Ok, but who or what is a Provost?
Like a lot of us, we don’t think further than studying and socialising to think about the people behind the operations – the people who make UCL what it is. The Provost is in charge of the University and holds the most senior job in the entire institution. They’re like the president or dean of the uni and the changes they make affect our day-to-day UCL lives.
The Provost is selected by UCL Council. UCL Council (of which some of Sabbatical Officers sit on) select someone who they think would best serve the interests of UCL and they are responsible to the Council. The role of the Provost is to provide leadership and ensure that UCL adapts to a world that’s socially, economically and politically changing – Covid being a prime example of that. The Provost also makes sure that you get the world-class teaching and research opportunities UCL is known for and that you, along with staff, feel a part of the UCL community. Alongside all of this, the President and Provost have an important role in representing UCL both nationally and internationally, interacting with the Government, and influencing the development of UK higher education. By setting the status of UCL, the Provost also helps develop UCL’s sources of funding, within the UK and abroad, and through philanthropic support for UCL.
The current Provost is Professor Michael Arthur, who, back in the day used to be a clinical academic (he used to work in a hospital as a medical doctor and also in research and academia). Professor Arthur has done quite a bit in his seven years here. Maybe what a lot of people will resonate with is his desire to improve student satisfaction which came with the construction of the much loved Student Centre. And let’s not forget his handling of this whole situation we’re in. While many were worried and scared of what the future held, Professor Arthur reassured staff that their jobs were safe and reassured students with the no-detriment policy and an exam process that suited the needs of the student population. There’s a lot of things the Provost does, but another thing that stood out to us was the effort put into Coronavirus research - £1 million of funding to help us find a way out of this.
Come January, Dr. Michael Arthur will be retiring and we’ll be getting a new Provost - Dr. Michael Spence (yes, they’re both named Michael!). Just like Dr. Michael Arthur, Dr. Michael Spence is a leader in his field – the field of intellectual property – and he’s got a lot of experience to back him. He’s been Vice-Chancellor for at the University of Sydney for the past few years and managed to raise the uni’s status as a leader in graduate employability. He also transformed the undergraduate experience and created relationships with leading industry, government and community organisations across the globe.
The new Provost will have a lot on his plate but we’re setting him with a to-do list to make sure that you are placed at the forefront of the agenda. What are the main issues that UCL students are currently facing? What do you think the new Provost should address once he arrives at UCL? This could range from improving support for mental health, perhaps you want to see the new Provost address the lack of study spaces on campus. You might want to see him improve the amount of bursary and scholarship provisions or it could even be that you want to see cheaper rents for UCL halls, whatever it is, we want to hear from you.
We’re going to be compiling your feedback into a to-do list for the Provost which we’ll be presenting to him in January. So, make sure you have your say by filling in the form.