
{"id":177256,"date":"2025-05-23T03:05:24","date_gmt":"2025-05-23T01:05:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/science-staar-med-milliardbygninger-og-millionunderskud-fyringer-kan-ikke-udelukkes\/"},"modified":"2025-05-26T08:57:41","modified_gmt":"2025-05-26T06:57:41","slug":"faculty-of-science-braces-for-tough-choices-as-budget-gap-widens","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/faculty-of-science-braces-for-tough-choices-as-budget-gap-widens\/","title":{"rendered":"Faculty of Science braces for tough choices as budget gap widens"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The Faculty of Science at the University of Copenhagen (UCPH) ended 2024 with an approximate DKK 100 million loss. And unless action is taken now, the faculty can expect similar annual losses in the years ahead.<\/p>\n<p>This was the message shared to all-staff recently in a statement from Dean of the Faculty of Science Bo Jellesmark Thorsen.<\/p>\n<p>The faculty\u2019s structural deficit is primarily due to two factors: increased operating costs for new buildings and overspending from having drawn more from savings than new funding brought in, the dean explained.<\/p>\n<p>In the same message, Bo Jellesmark Thorsen also stated that the faculty must manage \u00bboutstanding adjustments\u00ab linked to the administration reform. He noted that layoffs cannot be ruled out.<\/p>\n<p><strong>READ ALSO:<\/strong> <em><a href=\"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/university-of-copenhagen-law-faculty-faces-deep-cuts\/\">University of Copenhagen law faculty faces deep cuts<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<p>The University Post has spoken with both the dean, Faculty of Science staff, and the University of Copenhagen director to better understand what the structural deficit involves, how the university&#8217;s reform to its administration plays into it, and why the faculty now faces an annual budget shortfall of around DKK 100 million.<\/p>\n<h3>A university is not supposed to accumulate assets<\/h3>\n<p>Bo Jellesmark Thorsen emphasises that the structural deficit comes as no surprise to the faculty. Management has known for many years that significant additional costs for operating new buildings would eventually materialise.<\/p>\n<p>These costs are now due, with the new Niels Bohr Building coming into use, and the faculty taking over the complex for the new Natural History Museum of Denmark on the S\u00f8lvtorvet square in central Copenhagen.<\/p>\n<p>The annual operating costs for the new buildings amount to a staggering DKK 89 million. This figure covers operations only \u2014 and does not include rent, which is paid centrally by UCPH, the dean notes.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>The administration reform is a net loss for the departments at the Faculty of Science<\/p>\n<p class=\"quotee\">Nynne Christensen, union representative for technical and administrative staff at the Faculty of Science<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\u00bbThe figure was calculated as follows: the number of square metres in the new buildings multiplied by the average cost of operating this type of experimental facility. It costs DKK 1,080 per square metre,\u00ab says Bo Jellesmark Thorsen, explaining that the costs include laboratories, technical rooms, specialised ventilation spaces, and salaries for technicians responsible for maintenance and repairs.<\/p>\n<p>Several departments have already moved into the Niels Bohr Building, and the Faculty of Science has taken over the S\u00f8lvtorvet complex, where the Natural History Museum is currently setting up exhibitions. This means that, from 2025, UCPH faces an increase in operating costs of DKK 89 million.<\/p>\n<p>The dean expects the Niels Bohr Building to be fully in use by 2027 \u2014 the same year the Faculty of Science plans to balance its budget.<\/p>\n<p>Another, major, cause of the deficit is that the Faculty of Science deliberately has spent more than it earned for several years, and has drawn down its reserves.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbWe\u2019ve known for years that there would be costs related to getting the Niels Bohr Building up and running, so we set aside money for that purpose in the budget. But because construction was postponed and delayed so many times, we didn\u2019t get to use those funds, and that\u2019s one reason our reserves grew so large. We couldn\u2019t just let them keep growing,\u00ab says Bo Jellesmark Thorsen, and explains:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbThe purpose of a university is not to save up and become wealthy. The funds we have are meant to be used for research and education. So we began using our reserves, which has led to overspending in recent years.\u00ab<\/p>\n<h3>\u00bbThe UCPH administration reform is a loss for us\u00ab<\/h3>\n<p>The DKK 100 million deficit is therefore a result of increased operating costs for new buildings, and the use of its reserves.<\/p>\n<p>In his message to staff, the dean also named the UCPH administration reform as a factor that needs to be dealt with in addition to the structural deficit. Faculty of Science staff interviewed by the University Post took note of this \u2014 wasn\u2019t the reform, after all, supposed to free up funds for core services like teaching and research?