2. The Southern Universities Dancing Competition
2.1 General Rules (including those on amalgamation and dancing on other teams, and offbeat)
2.2 Events
2.3-2.7 Rules for events
2.8 The team match
2.9 Offbeat
2.10 Judging and Scrutineering,
2.11 Registration and payment of entries
2.12 Trophies and Presentation
2.13 Health and Safety

3. Definitions (Including the eligibility of students, definition of beginner, definition of non competitive dress)

Section 1: The Southern Universities Dance Association
1.1 Aim and Membership
1.1.1 The aim of the Southern Universities Dance Association (SUDA) is to promote ballroom and Latin American dancing within universities, and organise an annual Southern Universities Dance Competition (SUDC). SUDA should seek wherever possible to extend participation of university dancers in competitive dancing both on the university circuit and the open circuit. In addition it should seek to raise the standard of dancing amongst students.
1.1.2 All Societies and Clubs promoting dancing for University students in the southern part of Britain up to and including Birmingham are eligible to become Member Societies (3.7) of the SUDA. Any new university wishing to affiliate must be voted in by the existing General Committee by a majority vote.
1.1.3.1 The affiliation fee (covering the period of the SUDA Financial Year) for Member Societies shall be set by the General Committee at the Autumn Meeting and should be paid within one week of the Autumn Meeting.
1.1.3.2 New universities joining SUDA who are unlikely to be able to enter a full team at the IVDC may be charged a concessionary affiliation rate, to be set by the Executive Committee. If their circumstances change by the time of the SUDC, the fee may be reviewed.
1.1.4 All members of Member Societies are Ordinary Members of the SUDA.

1.2 The General Committee
1.2.1 The General Committee of the SUDA consists of the Executive Committee (1.3) plus Nominated Representatives (3.8) of each Member Society.
1.2.2 The General Committee shall meet at least twice each year. Once during October (The Autumn Meeting), when the budget and outline arrangements for the SUDC are presented, and again after the SUDC (The Spring Meeting), when the preceding ball is reviewed and tenders for the following year's ball are presented. The spring GM is to be held before the end of the academic year at a time convenient for all universities.
1.2.3 Other General Committee meetings are held at the discretion of the Executive Committee, or when called by over half of the Member Societies.
1.2.4 The Chairman of all General Committee Meetings is to be a representative of the Executive Committee.
1.2.5 The quorum for a vote is one more than the integer part of half of the number of Member Societies.
1.2.6 At General Committee Meetings each Member Society possesses one vote.
1.2.7 A decision shall be carried by the majority vote in favour (3.10), except where specified otherwise.
1.2.8.1 Decisions can be made by postal vote provided that the motion is clearly stated and the Member Societies are given at least 21 days notice of the vote.
1.2.8.2 Decisions can be made by electronic voting on the website, provided that the motion is clearly stated at least 7 days in advance and that the voting remains open for at least a week. Electronic votes must remain public. Electronic votes can only take place for second votes on amendments or decisions previously discussed at a GM, with at least a month's interval between the first and second vote.
1.2.9 If there is a tie, the Chairman has a casting vote, which is, if possible, cast in favour of the status quo.
1.2.10 To succeed a challenge to the Chair must have the support of at least two thirds of the Member Societies present.
1.2.11 Notice of Meetings is to be announced publicly by the Executive Committee and sent by the Executive Committee to the Nominated Representatives of the Member Societies at least 21 days before the meeting.
1.2.12 Ordinary Members of the SUDA may attend General Committee Meetings and have speaking rights at the Chairman's discretion.
1.2.13 Minutes of General Committee Meetings are to be circulated to a Nominated Representative of all Member Societies within one month of each meeting. Posting the minutes on an appropriate web-site, with the URL distributed to all Nominated Representatives, will suffice.
1.2.14 The SUDA shall have a Minutes Book, which is kept and maintained by the Executive Committee, for the minutes of General Committee Meetings, and shall be transferred to the new Executive Committee at the end of the Financial Year.

