Is it a President, Rector or Chancellor in Legal English?
Legal English Innovation
Who manages the day-to-day operations of English-language higher education institutions?
QUICK GUIDE
The roots of this word come from the Latin (ruler), and in English, we often use the technical terms and legal jargon, just like Latin.
Let’s dive in.
The Question
So which is the right one:
President, rector or chancellor?
President
When to use president? This is the most frequent term in the United States for the head of an institute of higher learning, e.g., The President of New York University & The President of Yale.
In addition, in the United States, the term president is used to refer to a system-wide administrative chief. An example is the California State University system, each campus (independent headquarters) has its own chancellor and is overseen by a system president.
Chancellor
When to use Chancellor?
It seems that the term chancellor is usually used for ceremonial and honorary positions. All four universities in Ireland have a chancellor, but day-to-day activities fall into the hands of their rector. In the UK it is also very common to have two representatives, as can be seen at the University of Edinburgh, whose chancellor is Anne the Princess Royal and her position is honorary, while the principal/vice-chancellor Sir Peter Mathieson is in charge of day-to-day operations.
Rector
When to use Rector?
This term is often found in Catholic institutions of higher learning. Notre Dame, for example, because of its Catholic roots, is one of the universities that uses Rector instead of President, and they hold the highest office in this institution, e.g., The Rector of the University of Dayton & The Rector of Chaminade University of Honolulu.
Final tips to remember:
Everyone can be very confusing; So, when in doubt, look at what Google has to say: I wrote the “Chancellor of Harvard,” and it came back, “Maybe you meant ‘President of Harvard’?”
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About the Author
Eric Froiland
Eric Froiland, originating from the United States, is a distinguished legal English instructor who has resided in Bogota, Colombia for the past decade. He holds the esteemed position of a guest columnist at Ambito Jurídico, where he shares his profound knowledge with its discerning readership. Additionally, as the proprietor and founder of Legal English Innovation SAS, he has earned widespread recognition as the foremost legal English academy in Colombia, proudly serving as an official Test of Legal English Skills (TOLES) examination center.