<\/p>\n<p>Nynne Christensen is a special consultant at the Department of Biology and is union representative for technical and administrative staff at the Faculty of Staff. She is also an alternate member of the Academic Council and represents technical and administrative staff in the faculty&#8217;s staff cooperation committee, where she herself has participated in discussions about the loss.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbWe\u2019ve always known there would be a deficit, but we had hoped it could be managed without job cuts. So this is actually a new tone from the dean,\u00ab she says.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>The idea was that the DKK 300 million saved on administration would be used for core services \u2014 but we\u2019ve seen none of that<\/p>\n<p class=\"quotee\">Peter Waaben Thulstrup, union representative for academic staff at the Faculty of Science<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>According to the staff rep, the administration reform is currently causing the deficit at the Faculty of Science, which must be addressed in addition to the structural shortfall \u2014 and this frustrates her.<\/p>\n<p>The deficit from the administration reform is due to many departments losing more from their salary budgets than the actual payroll expenses they transferred to the new central administration, explains Nynne Christensen.<\/p>\n<p>She also notes that the administrative reform is mentioned in the <a href=\"https:\/\/kunet.ku.dk\/fakultet-og-institut\/science\/tema-oekonomi\/Documents\/Transparensanalyse-SCIENCE-2025.pdf\">transparency analysis<\/a> prepared in autumn 2024 as a contributing factor to the Faculty of Sciences\u2019 overall deficit.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbThe bottom line is that the administration reform is a net loss for Faculty of Science departments, and on top of the structural deficit, it could mean layoffs among academic staff. Somewhat ironic, when you consider that the reform was supposed to free up funds for research and teaching,\u00ab she says.<\/p>\n<p>The same message comes from Peter Waaben Thulstrup, associate professor at the Department of Chemistry, union representative for academic staff at the Faculty of Staff, and member of the faculty cooperation committee.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbAn average salary of approximately DKK 630,000 per administrative employee was used \u2014 that\u2019s very high. We\u2019ve asked many times why it was set so high, and it\u2019s presumably because management salaries were included,\u00ab says Peter Waaben Thulstrup, and continues:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbBut the salaries we actually transferred to the new central administration don\u2019t match what was deducted from our budgets. For instance, if we moved a student assistant, we had DKK 630,000 deducted annually, even though that\u2019s nowhere near what the assistant actually cost.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p>If you ask Peter Waaben Thulstrup, implementing the new administration reform is \u00bbnot going brilliantly\u00ab:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbThe idea was that the DKK 300 million saved on administration would be used for core services \u2014 but we\u2019ve seen none of that.\u00ab<\/p>\n<h3>\u00bbA question of timing\u00ab<\/h3>\n<p>Bo Jellesmark Thorsen stresses that the administration reform is not included in the structural deficit. But he acknowledges that it is \u00bba question of timing\u00ab. The Faculty of Science is having to find an extra DKK 100 million annually, while also implementing the reform.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbThe administration reform doesn\u2019t mean we have to spend more money at UCPH in general. No costs are leaving UCPH. But both funding and costs are leaving the Faculty of Science. I know people are aware of that, and that\u2019s why I mentioned it in my statement,\u00ab says Bo Jellesmark Thorsen, and continues:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbI want to acknowledge that the administration reform is a major restructuring that we have to manage on top of the structural deficit. We can\u2019t deny that.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p>The dean refers further questions about the reform to University Director S\u00f8ren Skydsgaard.<\/p>\n<h3>Neither simple nor exact<\/h3>\n<p>University Director S\u00f8ren Skydsgaard confirms that a budget reduction was calculated that corresponds to approximately DKK 630,000 per administrative employee at the Faculty of Science. This included managers covered by the reform.<\/p>\n<p>He emphasises that the departments were made aware of the savings needed during the 2025 budget process, and that it was ultimately a local decision which staff they had to transfer.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbThe managers at the Faculty of Science, like those at other faculties, had to decide how to organise themselves with the budget that was established by the administration reform. They may, for instance, have chosen to retain staff with higher-than-average salaries \u2014 and I\u2019m sure there were many good reasons for that,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>The reform also frees up funds meant for core services. It will be up to management to decide how these are later distributed<\/p>\n<p class=\"quotee\">S\u00f8ren Skydsgaard, University Director<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><em>But right now, isn\u2019t the reality at the Faculty of Science that the reform is the cause of a deficit?