Meeting Minutes

The University Seminars office requires, at minimum, the following:

• Full seminar name and number. See Seminar List here.
   
• Meeting date and location.
   
• Name and Affiliation of Speaker(s): It is important to use the speaker’s full name, title,and affiliation(s) in both the minutes and email announcements. The central office refers to this information when preparing copy for the annual Directory of Seminars, Speakers,& Topics.
   
• Title of Meeting Presentation: This is the title of the presentation as it is to appear in the Directory; if there is a discrepancy between the title given in the meeting announcement and the title listed in the minutes, the directory will use the latter.
   
• Name(s) of Presiding Chair(s).
   
• Name of Rapporteur.
   
• Name and Affiliation of Attendees: Collect this information from the chat sign in.
   
• The Seminar/Workshop Privacy Policy: This is the policy read at the start of the meeting. Chairs may adjust to suit their meeting. Include whether the minutes are "closed" or "open."
   
• Acknowledgement of Privacy Policy: Record how the policy was acknowledged. .
   
• Summary of Presentation: This is a narrative description of the speaker’s presentation, not an outline. If the speaker has provided a paper with an abstract, the abstract may be used as the summary, but it should be clearly identified as the speaker’s work.
   
• Summary of Discussion: The major work of the meeting takes place in the discussion period, making this the most important part of the minutes. The discussion need not be recorded verbatim, but the summary should clearly convey the specific issues addressed.
   
• Copyright Language: Please add the following to the seminar's/workshop's minutes document footer:” ©[Current Year], The Trustees of Columbia University in the City of New York.”
   
• Use the Minutes Template as a reference.
   
• Rapporteurs should consult with Chairs about any particular requirements beyond these.