMS Council is a group of elected student representatives that gather twice a month to decided on the inner workings of the students’ society. Things like the student health plan, changes to the SUB, and what to do with the over $8-million AMS budget are decided by Council.

Your AMS Representative

As a member of a faculty (such as arts or science), you’re entitled to vote in your undergraduate society elections. Every undergrad society is represented on council by the AMS representative you vote in, so it’s important to know who they are and to contact them if you have any concerns.

Take a look at the two British Columbia laws that apply to student government:

University Act
Society Act

AMS Preliminary Budget

The Budget is the foundational document upon which the Society’s finances are built. This document changes from year to year as income and expenses fluctuate depending on student enrollment, the economy, and the projects, services, and agenda of Student Government.

Non-Discretionary Transfers

The annual budget for the Society is roughly fourteen million dollars ($14,000,000). The Budget can be broken down into two major sub-elements, revenue and expenses. Much of the revenue collected through student fees is bound by the restrictions placed upon it in the AMS Code of Procedure and AMS Bylaws entrenched by referenda. This revenue is called Non-Discretionary Transfers and is used to automatically replenish funds such as the SUB Repair and Replacement Fund on an annual basis. Also accounted for in Revenues are Undergraduate Society Fees, which are, after collection, transferred to those societies.

Discretionary Income

After the Non-Discretionary Transfers are made, and the Student Health and Dental Plan premiums are paid out, the Society is left with approximately one million three hundred thousand dollars ($1,300,000). This ‘Discretionary Income’ is the portion of Revenue the Vice-President Finance and Budget Committee of Student Council use to pay for the administration of Student Government, Student Services (ie: Tutoring, AMS Mini-School, SafeWalk, Speakeasy ect.), Financial Aid, Programs and Publications, and additional services, including lobbying deemed necessary to improve the status of Students in British Columbia.

You will find a copy of the Preliminary budget under downloads on the right hand side of this page.

2013 Code Changes

For a complete list of Code Changes prior to the current academic year, please contact AMS Archivist Sheldon Goldfarb, SUB 238E, 604.822.9360.