Our History
The Student Union is over 100 years old. Our main task has nevertheless remained the same: to ensure open and equal access to our university.
One of the Student Union's very first meetings.
We demand toilets at the university!
In 1912 The Student Union was founded by the university for a trial period. In 1921 the Danish king himself declared that we were the official body representing all students of the University of Copenhagen! As today, we fought for better study conditions and better study environment. We fought for the establishment of toilets at the university and for our voice to be heard when the university made decisions about its future. Back then, we did not have a lot of influence and the mighty professorial power still ruled the university! But we had now been recognized as an official representative body, and from then on the Student Union grew only bigger and stronger.
Showdown with a university stuck in the past
Many people associate the Student Union with the Student Rebellion. And that makes a lot of sense. Because not only did the Student Union start the showdown in March of 1968, but it was also largely the Student Union which drove the rebellion in Denmark.
New generations of students without parents from academic backgrounds were enrolled in the university and they brought with them a new mentality. Many found it difficult to accept the dominating professorial power where for example the exam diploma in philosophy was written in Latin, and students of Danish were taught Old Icelandic. The students were frustrated that their only influence came in the form of an advisory Study Board which did not have the right to make any actual decisions. The rebellion or showdown started at the Institute of Psychology but soon spread to other disciplines. For too long the tyranny of the professorial power had reigned.
1968: Occupation of the Banquet Hall. Photo: Lars Hansen.
2017: Demonstration against cuts on education. Source: Kristeligt Dagblad.
Historic struggles
We have battled with the university administration and the Danish politicians many times! New university legislation in 1970, 1992 and 2003 have shifted power in the university, and threatened our influence as students in Study Boards and Academic Councils. Every time, we have stood up and demanded our right to a future, where students, education and research is a political priority. We have fought against bureaucratization of universities, and we have fought to make students heard, taken seriously and for that voice to have real impact. We have marched in the streets and written political proposals.
Whenever politicians and the university management worked to degrade our education we stood up and fought for students’ interests – both through our parliamentary structures and activism.
