Several years ago, I got a phone call from someone who introduced herself as so and so and as being the vice president of the Lundaekonomerna. I was a bit surprised as I had very little to do with the union in those days. But she quickly put me straight.

– I’m calling to you regarding your course, and I’ve been receiving complaints from a student about unclear exam rules. It doesn’t say anywhere in the syllabus that some lectures require compulsory attendance.

– Eerrr… But they’re all compulsory?

But they weren’t. The syllabus said that all lectures were compulsory, but we had become de facto lax on absenteeism on certain classes. So she was right and I felt kind of lazy we hadn’t updated the syllabus for a very long time.

As I was a bit impressed about the level of commitment on behalf
of the vice president, I asked a couple of colleagues afterwards whether they had had similar experiences. And they all confirmed that this happens on a regular basis and the union is almost always correct in their criticism. And perhaps the most importance quality control instance there is when it comes to evaluation and improvement of and nations in town pedagogics and course content.

This wasn’t 
the last time I
was impressed
by our student union. There are a myriad of heroic efforts made on a daily basis by volunteers on a pro bono basis. Historically,
the education watch is the core business of a student union, with its staunch yet dialectic interaction with teachers, programme directors and directors, but there is, as we all know, plenty of other stuff too.

”There are a myriad of heroic efforts made on a daily basis by volunteers on a prop bono basis”

The space of this column for sure couldn’t give justice to an adequate description of the capacity of Lundaekonomerna, but a couple of overarching achievements come to mind. For example, surviving the abolishment of compulsory affiliations to unions and nations, which once was a real threat. Lundaekonomerna dealt with that and offered a very competitive and attractive product which continues to face soaring demand. Lundaekonomerna have also expanded their operations beyond the borders of our students through charity work, far outside the scope of what one can expect from a student union. The union also made the novice weeks dry. A pathbreaking accomplishment given the strong traditions. Lundaekonomerna have taken a clear and competitive position in the nexus of unions and nations in town. I could go on. Our job fairs are among the largest in the country. The annual ball has become one of the greatest dinners at Lund. And we have our own band! Plus the best sexmästeri in the galaxy.