A plan to reorganize the medical college at the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon was shot down by members of the school's general academic assembly.

On Thursday, assembly members voted 200 to 93 in favour of sending the restructuring plan back to another university entity, the U of S council.

The restructuring plan was put together by university officials but many faculty members complained the plan was not ideal and was being implemented without taking their views into account.

"[The plan] was brought forward against the will of the faculty," Claire Card, one faculty member in the college, said Thursday.

"The college of medicine does want to change," Tom Wilson, another faculty member, added. "We just don't want this particular structure that was handed to us."

The restructuring plan would have seen the faculty broken up into three distinct areas.

The university has said the restructuring is needed and some backers of the plan argue the three separate divisions are needed to improve teaching and research.

"I might be a little bit disappointed, but I'm not surprised," Martin Phillpson, a university official responsible for the college's organizational restructuring, said. The matter will be before the university council on Sept. 20.

Lou Qualtiere, the acting dean of medicine, said the plan should be viewed as a starting point for further discussion.