Constitution of: UCC Medical Society
1.1 The Society shall be known as the University College Cork Medical Society (UCC
MedSoc), hereafter referred to as MedSoc.
1.2 The Governing Body shall be known as the UCC Medical Society Committee,
hereafter referred to as The Committee.
1.3 The UCC Medical Society shall be the organisation of all recognised UCC medical
students and any student or staff member of UCC who would like to be represented
by the Society.
1.4 The official colours of MedSoc shall be dark blue and green.
Aim:
2.1 To provide for the interests of its members in educational, social and sporting
matters by the following means:
2.1.1 Organising meetings and social functions, both formal and informal;
2.1.2 Providing facilities for its members where necessary;
2.1.3 To provide a media through which members may learn new, or further develop,
skills.
2.2 To provide a means whereby representations may be made on behalf of its
members.
Membership:
3.1 Each registered UCC medical student shall be a member of the UCC Medical
Society. Any student or staff member of UCC may also become a member.
3.2 There shall be three classes of MedSoc membership, namely Ordinary, Ex-Officio
and Honorary.
3.3 Ordinary membership of the Society shall be available to all University students
and staff and shall extend from the day of entry to the College until one year after
qualification.
3.4 Ex-Officio members shall be the current Head of the College of Medicine and
Health and the Head of the School Medicine.
3.5 Honorary Members may be elected by a General Meeting.
The AGM:
4.1.1 The AGM of the UCC Medical Society shall be held in the second term of the
academic
calendar for the purpose of electing officers to the Society, reporting on work done
by the out going Society, and for the passing of motions.
4.1.2 The Vice-Auditor/Secretary shall act as Convenor of Elections for all elections
held by the Society. Where the Secretary is unable to so act, the Society shall select
from its members another person to act as Convenor of Elections.
4.1.3 The Convenor of Elections shall be responsible for giving adequate notice of all
elections, accepting, verifying and collating all nominations, practical operation of all
elections and overseeing the counting of all votes.
4.2 At the AGM there shall be reports from the outgoing Society. The Auditor shall
report on the general organisation, and the Finance Officer shall report on the
finances of the organisation.
4.3 The Auditor shall take the chair at all meetings when present and shall be
responsible for the conduct of the meeting, for interpreting and giving their ruling on
all matters of procedure, order, competency and relevancy as laid down in the
Constitution.
4.3.1 The Vice-Auditor shall take the chair when requested to do so by the Auditor or
in the event of the chair being absent fifteen minutes after the appointed time for
opening the meeting.
4.3.2 In the event of both the Auditor and the Vice-Auditor being absent fifteen
minutes after the appointed time for the meeting to begin, the Committee members
present, if they be quorate, shall elect a temporary Chair from amongst their number
until such time as the Auditor and Chair or Vice Auditor do arrive whereupon he or
she shall vacate the chair.
4.4.1 The ruling of the Chair of the meeting may be challenged by any member. This
shall be in the nature of a procedural motion requiring simple majority.
4.4.2 In the event of the motion obtaining a simple majority the Chair shall be required
to reverse the ruling in question.
4.4.3 The competence of the Chair of the meeting may be questioned by the motion
of „No
Confidence in the Chair‟. This shall be in the nature of a procedural motion requiring
a two thirds majority of those present and voting. In the event of the motion being
carried, the Chair of the meeting shall immediately vacate the chair in favour of the
Vice-Auditor who shall immediately conduct an election for a new Chair of that
meeting.
4.5.1 The Chair of the meeting shall have the casting vote in the event of there being
an equality of votes for and against a motion.
4.5.2 He or she shall not be obliged to use their casting vote on the first occasion of
such an equality of votes on any one motion and may call for a revote.
4.5.3 If an equality of vote occurs on a second occasion for the same motion he or
she shall be obliged to use their casting vote.
4.6.1 All members as defined in this constitution shall have the rights of Speech and to
propose and second motions.
4.6.2 No member may exercise their rights until he or she has indicated to the Chair of
the meeting their wish to do so and has received an indication from the Chair of the
meeting that he or she may proceed.
4.6.3 The Chair of the meeting shall in exercising their power of conduct of the
meeting bear in mind:
the order in which members have indicated their wish to speak; and
the desirability of allowing those members who have not previously contributed to the
debate the right to do so at an early stage.
4.7.1 Any member, other than the proposer, may second a motion. There can be no
discussion on a proposed motion until it is seconded. If a motion is not seconded and
subsequently falls, or is defeated, that motion may not be reintroduced at the same
meeting unless there is a motion, „that the motion be reopened‟. This shall be in the
nature of a procedural motion requiring a two third majority of those present and
voting.
