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Hi, nice to meet you. We’re Imperial College Union. The student union at Imperial College London. This is your short and comprehensive guide on who we are and what we do to represent our members, all students of Imperial College London.

So, who are we?

We’re a students’ union, which is a student-led organisation completely independent from the University or UK Government.

We exist to represent the interests of you, the students of Imperial. While we operate independently from Imperial, and are a not-for-profit organisation and charity, we work in collaboration with the University to achieve our goals.

Who leads Imperial College Union (ICU)?

Five democratically-elected Imperial students lead ICU.

They take a year out of their studies and become full-time staff, known as Officer Trustees. There are four Deputy Presidents (Education, Finance and Services, Clubs Societies & Projects, and Welfare), led by the Union President.

The Officer Trustees are supported by a full-time professional staff team to lead the union. Together, Officer Trustees and union staff work to support the implementation of Officer Trustee objectives and the organisational strategy, to ensure the best possible student experience for Imperial students.

Find out how the union operates in more detail here.

How do we represent you?

Through elections and student representation!

Student Representatives exist to better the student experience and speak on the behalf of students in their cohort to the university.

Learn more about representation here and further on this page.

Your Student Representatives

Academic and Wellbeing Representatives

Academic and Wellbeing Representatives are your first port of call if you have any issues to raise during your studies or need any support. There are representatives at the year, department and faculty level to ensure unique cohort views are well represented.

Student Representatives work with university staff to gather feedback from students throughout the year. They are also invited to Representative Forums where they can exchange ideas with other Representatives and actively work towards implementing policies within the university.

Disclaimer! Postgraduate and Undergraduate representation structuresare little bit different, but both follow a year (or MSc/MRes course), department, and faculty. Postgraduates have what are called Academic and Welfare Officers (AWOs) and a Representation Chair to collate feedback from all the AWOs.

Liberation and Community Officers (LCOs)

There are 9 Liberation & Community Networks, and they are run by students who identify with, ally with or are interested in each group. They organise campaigns, build communities and are a support network for fellow students.

The 9 officers are:

Black & Minority Ethnic Officer
LGBTQ+ Officer
Mental Health Officer
Disabilities Officer
Ethics and Environment Officer
Gender Equality Officer
Interfaith Officer
International Officer
Working Class Officer

Union Council

ICU is a democracy, and Union Council is where elected student representatives decide the union’s stance on various issues and ensure Officer Trustees are lobbying Imperial on key matters.

There are over 50 members, the majority of which are senior student volunteers. Some are elected in and receive their place automatically through their roles. All members are Imperial students, working to represent the voice of all students and better your student experience.

Becoming a Representative

You have 3 sets of elections to get involved in by either running or voting!

There are different roles available to run for in each election round. The major elections where senior student representatives are elected occur during the annual Leadership Elections in March.

Find out more about elections here.

Outside the classroom…

We have over 340 clubs and societies that you can get involved with!

You can get in touch with clubs directly if you’re interested or have any questions about what they do. There’s something for everyone, from Mahjong or Science Fiction, sporting clubs to Skydiving, and if you can’t find what you’re looking for you can always start something new.

Want to help run a society? Getting elected to a committee role is a great way to develop your professional skills and contribute to the experience of your fellow members!

View all our clubs and societies.

How can we help you?

Our Advice Service is confidential, free, and independent from the university!

If you’re experiencing a problem with your studies, your halls or you are looking for support with navigating disciplinary processes or university and union complaints - the Advice Service is here to help.

Learn more about Advice.

What else do we do?

To better the student experience, we also host a wide range of events throughout the year, alongside running multiple student bars and merchandise stores.

From multi-stage music events to creative workshops and everything in between, we want to ensure your social experience is supported while you’re at university. There are also multiple spaces for you to chill out after class with friends, where you can have a bite to eat and a drink, watch live sport, or just socialize with friends!

As a not-for-profit charity, everything you spend at our venues and events goes straight back into improving union services.

Find out more about our venues and shops.