1.3 The Executive Committee
1.3.1 At the Spring Meeting all Member Societies who wish to host the following financial year's SUDC submit proposals to the General Committee. The General Committee shall then decide by single transferable vote which member society is to host the Ball. If no proposals are submitted a further meeting to organise a ball shall be arranged by the current Executive Committee.
1.3.2 The Executive Committee is appointed by the Member Society which is hosting the SUDC in that financial year and is directly responsible to the SUDA General Committee, acting as agents on their behalf.
1.3.3 Once selected, the Executive Committee should maintain close contact with the organisers of the IVDC and NUDC, so that all three events may complement each other wherever possible.
1.3.4 The structure and organisation of the Executive Committee is at the discretion of the appointing Member Society.

1.4 The Standing Committee
1.4.1 The SUDA Standing Committee shall consist of the SUDA Executive Committee.
1.4.2 For cases regarding eligibility and other cases where the IVDA constitution applies, the SUDA Executive Committee will abide by the decision of the IVDA Standing Committee.
1.4.3 For matters where the IVDA constitution does not apply, or for cases requiring an immediate decision (e.g. 3.16.4), the SUDA Executive Committee shall interpret the SUDA constitution as they feel is appropriate, advised by members of the IVDA Standing Committee where possible.

1.5 Finances
1.5.1 The financial year of the SUDA is from 1st June to 31st May.
1.5.2 Once appointed, the new Executive Committee shall open a new cheque account for the sole use of the Southern Universities Ball that financial year and shall give the account the name: "SUDA xxxx", where xxxx = the year of the competition. The account shall only make payments by cheque and each transaction shall require the signatures of two Executive Committee members.
1.5.3 The retiring Executive Committee shall raise a cheque to the value of the balance of the previous year’s SUDA account at the end of the financial year and make it payable to the new SUDA account, where it shall be deposited by the new Executive Committee.
1.5.4 The primary purpose of the bank account is to provide adequate financial backing in case of loss incurred by the SUDC. The use of the account for this purpose must be authorised by the SUDA General Committee.
1.5.5 The bank account may be used to cover essential expenditure by the Executive Committee before revenue from ticket sales becomes available.
1.5.6 When budgeting the SUDC, the Executive Committee should aim to at least break even.
1.5.7 All SUDA affiliation fees and revenues from the SUDC should be paid in the SUDA bank account and all profits from the SUDC are the property of the SUDA.
1.5.8 A record of all transactions concerning the bank account (since the previous meeting of the General Committee) is to be presented at all SUDA meetings and kept on record with the General Meeting minutes.
1.5.9 In each financial year the Executive Committee is responsible for distributing to a Nominated Representative of each Member Society audited accounts for that year.
1.5.10 The auditors shall be the elected IVDA Standing Committee.
1.5.11 The Executive Committee should be aware of the possibility of legal action arising from the SUDC, and should consider taking out adequate Public Liability, and other, insurance.
1.5.12 The balance in the SUDA account should be kept within the range £3,000 - £4000 (at 1998 values).
1.5.13 If the balance in the account is outside this range at the end of the financial year, the SUDA General Committee must meet to decide upon the appropriate action to be taken.