4.7.2 No motion may be withdrawn without the consent of the proposer and the
seconder. If only the proposer withdraws, the seconder shall become the proposer of
the motion and another seconder shall be sought.
4.7.3 No member apart from the proposer of the motion shall have the right to speak
more than twice on any subject under debate unless in the Committee meeting or
on a point of information or order.
4.7.4 The proposer of the motion shall have the right to wind-up the debate before
the motion is out to the vote.
4.7.5 Following introductory debate, the Chair of the meeting shall call for
amendment to the motion. In the event of a member moving an amendment to a
motion the Chair of the meeting shall ask the proposer and seconder of the motion if
they are prepared to accept the amendment. If so, the amendment becomes part
of the substantive motion. In the event of either the proposer or seconder being
unwilling to accept the amendment, the proposer of the amendment shall move the
amendment, after which the President or Chair of the meeting shall then call for a
seconder of the amendment. If there is no seconder, the amendment falls. If the
amendment is seconded, the amendment shall be debated and voted upon before
the substantive motion is out to the vote. If the amendment is carried, it becomes
part of the substantive motion. If an amendment negates all or part of a motion, it
does not fall and shall be voted upon, with the proposer waiving their right to wind-up
the debate.
4.7.6 While members may in the course of debate give notice of further motions or
amendments which they intend to introduce, only one motion or amendment may
be debated at one time.
4.8 Points of Information and Order
4.8.1 A Point of Information shall be a question or piece of factual information to the
current speaker or to the meeting at large. When a Point of Information is indicated
to the Chair of the meeting, while a speaker is exercising their right to speech, the
Chair of the meeting may, at their discretion, interrupt the speaker to allow the Point
of Information or may allow the speaker to finish their contribution to the debate
whereupon he or she must consider the Point of Information before any further
speakers. Where the Point of Information is in the nature of a question, the right of
immediate reply may be granted at the discretion of the Chair of the Meeting.
4.8.2 A Point of Order shall be concerned with the enforcement or interpretation of
the aims, objectives, constitution, or standing orders of MedSoc. A Point of Order shall
take precedence over all other matters under consideration and the Chair of the
Meeting shall immediately allow the member making the Point or Order to speak. The
Chair of the meeting shall immediately rule and act upon any legitimate Point of
Order. In the event of any member making use of the precedence which is allows a
Point of Order to make statements which are not clearly not so, the Chair or the
Meeting shall rule that individual to be out of order and he or she shall resume their
seat immediately. In the event of a member being so ruled out of order on three
occasions during a meeting, he or she shall personally forfeit the right of precedence
of the Point of Order for the remainder of the meeting.
4.9 The adjournment of meetings shall normally rest at the discretion of the Chair of
the meeting who shall bear in mind the suggestions of the members in deciding upon
the time of each adjournment. Any member may propose „that the meeting now
adjourns‟. This shall be in the nature of a procedural motion and shall require a two
thirds majority of those present and voting for it to be carried.
4.10 A Procedural Motion shall take precedence over all terms of address to the Chair
of the meeting apart from the „Point of Order‟ but shall not carry the right of
interrupting the current speaker. In the event of a procedural motion being proposed,
the Chair of the Meeting shall immediately ask for a seconder to the motion and in
the event of the motion being seconded shall immediately put the procedural
motion to the vote. Where the motion requires a two thirds majority this shall be two
thirds of those present and voting. In the event of a procedural motion being carried
it shall be put into effect immediately. The following shall constitute procedural
motions:A motion challenging the Chairman‟s ruling.
A motion of No Confidence in the Chair.
That debate on the motion be reopened.
That this meeting is adjourned.
That the meeting proceed to the next business.
That consideration of the motion on the table be postponed.
That voting be by secret ballot.
That the meeting proceed immediately to the vote.
That the business of the meeting be closed.
All procedural motions shall require a two thirds majority of those present and voting.
4.11 Any amendments to this constitution and motions shall be passed at the AGM. A
constitutional amendment shall need two-third majority to pass. A motion shall need
simple majority to pass.
4.12 The quorum for the Annual General Meeting shall be twice the number of
members of the Committee present plus one of ordinary members, additionally, one
half of the number of the Committee shall be present for the meeting to be quorate.
A meeting shall not be considered out of order until quorum is questioned. Anyone
wishing to challenge the quorum must do so within fifteen minutes of the
commencement of the meeting. The quorum for a Special General Meeting shall be
the same.
