Queen's University Enrichment Studies - Student Life

Student Life

The student body of Queen's is currently represented by two students' unions, the Alma Mater Society (AMS) for all undergraduate students and the Society of Graduate and Professional Students for graduate students. The AMS of Queen's University is the oldest undergraduate student government in Canada. The AMS recognizes more than 170 student clubs and organizations. All accredited extracurricular organizations at Queen's fall under the jurisdiction of either the AMS, or the Society of Graduate and Professional Students. The organizations and clubs accredited at Queen's cover a wide range of interests including academics, culture, religion, social issues, and recreation. The oldest accredited club at Queen's is the Queen's Debating Union, which was formed in 1843 and originally named the Dialectic Society. The Dialectic Society had also served as a form of student government, until the AMS was formed from the dialectic society in 1858. The Queen's Bands is a student marching band founded in 1905, which claims to be the largest and oldest student marching band in Canada. Fraternities and sororities have been banned at the university, since a ruling made by the AMS in 1933. The ruling was passed in response to the formation of two fraternities in the 1920s. No accredited sororities have ever existed at Queen's.

The AMS also manages the Student Constable peer to peer security service at the university. They are responsible for ensuring the safety of patrons and staff at sanctioned events and venues across the campus, enforce governing regulations of the AMS and uphold regulations stipulated in the Liquor Licence Act of Ontario. In spite of their mandate however, Student Constables do not serve as the university's primary security service as they are legally not peace officers, nor are they registered as a private security service under the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services. The university's administration operate its own security service, that is currently registered in Ontario as a private security service. As of March 2012, the Student Constables are funded through a mandatory $10 fee levied on undergraduates annually by the AMS.