1.6 Constitutional Amendments
1.6.1 On election, the Executive Committee shall nominate a web address where the constitution will be posted in full. It is the responsibility of the Executive Committee to ensure this document is kept up-to-date and this should be checked by the Standing Committee.
1.6.2 Amendments to the constitution must be put in writing to the Executive Committee at least five working days in advance of a meeting of the SUDA General Committee.
1.6.3 Amendments should be of a form ready for inclusion into the constitution with all affected sections clearly noted.
1.6.4 The motion shall be subject to a speech for, and speeches against at the chair's discretion. It is then put to a vote.
1.6.5 The General Committee should vote in one of three ways: accept the motion, reject the motion or amend the motion.
1.6.6.1 A majority decision to reject the motion results in the motion being dropped. If a majority decision to accept the motion is made by two successive SUDA General Committee meetings, then the motion is added to the constitution.
1.6.6.2 If a motion is accepted unanimously on its first vote, it is then subjected to another vote for immediate inclusion. If this vote is also unanimous, then it is added to the constitution and is not subject to 1.6.6.1
1.6.6.3 When added to the constitution, amendments become effective at the end of the meeting in which they are added.
1.6.7 If "amend" is the Majority decision in favour, the motion is subject to debate. It may then be amended and voted on again as above (1.6.5, 1.6.6). The motion may, at the chair's discretion, be postponed until the next meeting.
1.6.8 Motions may, at the chair's discretion, be proposed at a SUDA General Committee meeting without prior submission.
1.6.9 When added to the constitution, amendments become effective at the end of the meetings in which they were added.

Section 2: The Southern Universities Dancing Competition
2.1 General Rules of the SUDC
2.1.1.1The Southern Universities Dance Competition is held each year by a SUDA Member Society.
2.1.1.2 The SUDC must be held in the second university term.
2.1.1.3 A date of the SUDC convenient to the majority of Member Societies terms must be found.
2.1.2 All competitors at the SUDC must be Ordinary Members of the SUDA (i.e. they must be members of a Member Society).
2.1.3 No current or former Dancesport professional dancers may compete at the SUDC.
2.1.4.1 In events other than the Team Event, members of different Member Societies may dance together.
2.1.4.2 Competitors may dance in only one category. However, a person entering the Beginner competition may, in addition, enter either the Intermediate or Advanced categories. Modern and Latin are treated separately, so that competitors do not have to enter the same category in both sections.
2.1.5 All the dancers in an Offbeat team must be members of the team's Member Society and at least half must be Present Students.
2.1.6 The Offbeat entries shall be performed in reverse alphabetical order of the Member Society Team name.
2.1.7 Allocation of competitor numbers shall be at the discretion of the Executive Committee. The Executive Committee shall attempt to ensure that competitors from the same Member Society are distributed as evenly as possible between heats.
2.1.8 Restrictions on the number of couples from each Member Society entering each event at the SUDC shall be at the discretion of the Executive Committee.
2.1.9 All music for the events at SUDC apart from offbeat will be of the character of the dance and the number of bars per minute shall be within the limits defined by the International Dancesport Federation. Non-dancing introductory sections of any music played must be no longer than 4 bars.

2.2 The Events at the SUDC
2.2.1 Advanced Latin 4 Dance – CJPR (2002), CJRS (2003), CJSP (2004), CJPR (2005), CJRS (2006) CJSP (2007).
2.2.2 Intermediate Latin 3 Dance – CJP (2002), CJR (2003), CJS (2004), CJP (2005), CJR (2006) CJS (2007).
2.2.3 Novice Latin 2 Dance – Cha-Cha, Jive.
2.2.4.a Beginners Cha-Cha.
2.2.4.b Beginners Jive.
2.2.5 Acrobatic Rock 'n' Roll.
2.2.6 Advanced Modern 4 Dance – WQVT (2002), WQTF (2003), WQFV (2004), WQVT (2005), WQTF (2006) WQFV (2007).
2.2.7 Intermediate Modern 3 Dance – WQV (2002), WQT (2003), WQF (2004) , WQV (2005), WQT (2006), WQF (2007).
2.2.8 Novice Modern 2 Dance – Waltz, Quickstep.
2.2.9.a Beginners Waltz.
2.2.9.b Beginners Quickstep.
2.2.10 Team match, as described in 2.8.
2.2.11 Offbeat Competition – Any dance style or mixture of styles permitted.
2.2.12 Ex-students competition.
2.2.12.1 There must be an ex-students advanced four dance competition in both latin and ballroom, in which at least half of each couple must be an ex-student.
2.2.12.2 At the discretion of the Executive Committee, and only with prior approval of the General Committee; Ex-students may compete in the novice and intermediate levels, but they must dance with a present student. Ex-students who wish to compete in novice and intermediate must never have danced in advanced events at university competitions and/or competed at pre-champ level or above on the open circuit. Those dances with special cases regarding this clause may approach the President, who will have the final decision on what level they should enter.