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u00bbYou can\u2019t put it like that. Decisions were made based on a budget that was already known. So you can\u2019t say a deficit has suddenly arisen. But you can say that the expected full savings have yet to materialise,\u00ab says S\u00f8ren Skydsgaard, and adds:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbI do acknowledge that it\u2019s not easy \u2014 and it\u2019s not precise to the exact millimetre.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p><em>How big is that part of the shortfall at the Faculty of Science that is a result of the reform?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u00bbIt\u2019s around DKK 44 million annually. But those savings include more than just salaries \u2014 they also involve other operational costs.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p><em>Was the average salary used in the calculations set too high?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u00bbNo. It was calculated as the average salary of all the employees affected by the reform at the Faculty of Science. If we had used the average for all administrative staff at UCPH, it would have been higher.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p><em>Faculty of Science staff feel that the reform \u2014 which was meant to free up funds for research and teaching \u2014 is now having the opposite effect. Are they right?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u00bbThe financial imbalance at the Faculty of Science existed before the reform, and I do not accept that the reform is now having the opposite effect. The reform makes it more complicated to restore the balance at the Faculty of Science because two rounds of savings are happening at once,\u00ab says Skydsgaard, and continues:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbBut the reform also frees up funds that are to be used for core services. It will be a management decision how those funds are distributed later.\u00ab<\/p>\n<h3>What do we know about potential layoffs?<\/h3>\n<p>Bo Jellesmark Thorsen emphasises that it is not yet certain whether the financial situation at the Faculty of Science will require layoffs \u2014 and he is therefore not prepared at this stage to speculate on who or how many might be affected.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>This is not the most pleasant process, no matter where we end up<\/p>\n<p class=\"quotee\">Bo Jellesmark Thorsen, Dean of the Faculty of Science<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\u00bbRight now, departments are fully engaged in exploring every other option for reducing costs. We\u2019re looking, for example, at reducing various expenses or covering more costs through external funding in the future. We expect to have a full overview by the autumn,\u00ab says the dean.<\/p>\n<p><em>In hindsight, is there anything you could have done differently to avoid this situation?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u00bbThat would imply we had information back then that we just didn\u2019t have. The decisions made years ago made sense at the time,\u00ab he says, and continues:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbWe are now in a preparatory phase where we\u2019re communicating openly about what we\u2019re working on. And no matter how gently we resolve this, it will impact research, teaching, and working conditions at the faculty. That\u2019s why it\u2019s important we do it thoroughly and get it right the first time. But this is not the most pleasant process, no matter where we end up.\u00ab<br \/>\n<!-- end of module 1 --><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The faculty has an annual structural deficit of DKK 100 million due to costly new buildings and deliberate overspending over several years. Added to this is a round of cuts from the administration reform. While the dean hopes to avoid layoffs, he cannot make any promises.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":99,"featured_media":114426,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[48,4539],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-177256","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics","category-arbejdsmiljoe-en","expression-portrait_article"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Faculty of Science braces for tough choices as budget gap widens<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/faculty-of-science-braces-for-tough-choices-as-budget-gap-widens\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Faculty of Science braces for tough choices as budget gap widens\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The faculty has an annual structural deficit of DKK 100 million due to costly new buildings and deliberate overspending over several years. 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Faculty of Science is grappling with a DKK 100 million deficit. Partly due to the new Niels Bohr Building."