Governance, autonomy and accountability in higher education The case of Denmark præsen TATION
Higher education in Denmark 8 universities, 2 of which are in the THE-QS top 100 Enrollment rates for students aged 20-29: 38.2 percent (OECD average 24.9 percent) 120,000 full time students (45% at the graduate level) 6,300 PhD students 27,000 university staff Total spending on HE is more than US$ 4 billion University of Copenhagen Aarhus University Technical University of Denmark University of Southern Denmark Aalborg University Copenhagen Business School Roskilde University IT University of Copenhagen Revenue (2008) 0 500 1.000 1.500 THE-QS: 63 rd THE-QS: 51 st Million US$ 2
Higher education systems ranking Universities measured on inclusiveness, effectiveness, lifelong learning, access, responsiveness, attractiveness Denmark ranks no. 3 with only UK and Australia ahead Source: The Lisbon Council, Policy Brief (2008) 3
Major reforms in Danish higher education New university governance (2004) Financing reform (2006) University merger (2007) Curricular reform (1999-2007) 4
New university governance Act of 2003 Autonomy from state institutions to autonomous bodies within the public sector Accountability through the use of university performance contacts Governing boards with a majority of external members Safeguard the university s interests as an educational and research institution and determine guidelines for its organization, long term activities and development Appointed leaders in university governance structures (rector, deans and department heads) 5
Performance contracts Two-year contracts Negotiated between each university and the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation Focus on what rather than how Specific, quantifiable baselines, milestones and targets Full degrees programs delivered in English (from 44 programs in 2006 to 63 programs in 2010 at Aarhus University) No sanctions attached but credibility at stake 6
Strategic management Aarhus University - Corporate strategy 2008-2012 7
Financing reform Globalization Council under the leadership of the prime minister Raise public investments in research to 1 percent of GDP in 2010 Strategy for Denmark in the Global Economy, March 2006 University base-funding allocated on the basis of performance indicators Taxamater funding for education student completion 8
State funding in 2009 (Million US$) Budget 2009 Proportion Base funding 1,285 31 percent Education performance funding 1,080 26 percent Competitive research grants 903 22 percent Government commissioned research 169 4 percent Other (various income and special initiatives like museums) 647 16 percent Total 4,084 100 percent 9
University merger 2006/7 Universities merged on a voluntary basis Decision to merge government research institutions into universities Rationale: Stimulate research synergies between institutionally separated sectors Establish more visible global players Make additional research resources available for educational processes Combine knowledge from different disciplines Better use of infrastructure, laboratories and equipment 10
The result of the merger process Before the mergers Denmark had: 12 universities and 13 government research institutions As a consequence of the mergers, Denmark now has: Three large universities Four medium sized universities One small university Now it is time to discuss the profiling of universities 11
Quality and curricular reform Bologna process three cycles of tertiary education European Credit Transfer System promoting vertical and horizontal mobility Curricular reform based on learning outcomes and expected competencies Program accreditation (2007) 12
Next wave of reform from national to global players Research in transnational teams From bilateral student mobility to deep university partnerships Bologna 2.0: Joint programs and degrees Transnational education Sino-Danish Center in Beijing 13
AARHUS UNIVERSITET Kristian Thorn, International Director E-mail: krth@adm.au.dk 14 14