2.3 Advanced Open Events (2.2.1 and 2.2.6)
2.3.1 No dress restrictions apply.
2.3.2 No step restrictions apply.
2.3.3 Entries are allowed from present students only.
2.3.4 The semi final and final shall contain all four dances specified for that discipline for the SUDC of that year. In other rounds the number of dances may be reduced if required at the discretion of the Executive Committee, but must contain at least two dances alternating between rounds.

2.4 Intermediate Open Events (2.2.2 and 2.2.7)
2.4.1 Non-competitive dress must be worn – see 3.16.
2.4.2 No step restrictions apply.
2.4.3 Entries are permitted from present students and ex-students subject to 2.2.12
2.4.4 The semi final and final shall contain all three dances specified for that discipline for the SUDC of that year. In other rounds the number of dances may be reduced if required at the discretion of the Executive Committee, but must contain at least two dances alternating between rounds.

2.5 Novice Open Events (2.2.3 and 2.2.8)
2.5.1 Non-competitive dress must be worn – see 3.16
2.5.2 Steps are restricted to those in the BCBD syllabus. Couples violating this may be disqualified from the round by the judges but only after a prior warning is given in a previous round. Violations of this in the final with no warning in a previous round will result in a rerun once a warning has been issued.
2.5.3 Entries are allowed from present students and ex-students subject to 2.2.12
2.5.4 The semi-final and final shall contain both dances. All other rounds will be one dance, with dances alternating in each round.

2.6 Beginners Events (2.2.4 and 2.2.9)
2.6.1 Non-competitive dress must be worn.
2.6.2 Steps are restricted to those in the BCBD syllabus. Couples violating this may be disqualified from the round by the judges but only after a prior warning is given in a previous round. Violations of this in the final with no warning in a previous round will result in a rerun once a warning has been issued.
2.6.3 Entries are allowed from Beginners only – see 3.15.

2.7 Acrobatic Rock 'n' Roll Event (2.2.5)
2.7.1 Costume is permitted in this event.
2.7.2 There shall be no restriction on the steps and throws permitted.
2.7.3 Entries are allowed from both Students and Ex-students.

2.8 The Team Event (2.2.10)
2.8.1.1 Entries into the Team Match (2.2.10 – 2.2.11) must be made in the name, or names (2.8.1.5) of the Higher Education Establishment(s).
2.8.1.2 Members of a named establishment must dance for their own establishment's team only, unless they are given permission to represent another team by the SUDA Standing Committee. In such circumstances approval from both team captains should be sent to the Standing Committee.
2.8.1.3 Students at a university which does not make an independent entry may dance for whichever university team they chose after they have notified the Standing Committee of their choice and have the permission of the chosen team’s captain.
2.8.1.4 At least half of the dancers in each team (i.e. A, B, C and D) must be from the named Higher Education Establishment(s) except in the case of amalgamated teams.
2.8.1.5.1 In the case that Member Societies have an incomplete A, B, C or D team, team captains may nominate couples or individuals to be part of an amalgamated team or teams. This shall be organised centrally by the Standing Committee. Couples or individuals shall only be joined into amalgamated teams once the member society has demonstrated to the satisfaction of the Standing Committee that:
1) All reasonable measures have been taken to fill the incomplete team from within the member society.
2) The couples or individuals in question are part of an incomplete A, B, C or D team.