},{"acf_fc_layout":"Standfirst","subject":"Finances","text":"The faculty has an annual structural deficit of DKK 100 million due to costly new buildings and deliberate overspending over several years. Added to this is a round of cuts from the administration reform. While the dean hopes to avoid layoffs, he cannot make any promises.","use_post_excerpt":false},{"acf_fc_layout":"Byline","is_author":true,"contributors":false},{"acf_fc_layout":"Content","content":"<p>The Faculty of Science at the University of Copenhagen (UCPH) ended 2024 with an approximate DKK 100 million loss. And unless action is taken now, the faculty can expect similar annual losses in the years ahead.<\/p>\n<p>This was the message shared to all-staff recently in a statement from Dean of the Faculty of Science Bo Jellesmark Thorsen.<\/p>\n<p>The faculty\u2019s structural deficit is primarily due to two factors: increased operating costs for new buildings and overspending from having drawn more from savings than new funding brought in, the dean explained.<\/p>\n<p>In the same message, Bo Jellesmark Thorsen also stated that the faculty must manage \u00bboutstanding adjustments\u00ab linked to the administration reform. He noted that layoffs cannot be ruled out.<\/p>\n<p><strong>READ ALSO:<\/strong> <em><a href=\"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/university-of-copenhagen-law-faculty-faces-deep-cuts\/\">University of Copenhagen law faculty faces deep cuts<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<p>The University Post has spoken with both the dean, Faculty of Science staff, and the University of Copenhagen director to better understand what the structural deficit involves, how the university&#8217;s reform to its administration plays into it, and why the faculty now faces an annual budget shortfall of around DKK 100 million.<\/p>\n<h3>A university is not supposed to accumulate assets<\/h3>\n<p>Bo Jellesmark Thorsen emphasises that the structural deficit comes as no surprise to the faculty. Management has known for many years that significant additional costs for operating new buildings would eventually materialise.<\/p>\n<p>These costs are now due, with the new Niels Bohr Building coming into use, and the faculty taking over the complex for the new Natural History Museum of Denmark on the S\u00f8lvtorvet square in central Copenhagen.<\/p>\n<p>The annual operating costs for the new buildings amount to a staggering DKK 89 million. This figure covers operations only \u2014 and does not include rent, which is paid centrally by UCPH, the dean notes.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>The administration reform is a net loss for the departments at the Faculty of Science<\/p>\n<p class=\"quotee\">Nynne Christensen, union representative for technical and administrative staff at the Faculty of Science<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\u00bbThe figure was calculated as follows: the number of square metres in the new buildings multiplied by the average cost of operating this type of experimental facility. It costs DKK 1,080 per square metre,\u00ab says Bo Jellesmark Thorsen, explaining that the costs include laboratories, technical rooms, specialised ventilation spaces, and salaries for technicians responsible for maintenance and repairs.<\/p>\n<p>Several departments have already moved into the Niels Bohr Building, and the Faculty of Science has taken over the S\u00f8lvtorvet complex, where the Natural History Museum is currently setting up exhibitions. This means that, from 2025, UCPH faces an increase in operating costs of DKK 89 million.<\/p>\n<p>The dean expects the Niels Bohr Building to be fully in use by 2027 \u2014 the same year the Faculty of Science plans to balance its budget.<\/p>\n<p>Another, major, cause of the deficit is that the Faculty of Science deliberately has spent more than it earned for several years, and has drawn down its reserves.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbWe\u2019ve known for years that there would be costs related to getting the Niels Bohr Building up and running, so we set aside money for that purpose in the budget. But because construction was postponed and delayed so many times, we didn\u2019t get to use those funds, and that\u2019s one reason our reserves grew so large. We couldn\u2019t just let them keep growing,\u00ab says Bo Jellesmark Thorsen, and explains:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbThe purpose of a university is not to save up and become wealthy. The funds we have are meant to be used for research and education. So we began using our reserves, which has led to overspending in recent years.\u00ab<\/p>\n<h3>\u00bbThe UCPH administration reform is a loss for us\u00ab<\/h3>\n<p>The DKK 100 million deficit is therefore a result of increased operating costs for new buildings, and the use of its reserves.<\/p>\n<p>In his message to staff, the dean also named the UCPH administration reform as a factor that needs to be dealt with in addition to the structural deficit. Faculty of Science staff interviewed by the University Post took note of this \u2014 wasn\u2019t the reform, after all, supposed to free up funds for core services like teaching and research?<\/p>\n<p>Nynne Christensen is a special consultant at the Department of Biology and is union representative for technical and administrative staff at the Faculty of Staff. She is also an alternate member of the Academic Council and represents technical and administrative staff in the faculty&#8217;s staff cooperation committee, where she herself has participated in discussions about the loss.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbWe\u2019ve always known there would be a deficit, but we had hoped it could be managed without job cuts. So this is actually a new tone from the dean,\u00ab she says.