The EGM:
5.1 The Extraordinary General Meeting, hereafter referred to as EGM, of the UCC
Medical Society shall be called by majority vote of the Society Committee to fill
vacancies on its committee, amend this constitution, or for other stated purposes.
5.2 The EGM shall follow the procedures of the AGM.
5.3 An EGM may be called on a week's notice by the request of one third plus one
committee officials or twice the number of members on the present Committee plus
one of ordinary members. Notice of an EGM may be called by at least twenty three
members handing in a letter to that effect in to the Accommodation and Student
Activities Office, the Society then has 7 college days to hold the EGM. A decision of
the committee may be nullified by an EGM.
The Committee:
6.1 The UCC Medical Society Committee shall be vested with the following ;
6.1.1 The day to day running of the Society.
6.1.2 The Committee shall have power to act in the name of MedSoc and on its
behalf.
6.1.3 The finances and administration of MedSoc shall be controlled by the
Committee in accordance with the Constitution and the views of MedSoc as
expressed at an Annual or other General Meeting.
6.1.4 The Committee and its Sub-Committees shall have the power of co-option.
6.1.5 The Committee shall have overall control over its Sub-Committees in all matters,
and may establish additional Sub-Committees to deal with specific problems.
6.2 This body shall be responsible for the making of policy and rules for the fair and
equal running of the Society.
The Society:
- Shall distribute monies allocated by the college through the Societies‟ Guild.
- Shall act on behalf of members as required.
- Shall act to co-ordinate activities as required.
- Shall be empowered to make recommendations to School of Medicine, the
Societies‟ Guild and the Students' Union.
- Shall supervise and make available Society resources and equipment.
- Shall resolve inter-member disputes.
- Shall be empowered to establish and grant awards.
-Shall be empowered to take such action or make such policy as is necessary for the
good running of the organisation unless such action or such policy be explicitly
prohibited by this Constitution.
6.3.1 The Committee shall be made up of:
Chairperson who shall be Society Auditor.
Vice-Auditor/Secretary
Treasurer
Public Relations Officer
Entertainment Representative
Sports Representative
Education Representative
Pre Clinical Representative
GEM Representative
Clinical Representative
College Representative
6.3.2 The number of committee members elected shall be decided upon at the
Annual General Meeting.
6.3.3 UCC students entering their third last year in medicine in the following year shall
be eligible to run for all positions bar Pre Clinical Rep. Nominees must be nominated
by two different members of the UCC Medical Society, neither of whom is the
nominee.
6.3.4 Nine students shall be elected at the AGM all by a majority vote.
6.3.5 At no point should there be less than one incoming third year, second year or
second GEM on the committee.
6.3.6 The position of PCR must be filled by an incoming DE second year.
6.3.7 The position of GEM Representative must be filled by an incoming second GEM.
6.3.8 All other positions should first be filled by members of the class who will be of
their third last year. If there are remaining vacant positions, they should first be filled
by members of the incoming second year DE. Any vacancies thereafter must be filled
by a student of UCC Medicine.
6.3.9 Third year DE Class Representatives will be elected at the AGM. They shall then
take the positions of Clinical and College Representatives which will be allocated to
each by the Auditor. They will become members of the incoming Society with duties
beginning the start of June and ending the end of May following their election
though their duties as Class Representatives will not begin until the start of the next
academic year.
6.4.1 Each member shall have one vote; the auditor and the ten officers of the
Society Committee shall also have one vote each.
6.4.2 In the event of any tie the Auditor shall have a casting vote, unless the Auditor is
a candidate in an election, in which case the Vice-Auditor or another agreed Society
committee member will take the vote.
6.5.1 Members of the committee may resign by giving one week‟s written notice to
the Secretary, or in the case of the Secretary, to the Chairperson.
6.5.2 Where a vacancy occurs for the position of officer at any time between the
AGM and end of the first term, the Society Committee shall convene an EGM to fill
that vacancy.
6.5.3 Where such a vacancy occurs during the second term, the Society Committee
may co-opt an individual to fill that vacancy. Such a co-option shall be advertised
amongst UCC students and applicants shall put themselves forward in accordance
with the process for a nomination at the AGM. All applicants shall be interviewed by
the Society Committee prior to the co-option. This provision shall not prevent the
Society filling a vacant position in the second term in accordance with Article 6.5.2.
6.5.4 Where a vacancy occurs for the position of Auditor at any time during his or her
term of office, the Vice-Auditor, or other presiding officer, shall convene an EGM to fill
that vacancy.
6.5.5 Where an Auditor or OCM ceases to serve on the Committee before the end of
their term, their powers and duties shall be assigned by Society Committee as
appropriate until the vacancy is filled.