2.8.1.5.2 Nominations shall be submitted on or before the Wednesday preceding SUDC, though later inclusions may be made at the discretion of the Standing Committee. The Standing Committee shall consider all nominations and select couples or individuals for inclusion in Amalgamated Teams. Where possible, amalgamations shall be made according to geographical proximity and shall keep members of the same university in the same amalgamated team. The Standing Committee shall agree an appropriate name for the amalgamated teams with the relevant member societies.
2.8.1.5.3 Members of Amalgamated Teams may not dance for their Member Society for the duration of the Team Match and all their results will count only for the Amalgamated Team. No amalgamated team's results shall count towards any overall university placing.
2.8.1.6 No competitor may compete for more than one Member Society's team in any academic year, except in the case of amalgamated teams (2.8.1.5). Dancers are deemed to have competed for a particular team if they have taken part in any team match against other Member Society teams from the commencement of the academic year (including NUDC, SUDC, IVDC and any social events which include team matches).
2.8.1.7 All competitors in the team match must be present students.
2.8.1.8 All competitors in the team match must be members of the member society they represent, unless they have joined an Amalgamated Team (2.8.1.5), where they must be members of the society that nominated them.
2.8.2 Each Member Society may enter only one team in each Team Event.
2.8.3.1 Each Member Society is entitled to enter four teams, namely an A-team, B-team, C-team and D-team. If only one team is entered, it is called the A-team; if two teams are entered then they are the A-team and B-team. However, a team which comprises wholly of beginners may be entered into the D team match without full A, B and C teams being entered by that same member society.
2.8.3.2 Member Societies shall pick their best possible A-team from their couples who will dance in the team match. Having done so, they shall then pick their best B-team, and so on. At the discretion of the Standing Committee, Member Societies violating this in an attempt to influence results may not receive any overall credit for the results of the offending teams.
2.8.4 The Team Events are: Waltz, Cha-Cha, Quickstep and Jive.
2.8.5 A team consists of four couples, one competing in each of the four dances.
2.8.6.1 The Team Events are preceded by a Team Walk-On.
2.8.6.2 The Team Walk-On should consist of the Member Societies Teams being presented in alphabetical order, one behind the other, with a banner and announcement for each Member Society. The hosts reserve the right to walk on last. All teams should walk on to the same music except the host team who may, if they desire, walk on to music of their own choosing.
2.8.7 There shall be an official warm up session in each of the four dances after the walk on, which is solely for the couples competing in that dance in the team match. The dance floor must be cleared for each warm up period and judges must not observe the walk on or warm up.
2.8.8 If any round in the Team Events needs to be danced as two heats, all couples should be called onto the floor for a short while after both heats so that the adjudicators can see all the couples together.
2.8.9 Semi-Finals should, at the discretion of the Chairman of Adjudicators, be danced as two heats, with all dancers returning to the dance floor for a while after the second heat.
2.8.10 No more than 25% of couples shall be removed between the first and second rounds.
2.8.11 The newcomers’ trophy shall be awarded annually to the highest placed couple in each team dance, where neither of the competitors has danced previously in a Southern Universities or Inter-Varsity Dance Competition, or a non-university competition judged using BCDC rules.
2.8.12 All four teams (A to D) will dance together in one competition. It is the Executive Committee’s responsibility to arrange seeding of teams to avoid the teams from the same university competing against each other in the first round.

2.9 The Offbeat Competition (2.2.11)
2.9.1 Entries in the Offbeat competition are limited to one per Member Society.
2.9.2 Each Offbeat entry should be a total length of not more than 3 minutes 30 seconds, including walk on and walk of time. Teams exceeding this limit will be disqualified. This is to be strictly enforced by the Executive Committee. This time limit is an upper limit, and entries of time lower than this should not be penalised.
2.9.3 Entries should be dance-based but will be judged 50% on entertainment value and 50% on technical merit and each crieterion should be marked separately with the marks added together to give a final score.
2.9.4 Teams must obtain written permission (prior to the competition) from the Executive Committee before the use of pyrotechnic, additional or specific lighting, smoke or hazardous equipment. Failure to do so may lead to disqualification.
2.9.5 The Offbeat Competition will be run in one round only.
2.9.6 The panel of judges for the Offbeat competition will be the same as for the rest of the competitions and shall be informed that the judging of this event is to be 50% on entertainment value and 50% on technical merit. This panel must be made up of a minimum of five judges.
2.9.7 Offbeat teams are responsible for ensuring that their music starts at the appropriate time.
2.9.8 People competing in the offbeat competition must not be professional dancers of any kind. Professional dancers are defined as people who make their living from dancing or teaching dance, and/or are fellows of the UKA, IDTA, ISTD, RAD, or UTD. The IVDA Standing Committee will decide in cases of ambiguity.

