MEETING MINUTES

A document in which the proceedings of a meeting and the decisions taken at it are recorded.

Format: DIN A4 (210 x 297 mm).

See document and sections

GENERAL DRAFTING CRITERIA

Traditional meeting minutes provide a detailed description of the proceedings of a meeting. It is preferable, however, to stick to a simple model based on the following drafting criteria:

  • Concision. Select the essential information from the session (items dealt with, important points made, literal transcription of the motions passed, etc.) and summarise them.
  • Clear presentation. Ensure that the document is easy to read by using headings and a numerical identification system matching the items of business on the agenda, the proceedings of the session and the decisions taken.
  • Verb tenses. In Catalan and Spanish, the usual practice is to employ the present tense for minutes, even though they are drawn up after the meeting and are a record of what happened at it. This is not the general custom in English, which tends to employ the past tense for such purposes. When writing up minutes in English, it is therefore preferable to use the simple past tense.
  • Use of personal and impersonal forms. Here too usual practices differ to some extent. In Catalan and Spanish, impersonal and neutral forms predominate. In English considerable use is made of the passive voice (The motion was passed...), but what was said by particular people is generally reported in the active voice (The chairperson requested..., the lecturers described the project...).

- It is usually the job of the secretary of the body in question to produce the minutes. In the minutes, however, the secretary refers to him- or herself in the third person: The secretary read out the reports...

Never the less, in the formula at the end of the minutes, the first person singular (I) is in order: I hereby issue these minutes...

When referring to other people at the meeting, the third person singular (she/he) or plural (they), as appropriate, is used: The chairperson requested ..., the lecturers described the project...

USEFUL PHRASES

Formulas for the items on the agenda:

• Reading and approval of the minutes of the last meeting. 
• Reports. 
• Motions. 
• A.O.B.

Formulas for describing the proceedings of the meeting:

- The chairperson opened the session and the secretary read out the draft minutes of the last meeting. 
- The chairperson requested... / presented the project... 
- Ms. X described/informed/explained... 
- Mr. Y asked for the proposal to be recorded in the minutes

Formulas for motions and resolutions:

- The minutes of the last meeting were passed unanimously.
- The ... regulations/the reports on ... were passed by ... votes in favour, ... against and ... abstentions.
- A motion that the Board/Council join... / include... was passed. 
- The report on..., which is appended to the minutes as annex number... was passed by ... votes in favour, ... against and ... abstentions.

1. Identification of the document 
This section comprises the following details:

- Name of the body
- Meeting number
- Place 
- Date 
- Start time 
- Finish time

 

2. Attendance
The first block lists the people who attended the meeting under the heading Present and includes the following details:
- Name and surname(s) 
- Post or function within the body whose meeting it is or whether they attended in representation of some other body.

If necessary, a second block records the Committee members who did not attend the meeting under the heading Apologies (for Absence) or Absent, depending on whether they presented apologies or not.

 

3. Agenda 
This section reproduces the agenda items listed in the meeting notice. If there were any changes in the agenda, these must be noted. It is useful to number the various points or items and use the same numeration throughout the minutes for cohesion and ease of reference.

 

4. Proceedings of the meeting
This section records the proceedings of the meeting, including a summary of the most important points made by those speaking. The order in which the proceedings are described should match the order of items as they appear in the meeting agenda.

This section may be omitted where the actual proceedings do not need to be recorded. In such cases, only the decisions taken are recorded.

 

5. Motions 
This section lists the decisions taken and, if appropriate, the results of the votes on formal motions. Each decision or motion should be set out in a separate paragraph in the same order as the corresponding points on the agenda.

 

6. Final formula 
This is a set formula admitting of few variations. It is generally: The chairperson closed the meeting of which I, as secretary, issue these minutes.

 

7. Signature
This consists of the following items in the following order:

On the left:
  The Secretary 
  Signature
On the right:
  Approved by 
  The Chairperson 
  Signature

 

8. Additional information 

- Matters pending: a list, if appropriate, of the matters not dealt with due to lack of time. This section comes after the motions (section 5).