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>The idea was that the DKK 300 million saved on administration would be used for core services \u2014 but we\u2019ve seen none of that<\/p>\n<p class=\"quotee\">Peter Waaben Thulstrup, union representative for academic staff at the Faculty of Science<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>According to the staff rep, the administration reform is currently causing the deficit at the Faculty of Science, which must be addressed in addition to the structural shortfall \u2014 and this frustrates her.<\/p>\n<p>The deficit from the administration reform is due to many departments losing more from their salary budgets than the actual payroll expenses they transferred to the new central administration, explains Nynne Christensen.<\/p>\n<p>She also notes that the administrative reform is mentioned in the <a href=\"https:\/\/kunet.ku.dk\/fakultet-og-institut\/science\/tema-oekonomi\/Documents\/Transparensanalyse-SCIENCE-2025.pdf\">transparency analysis<\/a> prepared in autumn 2024 as a contributing factor to the Faculty of Sciences\u2019 overall deficit.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbThe bottom line is that the administration reform is a net loss for Faculty of Science departments, and on top of the structural deficit, it could mean layoffs among academic staff. Somewhat ironic, when you consider that the reform was supposed to free up funds for research and teaching,\u00ab she says.<\/p>\n<p>The same message comes from Peter Waaben Thulstrup, associate professor at the Department of Chemistry, union representative for academic staff at the Faculty of Staff, and member of the faculty cooperation committee.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbAn average salary of approximately DKK 630,000 per administrative employee was used \u2014 that\u2019s very high. We\u2019ve asked many times why it was set so high, and it\u2019s presumably because management salaries were included,\u00ab says Peter Waaben Thulstrup, and continues:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbBut the salaries we actually transferred to the new central administration don\u2019t match what was deducted from our budgets. For instance, if we moved a student assistant, we had DKK 630,000 deducted annually, even though that\u2019s nowhere near what the assistant actually cost.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p>If you ask Peter Waaben Thulstrup, implementing the new administration reform is \u00bbnot going brilliantly\u00ab:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbThe idea was that the DKK 300 million saved on administration would be used for core services \u2014 but we\u2019ve seen none of that.\u00ab<\/p>\n<h3>\u00bbA question of timing\u00ab<\/h3>\n<p>Bo Jellesmark Thorsen stresses that the administration reform is not included in the structural deficit. But he acknowledges that it is \u00bba question of timing\u00ab. The Faculty of Science is having to find an extra DKK 100 million annually, while also implementing the reform.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbThe administration reform doesn\u2019t mean we have to spend more money at UCPH in general. No costs are leaving UCPH. But both funding and costs are leaving the Faculty of Science. I know people are aware of that, and that\u2019s why I mentioned it in my statement,\u00ab says Bo Jellesmark Thorsen, and continues:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbI want to acknowledge that the administration reform is a major restructuring that we have to manage on top of the structural deficit. We can\u2019t deny that.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p>The dean refers further questions about the reform to University Director S\u00f8ren Skydsgaard.<\/p>\n<h3>Neither simple nor exact<\/h3>\n<p>University Director S\u00f8ren Skydsgaard confirms that a budget reduction was calculated that corresponds to approximately DKK 630,000 per administrative employee at the Faculty of Science. This included managers covered by the reform.<\/p>\n<p>He emphasises that the departments were made aware of the savings needed during the 2025 budget process, and that it was ultimately a local decision which staff they had to transfer.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbThe managers at the Faculty of Science, like those at other faculties, had to decide how to organise themselves with the budget that was established by the administration reform. They may, for instance, have chosen to retain staff with higher-than-average salaries \u2014 and I\u2019m sure there were many good reasons for that,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>The reform also frees up funds meant for core services. It will be up to management to decide how these are later distributed<\/p>\n<p class=\"quotee\">S\u00f8ren Skydsgaard, University Director<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><em>But right now, isn\u2019t the reality at the Faculty of Science that the reform is the cause of a deficit?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u00bbYou can\u2019t put it like that. Decisions were made based on a budget that was already known. So you can\u2019t say a deficit has suddenly arisen. But you can say that the expected full savings have yet to materialise,\u00ab says S\u00f8ren Skydsgaard, and adds:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbI do acknowledge that it\u2019s not easy \u2014 and it\u2019s not precise to the exact millimetre.