2.10 Judging and Scrutineering
2.10.1 There is to be a minimum of five adjudicators, who are all Associate Members, or higher, of Modern Ballroom, Latin American and Rock 'n' Roll Branches of any recognized Society of Teachers of Dancing, and have not been a teacher for any Member Society in the last ten years.
2.10.2 The Scrutineer must possess a scrutineering diploma. Scrutineers must be independent of any competing university.
2.10.3 All scrutineering must be checked by the Chairman of the Adjudicators.
2.10.4 The method of judging and scoring for each dance in the British Dance Council (BDC) Skating System.
2.10.5 All competitions are run in accordance with BDC, with the exception of rules restricting variations because of status.
2.10.6 The points awarded to the couples are counted towards their team’s total, which in turn determines the overall place of the team in the team event.
2.10.7 Each couple will be awarded two points for their team for each round in which they dance, including the first round and the final.
2.10.8 In the final the winning couple receives a further six points, the runners-up a further five points, the third placed couple a further four points, etc.
2.10.9 Any couples below sixth place receive no further points for the final.
2.10.10 If there is a tie then the points for the unresolved places are shared equally between the equally placed couples’ teams.
2.10.11 If the B-team is placed higher than its own A-team, then the B-team is relegated to one place below the A-team.
2.10.12 Adjudicators should be specifically asked by the Executive Committee to walk around the edge of the floor during the heats and rounds of all competitions (except Offbeat), as some judges have a tendency to watch from one edge and so not see some of the couples.
2.10.13 The scrutineer must keep the time for the offbeat competition and disqualify any team exceeding the permitted limit.
2.10.14 The Offbeat Competition should be judged from an appropriate place in the ballroom such that the teams perform facing the largest audience.

2.11 Registration and Payment of Entries
2.11.1 Four weeks prior to a competition, it is up to the individual Member Societies to obtain entry forms if they have not already received them.
2.11.2 Deadlines are at the Executive Committee discretion. For Member Societies not entered by the deadlines, individual entries are at the Executive Committee's discretion.
2.11.3 Each competing Member Society should receive one complimentary ticket for their society's Senior Professional.
2.11.4 Entrance fees for competitors and spectators shall be set by the Executive Committee and shall have been presented as part of their proposal to the SUDA General Committee (1.2.2 and 1.3.1).

2.12 Trophies and Presentations
2.12.1 The Executive Committee should ensure that there are two trophies per couple for the finalists of all competitions other than the Offbeat.
2.12.2 Results must be read out in reverse order from last place in the final to first place.
2.12.3 All returnable trophies must be signed for by their recipient and returned or replaced at the next SUDC. A book for this purpose shall be kept by the Executive Committee.
2.12.4 The following is a list of all the group trophies presented at SUDC:
Overall SUDA Winners Trophy;
Overall Runners-up Trophy;
A-Team Winners Trophy;
A-Team Runners-up Trophy;
B-Team Trophy;
C-Team Trophy;
D-Team Trophy;
Rock n Roll Trophy;
Offbeat Trophy;
Most Promising Couple Trophy;
2.12.5.1 It is the responsibility of the winners of a specified engravable trophy to have their names inscribed by the following SUDC or the equivalent required cost paid.
2.12.5.2 If a specified engravable trophy is lost or damaged it is the responsibility of the winner to replace or repair the trophy with all previous inscriptions.

