The records in the fonds were created, received or used by the Registrar's Office staff in the course of their work. The Registrar stored inactive records in the basement of the main building until the Library opened in 1991, when the records were transferred to the newly-opened Archives.
The primary activities of the Registrar's Office are to oversee admission of new students to the University, provide counselling to students on their academic programme requirements, and manage, administer and control of the academic records of students who have attended the University. The Registrar also recruits new students and works to retain those enrolled. The Registrar maintains statistics about the student population.
The Registrar presides at the annual matriculation ceremony, when new students inscribe their names in the Matricula. The records cover student recruitment, admissions, registration, academic advising and Encaenia, taking care of students' day-to-day requests and assisting them throughout their undergraduate degree.
During its early years, King's had close ties to the Anglican Church; the Bishop of Nova Scotia has always been Visitor. For about 40 years, matriculants were obliged to subscribe to the Thirty-Nine Articles of the Church of England and to attend chapel daily. Religious tests for students in fields other than Divinity were abolished in the 1820s. As late as 1992, applications included an optional question about the student's religion.
The records in the fonds include the Matriculas, early student registers, reports, promotional materials, correspondence, student directories, statistics, and students' academic records.
The permanent register of students mandated by the Statutes has had different forms through the decades. The only list of students from before the Royal Charter of 1802 is in John Inglis' Memoranda respecting King's College, at Windsor, in Nova Scotia: collected and prepared for the purpose of making evident the leading object in suggesting and establishing that institution, published in 1836.
From 1803 to 1906, the names of students who enrolled at King's were entered in the Matricula, which was later supplemented by various registers, the last of which was abandoned in 1940, shortly before the Royal Canadian Navy took over occupation of the campus for the duration of World War II.
During the 1920s, basic information was entered on cards: students' names, addresses, years, courses, grades, and awards and degrees. For students living in residence, room numbers were also recorded. This system continued until the 1980s, when computerized records were introduced.
Documents and forms relating to students' academics, finances and residence were filed separately during certain periods; when possible, they have been united with the student cards in the student records series.
The Registrar's Office also publishes the University's academic Calendar, which has been catalogued in the Library's Special Collections (call number LE 3 K5). The Calendar was first published in 1855 and appeared in hard copy through the 2008 - 2009 edition. Starting with the 2009 - 2010 edition, the Calendar has been published only in portable document format document, available online.