If any items were not been dealt with because those present at the meeting decided to hold them over, then these items should be listed together with the other motions (section 5) and the matters pending section omitted.

- Annexes: this includes, if appropriate, the documents enclosed with the minutes, numbered in accordance with the items to which they refer.


MEETING MINUTES 

DOCTORATE COMMITTEE, MINUTES No. 21

Place: Meeting room (Sala de Juntes), 4th floor of Rambla building 
Date: 25 January 2007 
Start time: 11.00 a.m. 
Finish time: 12.30 p.m.

Present: 
Sr. Alfons Serra i Teixidor, chair 
Sr. Oriol Riera i Altimira, ordinary member 
Sr. Arnau Vidal i Brunet, ordinary member 
Sra. Alícia Termes i Tresseres, ordinary member 
Sr. Albert Gavaldà i Esteve, ordinary member 
Sra. Eulàlia Bonet i Vilaró, secretary

Apologies: 
Sr. Miquel Tàrrega i Bohigas, ordinary member

Agenda: 
1. Reading and approval of the minutes of the last meeting. 
2. Discussion and approval of the programme of the PhD in Financial Economics and Banking (1994-95/1995-96) presented by the Economics Department (presently in the process of being set up), under the direction of Lluís Salmau i Sardà. 
3. Motions. 
4. A.O.B.

Proceedings of the meeting:

1. Reading and approval of the minutes of the last meeting. 
The chairperson opened the meeting and asked the secretary to read out the draft minutes of the previous meeting. 

2. Discussion and approval of the programme of the PhD in Financial Economics and Banking (1994-95/1995-96) presented by the Economics Department (presently in the process of being set up), under the direction of Lluís Salmau i Sardà. 
The chairperson presented the draft programme for the PhD in Financial Economics and Banking (1994-95/1995-96) and argued that it was fit for purpose. A discussion was then opened on a number of points. After various members of the committee had spoken, a proposal was tabled to make certain amendments to the draft programme. 

3. Motions: 
Registration transfers 
The Committee members present at the meeting discussed whether or not to authorise the transfer of various PhD students' registration. In spite of the initial reticence expressed by some members, the Committee decided to allow the transfers, with certain restrictions, for the purposes of producing and reading doctoral theses.

Request for an extension 
The chairperson moved that an extension should be granted to the PhD students who had requested one to produce and read their doctoral theses. A discussion ensued on the policy to be applied in such cases, at the end of which it was decided not to be too rigid, provided the grounds for such extensions were properly justified.

4. A:O.B.
The Committee chairperson handed members the report drawn up by the Management Committee on the criteria for developing a general policy on postgraduate courses to be discussed at the next meeting of the Committee.

Dr. Arnau Vidal i Brunet asked whether it would be possible to expand the courses offered in the PhD programme on Audiovisual Communication Genres and Strategies for the academic year 1994-95. The chairperson asked him to present a written request, setting out the reasons for it, to the next meeting of the Committee.

Motions passed:

  1. The minutes of the last meeting were agreed unanimously.
  2. The programme of the PhD in Financial Economics and Banking was passed unanimously. Never the less, certain amendments to the programme were agreed and these are appended to the minutes.
  3. It was decided to authorise the transfer of the registration of the doctoral thesis being prepared by Francesc Añó i Suyol from the Faculty of Law of Barcelona University to the Faculty of Law of Pompeu Fabra University.
  4. It was decided to grant an extension until October 1994 to Sr. Xavier Serraïma i Petit for him to finish his doctoral thesis.
  5. It was agreed to put the following two items on the agenda for the next meeting: 1. Discussion and approval, if appropriate, of the criteria formulated by the Management Committee for developing a general policy on postgraduate courses; and 2. Discussion and approval, if appropriate, of the proposal presented by Dr. Arnau Vidal i Brunet to expand the courses offered in the PhD programme on Audiovisual Communication Genres and Strategies for the academic year 1994-95.

The chairperson closed the meeting of which I, as secretary, issue these minutes.

Approved by the secretary                                               Approved by the chairperson

 

 

 

Annex: Programme of the PhD in Financial Economics and Banking, including the amendments passed.