2.13 Health and Safety
2.13.1 There shall be a qualified health and safety first-aider present whose function is to carry out first aid if and when required.
2.13.2 The Executive Committee is responsible for arranging appropriate heat sizes for the more mobile dances, in particular the Viennese Waltz, Rock 'n' Roll and Quickstep, bearing in mind the safety aspects involved.

Section 3: Definitions
3.1 IVDA: The Inter-Varsity Dance Association.
3.2 IVDC: The Inter-Varsity Dance Competition; held annually.
3.3 NUDA: The Northern Universities' Dance Association.
3.4 NUDC: The Northern Universities' Dance Competition; held annually.
3.5 SUDA: The Southern Universities' Dance Association.
3.6 SUDC: The Southern Universities' Dance Competition; held annually.
3.7 Member Society: Any society or club promoting dancing for University students in Britain that pays the affiliation fee to join the SUDA.
3.8 Nominated Representative: An ordinary member of SUDA nominated to represent a Member Society by the society's committee.
3.9 Host Society: The Member Society chosen to stage the SUDC, as voted at the Spring Meeting.
3.10 Majority in favour: More Member Societies voting for a motion than against it, i.e. the number of abstentions is irrelevant.
3.11 Executive Committee: The organisers of the SUDC, appointed by the Host Society.
3.12 General Committee: The Executive Committee plus Nominated Representatives of each Member Society.

3.13 Present Student
3.13.1 A Present Student is someone undertaking a full-time degree or diploma at a British University or University College recognised by the Department of Education and Employment and able to prove their status with a valid University Library or Registration Card showing their name, photograph and duration of period of registration. In addition:
3.13.2 PhD students shall be considered Present Students only until the end of the academic year in which they submit their thesis.
3.13.3 Part-Time students may compete as Present Students provided that:
1. They are studying for a recognised degree or higher at a recognised university or university college.
2. They are studying for a minimum of eight hours a week.
3. Proof of conditions (1) and (2) be provided in the form of a letter or other official documentation from the academic institute.
3.13.4 Persons holding sabbatical posts are classified as Present Students if their post is during their course of study or in the first year after graduation. In all other circumstances they are considered Ex-students.
3.13.5 Individuals not covered by the above should approach the Standing Committee with documentation supporting their claim. The Standing Committee is to make the decision and set a precedent; such precedent may be overturned by the SUDA General Meeting.
3.14 Ex-Student: Someone who was, but is no longer a Present Student.
3.15 Beginner: A present student who has neither received professional tuition (individually or in groups) in Latin American and/or Modern Ballroom, nor competed in any university or open circuit competitions in dancesport, prior to the IVDC of the previous academic year. Professional tuition is defined as teaching that has been paid for and provided by a professional. A professional is defined as a person who makes their living from ballroom or latin american dancing or teaching ballroom or latin american dancing, and/or is a fellow of the UKA, IDTA or ISTD.
3.16 Dress Code
3.16.1 Non-competitive dress shall not allow items specifically designed for competitive dancing.
3.16.2 It shall allow practicewear.
3.16.3 The following items are allowed (this takes precedence over 3.16.1. in cases where both apply):
Modern:
Men: Plain dark trousers, plain shirts, ties or bow ties, waistcoats.
Ladies: Plain skirts or trousers, tops without excessive adornment, dresses.
Latin:
Men: Plain dark trousers or latin trousers, plain or ruffled shirts or t-shirts, plain latin tops (no transparent material), ties or bow ties, waistcoats.
Ladies: Plain skirts or trousers, tops without excessive adornment, dresses.
Plain is defined as meaning unpatterned or having a small single or repeating motif.
3.16.4 The Standing Committee have discretionary powers regarding the interpretation of 3.16.1 – 3.16.3; they may ask a competitor to remove or replace a garment; competitors not complying with be disqualified.
3.17 Team Event: A competition where points are scored by couples to count towards a Member Society's total (2.2.10).