Hi,
I need your help, could you tell me, please, which word is the best to describe the head of the university:
rector, chancellor, president.
I have always thought that ‘chancellor’, but, on surfing the net found out ‘president & rector’ (we have this word in Ukrainian). So which one is the most common?
Thanks in advance
Hi Baghiee,
It seems that like major business corprorations, different universities place different emphasis on different titles. I agree that for the major universities in Britain ‘Chancellor’ is the correct term, but I have also known universities use ‘president’ to describe the head.
This is from a guide to the University of Oxford:
The university’s formal head is the Chancellor (currently Lord Patten of Barnes), though as with most British universities, the Chancellor is a titular figure, rather than someone involved with the day-to-day running of the university. The Chancellor is elected by the members of Convocation, a body comprising all graduates of the university, and holds office until death.
The Vice-Chancellor, currently Andrew Hamilton, is the “de facto” head of the University.
A head of a specific department of a university is commonly called a ‘Dean’
[color=red]T-H-A-N-K Y-O-U D-E-A-R B-E-V-E-R-L-E-Y !!!
Your answer is complete and clear, as always.
So, I will use ‘chancellor’, as we also have vice chancellors and the word ‘dean’ is familiar to me.
Would it be right to call a person who is a dean’s right hand a ‘vice dean’? (we have ones in Ukraine)
Yes. Vice-dean is an acceptable term.
Thanks!