Positions:
7.1.1 The Auditor shall be the chair of all meetings of the Society, both Committee
and all others. S/he shall oversee the good running of the organisation. S/he shall be
the spokesperson for UCC Medical Society members on the various committees to
which the Society has representation on.
7.1.2 The Auditor of the UCC Medical Society Committee may not serve as a
committee member of any other UCC society, during his/her term of office.
7.2 The committee members of the UCC Medical Society shall be allocated portfolios
through election at the AGM, three of which must be the Vice-President/ Secretary,
Treasurer and the Public Relations Officer.
Duties of Officials
8.1 The elected members of the Committee shall serve a term commencing on the
first day of June following their election and ceasing on the last day of the following
May.
8.2 The elected members of the Committee shall contribute to all Society events
when necessary.
8.3 If leave of absence is required by any committee member, they will inform the
Auditor of this and their role shall be assigned to another committee member until
their return.
8.4 The Auditor shall be the official representative of MedSoc at all times, except as
otherwise
provided in this constitution. He or she shall also
8.4.1 promote and explain this constitution to the other Committee members at their
first meeting;
8.4.2 chair all Committee meetings and other meetings of MedSoc;
8.4.3 be responsible to MedSoc for all their actions and those of the Committee;
8.4.4 be an ex-officio member of all Sub-Committees;
8.4.5 have the power to delegate authority to any Committee member or member of
MedSoc, subject to the approval of the Committee;
8.4.6 provide the principal link between MedSoc and the College;
8.4.7 be responsible for the organisation of academic and educational supportive
events provided by MedSoc in conjunction with academic representatives;
8.4.8 work with the PRO in promoting all MedSoc events and contacts;
8.4.9 represent MedSoc to the Societies' Guild and vice versa;
8.4.10 liaise with other Medical Schools in the organisation of events.
8.5 The Vice-President/Secretary shall be able to deputise for the Auditor at any time
when he or she is absent. He or she shall
8.5.1 keep a current and accurate register of MedSoc members adding new
members as appropriate;
8.5.2 keep a record of which Fresher‟s Week events individual members have paid for
and which tickets they have been allocated and prepare the Fresher‟s Packs;
8.5.3 ensure that all cheques are passed to the Treasurer with a written record of the
member‟s name, the amount paid and what the cheque is for;
8.5.4 be available throughout Fresher‟s Week to answer queries regarding tickets and
membership;
8.5.5 be responsible for the distribution of all documents for Committee meetings and
the Annual and other General Meetings;
8.5.6 prepare the agendas and keep accurate, up to date minutes of these and
Committee meetings;
8.5.7 conduct the official correspondence of MedSoc; and
8.5.8 supervise the distribution of literature provided by MedSoc for its members.
8.6 The Treasurer shall be responsible for
8.6.1 the supervision and good order of the MedSoc finances and the disbursement
of all funds;
8.6.2 keep clear and accessible accounts;
8.6.3 give regular reports on the financial state of MedSoc to meetings of the
Committee;
8.6.4 be responsible for the cover of appropriate insurance for events that require it;
8.6.5 at the Annual General Meeting produce audited accounts for the financial year
of their term of office; ensure that MedSoc abides by current laws relating to the
finances of non-charitable societies;
8.6.6 make applications for grants from the Societies' Guild; and
8.6.7 the distribution of grants or other funding to members and ensure that they
provide the appropriate documentation in order to process their application.
8.7 The Public Relations Officer shall be responsible for
8.7.1 the maintenance of the profile of the society;
8.7.2 to maintain contact with the press and the media;
8.7.3 act host to visiting officials and guests;
8.7.4 the publicity for all the MedSoc meetings by email, website, poster, letter, SMS or
such means as determined by the Committee;
8.7.5 to control the content of all MedSoc notice boards;
8.7.6 to advise Sub-Committees on publicity matters;
8.7.8 to maintain the MedSoc website, forum and social pages; and
8.7.9 to submit articles for the Societies Magazine.
8.8 The Entertainment Representative shall be responsible for
8.8.1 the organisation of society social events and other specific activities by
arrangement with the Auditor and the Committee;
8.8.2 be responsible for overseeing social facilities;
8.8.3 liaise with the MedBar and MedClub;
8.8.4 work with the Auditor and other committee members, allowing sharing of
responsibility on specific issues/activities by arrangement between themselves.
8.8.5 organise at least two events in both the winter and spring terms;
8.8.6 liaise with the Public Relations Officer in promoting and publicising organised
events
8.8.7 at least one “non-drinking” event in each term.