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p><em>How big is that part of the shortfall at the Faculty of Science that is a result of the reform?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u00bbIt\u2019s around DKK 44 million annually. But those savings include more than just salaries \u2014 they also involve other operational costs.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p><em>Was the average salary used in the calculations set too high?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u00bbNo. It was calculated as the average salary of all the employees affected by the reform at the Faculty of Science. If we had used the average for all administrative staff at UCPH, it would have been higher.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p><em>Faculty of Science staff feel that the reform \u2014 which was meant to free up funds for research and teaching \u2014 is now having the opposite effect. Are they right?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u00bbThe financial imbalance at the Faculty of Science existed before the reform, and I do not accept that the reform is now having the opposite effect. The reform makes it more complicated to restore the balance at the Faculty of Science because two rounds of savings are happening at once,\u00ab says Skydsgaard, and continues:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbBut the reform also frees up funds that are to be used for core services. It will be a management decision how those funds are distributed later.\u00ab<\/p>\n<h3>What do we know about potential layoffs?<\/h3>\n<p>Bo Jellesmark Thorsen emphasises that it is not yet certain whether the financial situation at the Faculty of Science will require layoffs \u2014 and he is therefore not prepared at this stage to speculate on who or how many might be affected.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>This is not the most pleasant process, no matter where we end up<\/p>\n<p class=\"quotee\">Bo Jellesmark Thorsen, Dean of the Faculty of Science<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\u00bbRight now, departments are fully engaged in exploring every other option for reducing costs. We\u2019re looking, for example, at reducing various expenses or covering more costs through external funding in the future. We expect to have a full overview by the autumn,\u00ab says the dean.<\/p>\n<p><em>In hindsight, is there anything you could have done differently to avoid this situation?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u00bbThat would imply we had information back then that we just didn\u2019t have. The decisions made years ago made sense at the time,\u00ab he says, and continues:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbWe are now in a preparatory phase where we\u2019re communicating openly about what we\u2019re working on. And no matter how gently we resolve this, it will impact research, teaching, and working conditions at the faculty. That\u2019s why it\u2019s important we do it thoroughly and get it right the first time. But this is not the most pleasant process, no matter where we end up.\u00ab<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"ArticleEnd"},{"acf_fc_layout":"Newsletter","lang_select":"en","identifier":"Newsletter","headline":"Get an email with upcoming events and top University of Copenhagen stories","button_text":"Sign up here","class":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"OtherStories","headline":"","hand_picked_posts":false,"references":false,"category":false,"theme":false,"number_of_posts":"4","style":"default"}]},"taxonomyData":{"category":[{"term_id":48,"name":"Politics","slug":"politics","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":48,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":1035,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":4539,"name":"Working environment","slug":"arbejdsmiljoe-en","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":4539,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":95,"filter":"raw"}],"post_tag":[],"post_format":[],"expression":[{"term_id":14,"name":"Portrait Article","slug":"portrait_article","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":14,"taxonomy":"expression","description":"","parent":0,"count":796,"filter":"raw"}],"translation_priority":[{"term_id":5468,"name":"Optional","slug":"optional-en","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":5468,"taxonomy":"translation_priority","description":"","parent":0,"count":672,"filter":"raw"}]},"featured_media_url":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/nielsbohr.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/177256","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/99"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=177256"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/177256\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":177287,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/177256\/revisions\/177287"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/114426"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=177256"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=177256"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=177256"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}