The Student Government Association is an integral part of the campus governance structure, and it is a primary conduit for student input and advice regarding campus policy and procedure. The SGA appoints students to a variety of campus-wide committees, and maintains several standing committees of its own.
Students elect the officers and half of the senators towards the end of the spring semester.
The remaining senators are elected at the beginning of the fall term. Two senators are elected to represent each of the four academic colleges and six senators are elected at large. One senator is elected from the Peoria Campus. The University of Illinois at Springfield, along with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and the University of Illinois at Chicago, is governed by the Board of Trustees. At the campus level, UIS has the Campus Senate as its governing body.