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START YOUR OWN STUDENT ASSOCIATION

What is a student association?

A student association gives you and your fellow students the opportunity to connect over shared interests and enrich your university experience. You can create an association around anything from singing, crafts, parties and music to politics, sport, gaming and movies – to give just a few examples.  

You can set up your association for a specific degree programme or faculty – or open it to all students at the university  

Requirements for student associations at AU  

AU wants student association life to be as vibrant, open and accessible as possible, so your association only needs to meet two requirements to be registered at AU:  

  1. The association must be founded by AU students.  
  1. The association’s primary purpose must be to organise activities for AU students.  

If your association meets these requirements, we can add it to AU’s ‘Find your student association’ list so that your fellow students can find it and join the community.   

AU has no say in what your association chooses to focus on. This also means that your association does not represent AU. However, as a registered association at the university, you still need to follow the same disciplinary rules that apply to all students. 

Are you a political association?

If you want to run in AU’s elections and have questions, contact the election secretariat at valg@au.dk.  

You can also contact the Student Council at sr@sr.au.dk for help and advice on starting and running a political association.

Are you a tutor association?

A tutor association is different from a student association, as tutors act on behalf of AU and not on behalf of students. Different rules apply to tutor associations. Read more about them on your local faculty pages:

Step by step guide to founding an association at AU

1. Consider the purpose and target audience of your association (who and why?)

If you’re thinking about starting a student association, it’s a good idea to consider the following:  

  • What is the purpose of the student association? (e.g. to meet with others who have the same interests, to organise social events, to run for election)  
  • Who is the student association intended for? (e.g. all students or students on a specific degree programme)  

These questions can serve as a guideline when drafting your association’s internal rules or by-laws.  

Consider whether you want to be a legally recognised association

In Denmark, there are no legal requirements for associations. However, you might want your association to be legally recognised if you intend to manage your own finances or own anything independently. There are five basic requirements that the association must meet in order to be legally recognised:  

  • The association must have its own by-laws.  
  • The association must appoint a committee.  
  • The association must have members.  
  • The association’s finances must be kept separate from the finances of its members.  
  • The association must hold and document a founding meeting.   

Your association does not need to be legally recognised to be put on the ‘Find your student association’ list, but being a legally recognised association has a number of advantages, including the right to assemble, the option to have an association bank account, and the opportunity to apply for grants and funding.  

  

2. Define the association’s structure and by-laws

Think of your by-laws as the internal laws of your association that you can refer to in case of disagreements.   

To become legally recognised as an association, there are some requirements that your by-laws must meet. And if you plan to apply for funding from public grant schemes, your by-laws must also meet their specific requirements.  

That said, each association’s by-laws are different, so you should think carefully about what you want your by-laws to include.  

  

3. Appoint a committee

Regardless of whether you want your association to be legally recognised, it’s a good idea to appoint a committee that can act and sign on behalf of the association. You would typically appoint a chair, vice-chair and treasurer, but it’s also fine to only have a chairperson.  

Don’t forget your members  

It’s a good idea to actively think about who your association is meant for and to formulate who can become a member.   

Consider the following questions:  

  • Who can become a member?  
  • How many members can the association have?  
  • Can other associations become members?  
  • When can a member be excluded?  
  • How is a member excluded?  

  

4. Make a plan for finances and membership fees  

If your association has income and expenses, you need to create separate accounts and budgets for it. This can help you keep track of whether funds are used for the right purpose. This also means that the association’s finances must be separate from your own and your members’ finances.  

Consider whether members should pay a membership fee.  

If you want to open a bank account for your association or receive public funds, you need to register your association with a CVR number on The Danish Business Authority’s website. You won’t need to pay. This is also a good way to document how the association’s money is spent.  

  

5. Hold a founding meeting  

It is important to be able to document that your association is formally established. Keep minutes or other documentation from a meeting during which your association was founded.  

Now you’re ready for the final step:

6. Register your association at AU 

Register your association by filling out the form for registering student associations at AU. You need to provide the following information:  

  • Name of the student association  
  • Purpose of the association  
  • The association’s target audience  
  • The association’s chair/contact person  
  • The chair/contact person’s email address  
  • The degree programme on which the chair/contact person is enrolled 
  • The chair/contact person’s student number  
  • Link to the association’s website/social media  
  • Documentation of the founding of the association  
  • The association’s by-laws (if applicable)  

Once you have registered your association, it will appear in the list of associations under ‘Find your student association’ at the top of this page. Other students looking for associations at AU will be able to find yours on the list.  

If you experience any issues with the form, please contact the person responsible for AU’s student associations page on studerende@au.dk. You can also write to this email address to update the information stated about your association. We will contact your chair/contact person once a year to ask whether the association should remain on AU’s ‘Find your student association’ list.

Do you need advice on starting a student association at AU?


If you want help and advice on how to start an association, you can contact the Student Council at sr@sr.au.dk.

E-learning course for Friday bars and student social committees at AU


Student counsellors and the Student Counselling Service at AU have designed a course for volunteers in Friday bar associations, student social committees and similar associations. The course is open to anyone involved in student associations at AU and is designed to support you in your work to foster positive and safe study environments at the university.   

Find the course by searching for the ‘e-learning course for Friday bars and student social committees at AU’ in Discover in Brightspace.