Whether students should be directly represented in the governing councils of the university can be answered only after considering whether there are important differences of interests between students and those who now govern. In the US, faculty and administrators have typically denied the presence of conflicting student interests and cited a "community of scholars." But it is possible to speak of "faculty interests" because the major system of rewards has resulted in the faculty's dominant interest in research and publishing. "Administration interests" can also be isolated. Because the administration functions as a bureaucracy, the most certain path to organizational success is compliance with the orders of line superiors. Although faculty and administration have different reward systems, there is no fundamental conflict of interests and they, moreover, confront each other rarely. The largest group, the students (who are significantly affected by faculty interests), have mixed motivations but share a common quest for citizenship--a desire for an authoritative voice in university policy making. A historical perspective indicates that these demands have grown in reaction to the increasing professionalism of the faculty and administration. The Swedish experience illustrates a model of viable student participation in university governance. There, student unions operate and control all student housing, registration, student buildings and recreational facilities and food services, and student influence on educational policy is felt at every level. (JS)