Chancellor (education)

A chancellor is a leader of a college or university, usually either the executive or ceremonial head of the university or of a university campus.

In most Commonwealth and former Commonwealth nations, the chancellor is usually a ceremonial non-resident head of the university. In such institutions, the chief executive of a university is the vice-chancellor, who may carry an additional title, such as "president & vice-chancellor". The chancellor may serve as chairman of the governing body; if not, this duty is often held by a chairman who may be known as a pro-chancellor.

In many countries, the administrative and educational head of the university is known as the president, principal or rector. In the United States, the head of a university is most commonly a university president. In U.S. university systems that have more than one affiliated university or campus, the executive head of a specific campus may have the title of chancellor and report to the overall system's president, or vice versa.

In Australia and New Zealand, a chancellor is the chairman of a university's governing body; thus, as well as having ceremonial duties, the chancellor participates in the governance of the university (but not its active management). The chancellor is assisted by a deputy chancellor (known as the pro-chancellor in some universities). The chancellor and deputy chancellor are frequently drawn from the senior ranks of business or the judiciary (it is one of the few jobs considered compatible with judicial service). Some universities have a visitor who is senior to the chancellor. University disputes can be appealed from the governing board to the visitor (as is still the case in the UK), but nowadays, such appeals are generally prohibited by legislation, and the position has only ceremonial functions (unlike the chancellor and deputy chancellor, who frequently preside at functions such as graduations, the visitor rarely attends university functions). The vice-chancellor usually serves as the chief executive of the university.

Macquarie University in Sydney is noteworthy as it once had the unique position of Emeritus Deputy Chancellor, a post created for John Lincoln upon his retirement from his long-held post of deputy chancellor in 2000. The position was not merely an honorary title, as it also retained for Lincoln a place in the University Council until his death in 2011.

Canadian universities and British universities in Scotland have a titular chancellor similar to those in England and Wales, with day-to-day operations typically handled by a principal. In Scotland, for example, the chancellor of the University of Edinburgh is Anne, Princess Royal, whilst the current chancellor of the University of Aberdeen is Camilla, Duchess of Rothesay.

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