8.9 The Education Representative shall be responsible for
8.9.1 Academic revision sessions;
8.9.2 Book sales;
8.9.3 Extra curricula academic events;
8.9.4 Public health awareness;
8.9.5 providing guidance to those members who find themselves in academic
difficulty; and
8.9.4 Work with the Auditor and Committee, allowing sharing of responsibility on
specific issues/ activities by arrangement between themselves.
8.10 The Sports Representative shall be responsible for
8.10.1 representing all the Faculty of Medicine sports teams or allocating said
representation to a captain of the team or other as he/she sees fit;
8.10.2 organising block fixtures at UCC and at other Medical Schools;
8.10.3 chair meeting of the Sports Captains at start of their term of office to determine
dates of fixtures for following season and subsequent meetings; and
8.10.4 act as the point of liaison for Sports Grant application to the Committee and
their presentation.
8.10.5 Work with the Auditor and Committee, allowing sharing of responsibility on
specific issues/activities by arrangement between themselves.
8.11 The Pre Clinical Representative shall
8.11.1 act as MedSoc representative to first and second year direct entry students;
8.11.2 allocating Superfamilies groups within the first two weeks of the beginning of
term one;
8.11.3 editing the Freshers Survival Guide for incoming first year direct entry medical
students;
8.11.4 work with the committee to promote events to the preclinical years; and
8.11.5 ticket sales to all first and second year medicine direct entry students.
8.12 The GEM Representative shall
8.12.1 act as MedSoc representative to first and second year graduate entry
medicine students;
8.12.2 allocating GEM Superfamilies groups within the first two weeks of the beginning
of term one;
8.12.3 editing the Freshers Survival Guide for incoming first year graduate entry
medical students;
8.12.4 work with the committee to promote events to the GEM years; and
8.12.5 be responsible for ticket sales to all first and second year medicine graduate
entry students.
8.13 The Clinical Representative shall
8.13.1 act as MedSoc representative to fourth and fifth year direct entry students;
8.13.2 work with the committee to promote events to the clinical years;
8.13.3 be responsible for ticket sales to all fourth and fifth year medicine direct entry
students; and
8.13.4 shall liaise with all medicine class representatives on behalf of MedSoc.
8.14 The College Representative shall
8.14.1 act as MedSoc representative to all other students of UCC who are not
students of the Faculty of Medicine;
8.14.2 liaise with other society First Year Representatives or OCMs to organise joint
events or the selling of tickets on the behalf of MedSoc to other disciplines;
8.14.3 work with the committee to promote events to non-medical students;
8.14.3 be responsible for ticket sales to all non-medical students; and
8.14.4 shall liaise with all medicine class representatives on behalf of MedSoc.
8.15 The Society members shall take an active part in the Society, shall represent the
Society on any outing/activity and shall represent the Society when communicating
with bodies outside the Society.
Meetings
9.1 The Committee and its Sub-Committees shall meet as frequently as is deemed
necessary, but at least once a month during University academic terms.
9.2 All members of the Committee shall attend each Committee meeting. If unable
to attend, with the permission of the President, a member may appoint a substitute to
represent them, who is adequately briefed regarding procedure and the agenda
and may vote on their behalf; if, however, a majority vote is not reached, their vote
shall be disregarded.
9.3 Any Committee member who is absent from three consecutive Committee
meetings without tendering their apologies for absence and showing good cause for
his or her failure to attend, shall deemed to have resigned. If necessary a
replacement shall then be co-opted for the remainder of the Committee‟s term of
office.
9.4 The Vice-Auditor/Secretary shall give at least two days notice of any meeting.
Sub-Committees:
10.1 A new UCC Medical Society Sub-Committee passed by the Society Committee
shall be on provisional status for at least one year, after which its status shall be
reviewed and confirmed. It then may be given a further period of provisional status or
given full society sub-committee status. A provisional Society sub-committee shall be
limited in grant, it shall have rights to poster in the university within UCC Societies‟
Guild guidelines, rights to book rooms within the procedures of the relevant offices of
UCC. If during the period of provisional status a sub-committee collapses they shall be
deleted by the Society.
10.2 Confirmed subcommittees of the society shall be reviewed annually.
Dismissal from the Society Committee:
11.1 In the event of poor performance, or other stated misbehaviour, by a 2/3
majority rounded upwards an officer may be removed from the committee. The
officer concerned may with the support of twenty-three members call an EGM to
appeal the decision.
11.2 The Auditor may only be removed by EGM called for that stated purpose.
Interpretation of the Constitution
14.1 The Auditor shall rule on the meaning of the constitution whenever any dispute
arises. This may be overruled by a simple majority vote at a general meeting.