Vanderbilt Graduate Faculty Council

The Vanderbilt University Graduate Faculty Council supports the Graduate School in ensuring excellence and equity across all academic disciplines, and to approve, oversee, and regulate the creation of new graduate degrees, graduate programs, and certificate programs.

All A&S graduate faculty are eligible to vote and, if elected, serve for a three-year term.

The Graduate Faculty Council is composed of faculty members from across the university who advise and teach graduate students. Graduate Faculty Council members serve on graduate examination committees, guide graduate programs, actively participate in the development and delivery of educational materials for graduate students, and/or serve as the primary mentor for graduate trainees. All newly appointed tenured and tenure-track faculty members with principal or secondary appointments in departments or programs offering the M.A, M.S., and/or Ph.D. degrees will be considered members of the Graduate Faculty Council by virtue of their primary appointment. All other appointed faculty, including those without tenure-track appointments, or those with principal appointments in departments or programs not offering graduate degrees, may be granted membership by the dean of the Graduate School upon recommendation of a chair of a graduate department or director of a graduate program. Temporary or term appointments to the Graduate Faculty Council may be granted by the dean of the Graduate School for specific activities related to graduate student research and education.