UCPH researchers to politicians: Set universities free in new government platform

For almost a month now, the royal investigator, Mette Frederiksen (Social Democrats), has been trying to untie the Gordian knot of forming a government following the general election on 24 March.

A historically high number of parties were elected to parliament, which has not made the process any easier. The past weeks, several parties have been called in for negotiations to explore whether agreement can be reached on a government platform.

In this context, Uniavisen asked several researchers from the University of Copenhagen what they believe should be prioritized in the coming government term – and several point to universities, education, and research policy.

The responses do not point in a single direction. Some call for a reckoning with the way universities are governed. Others see a need to strengthen teaching and grant universities greater academic freedom. What they share, however, is a concern that current political priorities do not sufficiently support universities’ core tasks and the role they are meant to play in society.

Talk to each other

For Peter Harder, professor emeritus at the Department of English, Germanic and Romance Studies, the problem is not primarily a lack of new political initiatives, but rather the absence of an overall direction.

He points out that university and research policy in recent years has been characterized by isolated reforms and interventions which may each make sense individually but collectively pull in different directions.

Today, many researchers experience pressure, both from managers and politicians. A new government should address this as well

Peter Harder, professor emeritus at the Department of English, Germanic and Romance Studies

»A new government platform should not promise more quick fixes in the university sector. Instead, it should create a framework for a long-term dialogue between politicians and researchers about what universities are supposed to do,« says Peter Harder.

According to the professor, the connection between the political system and the research world has weakened. Politicians largely speak with university management and administration, but to a lesser extent with researchers themselves.

He therefore calls for some form of commission or forum where researchers and politicians can jointly formulate a more coherent research policy.

Such a forum should also focus on academic freedom, which, according to Peter Harder, is under pressure.

»There is a need for better frameworks for academic freedom in Denmark. Today, many researchers experience pressure, both from managers and politicians. A new government should address this as well,« he says.

He also highlights the need for a better balance between basic research and applied research.

»If you – also politically – focus one-sidedly on what can quickly be translated into concrete results, you risk weakening the foundation on which major breakthroughs are built,« he says.

Ease the control

While Peter Harder calls for an overall direction for universities, Jesper Grodal, professor at the Department of Mathematical Sciences, also turns attention to how they are governed in practice.

»If you want to get the most out of the money, you should provide it with as few strings attached as possible. Universities and researchers are often the first to spot new opportunities and have become quite good at acting on them in a targeted way,« says Jesper Grodal, who is also a board member at the University of Copenhagen, elected by the academic staff.

He believes that political earmarking and detailed regulations currently govern the sector to too great an extent – especially in education – making the system less efficient and more bureaucratic than necessary.

At the same time, he calls for a significantly higher prioritization of research and education in a future government platform.

»We should be more ambitious and spend more than one percent of GDP on research and education, which is the current target,« says Jesper Grodal.

In this context, he also points to the so-called Draghi report, which warns of Europe’s declining competitiveness.

According to Jesper Grodal, a stronger European economic foundation requires Denmark to invest heavily in research and give universities the freedom to develop new ideas.

Strengthen basic research

A similar critique of research policy comes from Marlene Wind, professor at the Department of Political Science.

She argues that researchers today are highly dependent on external and often short-term funding schemes, which weaken both continuity and academic freedom.

»We constantly have to chase earmarked funds that randomly pop up in the public debate. It’s extremely frustrating, and it limits academic freedom,« says Marlene Wind.

In her view, a new government should therefore prioritize core funding and long-term financing of basic research, so researchers can have greater control over what they study.

»You need to strengthen basic research and give universities better opportunities to set their own direction. Otherwise, you risk undermining the foundation on which all other research is built,« she says.

On the one hand, she emphasizes that research should be free and driven from the bottom up, but on the other hand, she still believes there are areas society must actively prioritize.

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This includes research into democracy and democratic backsliding, which she considers neglected.

»We actually know very little about what determines whether and how democracies break down in practice, and which institutions help prevent it,« she says, continuing:

»Especially in Denmark, we are very naive in our understanding of democracy. We think that if there is a public debate and 90 seats in parliament voting for or against something, then we have democracy. But much more is required – among other things independent institutions and courts that protect citizens from the state.«

According to Marlene Wind, strengthened efforts should not only have a national focus, but also be considered in a broader European and international context.

»If we want to understand and protect democracy, we need to look at how it develops across countries, not just in Denmark,« she says.

Prioritize teaching

Another issue is highlighted by historian Jes Fabricius Møller, associate professor at the Saxo Institute.

He calls for greater focus on the challenges in universities’ day-to-day practice, particularly the balance between research and teaching.

According to him, research increasingly dominates, while teaching is squeezed when priorities are set and funding allocated.

»If we want better education, we need to stop cutting so much from teaching,« says Jes Fabricius Møller.

He also believes that political reforms are often implemented at a pace that makes it difficult to improve quality.

He points out that universities are largely measured and profiled based on research, which comes at the expense of teaching quality.

However, if educational quality is to be improved, it must happen from the bottom up – and not only at universities, he argues.

»It has to be built from primary school and teacher education if we want better education in this country,« says the associate professor.

He therefore recommends that a new government increase its focus on subject knowledge and reduce governance through learning objectives.

»A teacher must first and foremost have authority through their subject,« he says.

At the same time, he warns against what he sees as an »accelerated reform pace« in the education sector.

The master’s reform, according to Jes Fabricius Møller, is an example of a process that has moved too quickly.

»When reforms are pushed through at high speed, you risk everyone becoming dissatisfied, without the quality necessarily improving,« he says.

Across the researchers, there is no agreement on exactly how universities should develop.

But they share a common call for clear priorities: less micromanagement, stronger teaching, and better conditions for research.