A head of college or head of house is the head or senior member of a college within a collegiate university. The title used varies between colleges, including dean, master, president, principal, provost, rector and warden.
The role of the head of college varies significantly between colleges of the same university, and even more so between different universities. However, the head of college will often have responsibility for leading the governing body of the college, often acting as a chair of various college committees; for executing the decisions of the governing body through the college's organisational structure, acting as a chief executive; and for representing the college externally, both within the government of the university and further afield often in aid of fund-raising for the college. The nature of the role varies in importance depending on the nature of the central university. At a loosely federated university such as the University of London or the National University of Ireland, where each member institution is self-governing and some hold university status in their own right, the head of each institution has the same level of responsibility as the vice-chancellor of a university. At more centralised universities, the heads of colleges have less power and responsibility.
University governance
Heads of colleges will often participate in the governance of the central university. Mechanisms for this vary between university and include:
The Collegiate Council at the University of London, which advises the Board of Trustees and is responsible for academic affairs. The Conference of Colleges at the University of Oxford, the chair of which and one other member sit on the university council. Four places on the university council at the University of Cambridge reserved for heads of colleges. Ex officio membership of the senate for all heads of colleges at Durham University, Lancaster University and the University of Roehampton. The Partnership Council at the University of the Highlands and Islands. Joint appointments of heads of colleges as pro vice-chancellors and members of the university executive board at University of the Arts London.
Terminology
Many different titles are used for heads of colleges. These have also changed with time, in particularly the recent move away from using master by colleges at Durham, Kent (where the position of head of college was abolished), Rice, Yale and Harvard"Harvard House Masters Now Called ‘Faculty Deans’ | News | The Harvard Crimson" universities. At the University of York, the post of principal (head of college) was abolished in 2023, with the senior college fellow becoming the chair of the college council and operational powers delegated to the college manager.
TitleParent institutionCollege, member institution, etc.Chief ExecutiveUniversity of the Highlands and IslandsUHI Argyll, UHI Inverness (held jointly with the title of principal in both cases)University of LondonInstitute of Cancer Research (held jointly with the title of president)College MagisterRice UniversityAll colleges (changed from master in 2017)DeanUniversity of LondonLondon Business SchoolUniversity of OxfordChrist Church – the Dean of Christ Church, Oxford is dean of both the college and Christ Church Cathedral.DirectorUniversity of the Highlands and IslandsScottish Association for Marine Science University of LondonCourtauld Institute of Art and London School of Hygiene & Tropical MedicineFaculty DeanHarvard CollegeAll houses (changed from master in 2016)"Harvard House Masters Now Called ‘Faculty Deans’ | News | The Harvard Crimson" HeadUniversity of the Arts LondonCamberwell, Chelsea and Wimbledon colleges (joint head of all three institutions), the London College of Fashion and the London College of CommunicationUniversity of RoehamptonFroebel CollegeHead of CollegeUniversity of the Arts LondonCentral St MartinsPrinceton UniversityAll collegesUniversity of RoehamptonDigby Stuart College, Whitelands College and Southlands CollegeYale UniversityAll colleges (changed from master in 2016)House ProfessorDartmouth CollegeAll housesMasterUniversity of CambridgeChrist's College, Churchill College, Clare College, Corpus Christi College, Darwin College, Downing College, Emmanuel College, Fitzwilliam College, Gonville and Caius College, Jesus College, Magdalene College, Pembroke College, Peterhouse, St Catharine's College, St Edmund's College, St John's College, Selwyn College, Sidney Sussex College, Trinity College and Trinity HallDurham UniversityHatfield College (Principal until 1919)University of OxfordBalliol College, Campion Hall, Pembroke College, St Catherine's College, St Cross College, St Peter's College, University CollegeMistress University of CambridgeGirton CollegePresidentUniversity of CambridgeClare Hall, Hughes Hall, Lucy Cavendish College, Murray Edwards College, Queens' College and Wolfson CollegeUniversity of DublinTrinity College (held jointly with the title of provost)University of LondonCity, Institute of Cancer Research (held jointly with the title of chief executive), King's College London (held jointly with the title of principal), London School of Economics (held jointly with the title of vice-chancellor), Queen Mary (held jointly with the title of principal), SOAS and University College London (held jointly with the title of provost) National University of IrelandAll constituent universities and recognised collegesUniversity of OxfordCorpus Christi College, Kellogg College, Magdalen College, Reuben College, St John's College, Trinity College and Wolfson CollegePrincipalUniversity of CambridgeHomerton College and Newnham College Durham UniversityCollingwood College (changed from master between 1985 and 1989), Grey College (changed from master in April 2023), John Snow College, Josephine Butler College, South College, St Aidan's College, St Chad's College, (also has a rector as "titular and religious head of the college") St Cuthbert's Society, the College of St Hild and St Bede, St John's College, St Mary's College, Stephenson College, Trevelyan College, University College (changed from master in 2020), Ustinov College and Van Mildert College (changed from master between 1985 and 1989)University of the Highlands and IslandsUHI Argyll, UHI Inverness (held jointly with the title of chief executive in both cases), Highland Theological College, UHI Outer Hebrides, UHI Moray, UHI Shetland, UHI North Highland, Orkney College UHI, UHI Perth, Sabhal Mòr Ostaig, UHI West HighlandLancaster UniversityAll collegesUniversity of LondonKing's College London (held jointly with the title of president), Queen Mary (held jointly with the title of president), the Royal Academy of Music, the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, Royal Holloway, the Royal Veterinary College and St George's (held jointly with the title of vice-chancellor) University of OxfordBrasenose College, Green Templeton College, Harris Manchester College, Hertford College, Jesus College, Lady Margaret Hall, Linacre College, Mansfield College, Regent's Park College, St Anne's College, St Edmund Hall, St Hilda's College, St Hugh's College, St Stephen's House, Somerville College and Wycliffe HallUniversity of South WalesRoyal Welsh College of Music and DramaUniversity of TorontoMassey College (changed from master in 2018)ProvostUniversity of California, San DiegoAll collegesUniversity of California, Santa CruzAll collegesUniversity of CambridgeKing's CollegeUniversity of DublinTrinity College (held jointly with the title of president)University of London University College London (held jointly with the title of president)University of OxfordOriel College, Queen's College and Worcester CollegeRectorUniversity of Notre Dame All hallsUniversity of OxfordExeter College and Lincoln CollegeRegentUniversity of OxfordBlackfriarsVice-chancellorUniversity of LondonBirkbeck, London School of Economics (held jointly with the title of president) and St George's (held jointly with the title of principal)WardenUniversity of CambridgeRobinson CollegeUniversity of LondonGoldsmithsUniversity of OxfordAll Souls College, Keble College, Merton College, New College, Nuffield College, St Antony's College and Wadham College
In the case of some older colleges whose statutes are in Latin, the titles used in the modern era are English translations of those found in the statutes, e.g. "provost" for praepositus, "president" for praeses, and "warden" for custos.
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