Student Organizations and Governance

The Humphrey School and the wider University of Minnesota offer many ways for students to get involved with a broad array of issues, projects, and activities.

Student Organizations

Humphrey International Students Association (HISA)
HISA represents international students at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs via advocacy of rights and interests in the Humphrey School and beyond. It seeks to enhance awareness of issues and interests relevant to the School's international students by encouraging and facilitating conversations, ideas, and experience sharing between the international students and the Humphrey School community. It also aims to help the School's international students become familiar with opportunities available at the University of Minnesota and in the Twin Cities.

Humphrey Students of Color Association (HSOCA)
HSOCA serves as a collective voice for students of color at the Humphrey School. We advocate for positive change for underrepresented and marginalized communities of color, and provide a venue to share ideas and work on issues that most directly affect students of color at the School. 

Planning Student Organization (PSO)
PSO seeks to:

• Foster a supportive and inclusive planning student community
• Advocate on behalf of planning students to the Humphrey School and beyond
• Provide opportunities for planning students to network and advance their careers

Energy and Environmental Policy Club (EEPC)
The Energy and Environmental Policy Club (EEPC) brings students together to discuss key energy and environmental policy issues and actively engage with the broader Twin Cities stakeholder community on these critical issues. We are also committed to creating new opportunities for students to deepen their understanding of energy and environmental policy beyond the classroom. This includes organizing site visits, promoting local events and relevant webinars, and facilitating interactions with local experts. 

Humphrey Public Affairs Review (HPAR)
HPAR is the student-run academic journal of the Humphrey School. HPAR provides students the opportunity to build academic and professional skills through writing and editing high-quality work in a variety of mediums. HPAR also facilitates collaboration across the School's programs and builds connections among students, staff, the broader university, and the local Twin Cities community.

For more information on student groups at the University of Minnesota, visit GopherLink.

Student Governance

Students can get involved in the governance of the University of Minnesota through various organizations.

Council of Graduate Schools (COGS)
COGS represents all non-professional graduate students at the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities. Its work is focused in these areas:

• Social programming: COGS hosts between 2,000 and 4,000 students every year at events ranging from Grad Student Welcome Week to Appreciation Week, as well as interdisciplinary academic programming, happy hours, bowling nights, and movie screenings.
• Grant funding: COGS offers up to $1,200 for conference travel for researchers, up to $250 for professionalization workshops, and up to $600 for academic and social programming for graduate students.
• Advocacy. 

Council of International Graduate Students (CIGS) 
Represents, advocates for, informs and facilitates communication among international graduate students on the Twin Cities Campus.

Public Affairs Student Association (PASA)
PASA is an organization made up of all graduate students in public affairs at the University of Minnesota. PASA is the official vehicle for the expression of student concerns and desires as they pertain to the Humphrey School, its, mission, its environment, its faculty, its administrators, and its students.

Professional Student Government (PSG) 
Represents, advocates for all professional students on the University of Minnesota Twin Cities Campus.