{"id":184378,"date":"2025-11-24T05:45:19","date_gmt":"2025-11-24T04:45:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/ledelsen-lukker-alle-stillerum-paa-ku\/"},"modified":"2025-11-24T10:05:30","modified_gmt":"2025-11-24T09:05:30","slug":"university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\/","title":{"rendered":"University of Copenhagen management shuts down all retreat rooms"},"content":{"rendered":"

Retreat rooms at the University of Copenhagen (UCPH) are to be permanently closed on 1 December, according to an announcement by management via a press release<\/a> on KUnet. The news follows recurring public controversy, both inside and outside the university. The rooms have been criticised for encouraging behavioural policing\u00a0and gender segregation.<\/p>\n

We are all affected by the situation and feel that the decision has been made over our heads<\/p>\n

Ali Reza, spokesperson for Free Retreat Rooms<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

UCPH management had initially set up a working group to map out the use of the rooms, which have also been called quiet rooms and prayer rooms. But before the group had a chance to meet, lobby group Universities Denmark<\/em> issued a set of joint guidelines for retreat room usage across all Danish universities. When Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen stated in a\u00a0 5 June Constitution Day speech that prayer rooms should not exist at Danish universities, UCPH management reaffirmed to the University Post<\/a> that the retreat rooms still played an important role for students.<\/p>\n

Ali Reza, spokesperson for a new student party Free Retreat Rooms, which is fielding 63 candidates in the upcoming University of Copenhagen election for its Board, says:<\/p>\n

\u00bbMy fellow students and I are deeply dissatisfied and disappointed by the decision. We are all affected by the situation and feel that the decision has been made over our heads.\u00ab<\/p>\n

Retreat rooms for students with disabilities<\/h3>\n

The retreat rooms story is not over yet however. According to the press release, university management will now explore how to recreate the rooms to be more inclusive for people with disabilities.<\/p>\n

The decision is partly based on a just released report from the working group, which outlines how future retreat rooms could be designed with a focus on providing safe and calm spaces for students with disabilities. UCPH management refers both to the report\u2019s conclusions [in Danish]<\/a> and to a recent inclusion survey, which showed that students with disabilities feel excluded and call for better physical spaces at the university.<\/p>\n

READ ALSO: <\/strong>The University of Copenhagen\u2019s inclusion survey: This is what surprised us<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

\u00bbThe study environment should be for everyone, but the report shows that the retreat rooms currently only serve a narrow segment of students and do not therefore fulfil their purpose. We need to rethink how to create spaces that accommodate all students who need a moment of peace,\u00ab says Prorector for Education Kristian Lauta in the press release.<\/p>\n

\u00bbBurden on students\u00ab<\/h3>\n

Ali Reza fears the closure will negatively affect the wellbeing of those who used the rooms. With the rooms gone, students must now find alternatives if they need to, for instance, pray \u2014 often spending their breaks searching for vacant spaces on campus:<\/p>\n

\u00bbI think this will be a burden on students and will contribute to increased stress levels, especially among those already facing significant challenges in their daily lives.\u00ab<\/p>\n

Asked whether he sees any upside to the rethink of the retreat rooms, Ali Reza replies:<\/p>\n

\u00bbWe are critical of the entire process. The idea itself is fine, and it does show that UCPH cares about inclusion \u2014 unlike University of Southern Denmark (SDU), which chose to just close its retreat rooms. But we believe the rooms should have remained open in the meantime, and that we should have been included in the decision-making process.\u00ab<\/p>\n

The University Post contacted Lars Cyril N\u00f8rgaard, chair of the working group, who declined to comment for this article but has agreed to a longer interview about the report.<\/p>\n

This article was first written in Danish and published on 20 November 2025. It has been translated into English and post-edited by Mike Young.<\/em>
\n<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Retreat rooms are soon to be gone for good. Management is closing the controversial spaces so they can be incorporated into better facilities for students with disabilities.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":107,"featured_media":176288,"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":[3792],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-184378","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-student-life","expression-news_article"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"yoast_head":"\nUniversity of Copenhagen management shuts down all retreat rooms \u2014 University Post<\/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\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"University of Copenhagen management shuts down all retreat rooms \u2014 University Post\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Retreat rooms are soon to be gone for good. Management is closing the controversial spaces so they can be incorporated into better facilities for students with disabilities.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"University Post\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/uniavis\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-11-24T04:45:19+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-11-24T09:05:30+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/bederum61280x853.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1280\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"853\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Johanne Dahl Karlsen\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:image\" content=\"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/bederum61280x853.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@Uniavisen\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Uniavisen\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Johanne Dahl Karlsen\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Johanne Dahl Karlsen\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/01dc6a59ff1fda55a380ff01dc1f4457\"},\"headline\":\"University of Copenhagen management shuts down all retreat rooms\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-11-24T04:45:19+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-11-24T09:05:30+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":613,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/bederum61280x853.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Student life\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\\\/\",\"name\":\"University of Copenhagen management shuts down all retreat rooms \u2014 University Post\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/bederum61280x853.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-11-24T04:45:19+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-11-24T09:05:30+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/01dc6a59ff1fda55a380ff01dc1f4457\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/bederum61280x853.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/bederum61280x853.jpg\",\"width\":1280,\"height\":853},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"University of Copenhagen management shuts down all retreat rooms\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/\",\"name\":\"University Post\",\"description\":\"Independent of management\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/01dc6a59ff1fda55a380ff01dc1f4457\",\"name\":\"Johanne Dahl Karlsen\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/d4d9b5dddb77cea2ac19e3e80ebf0aadc7ed5310ede7f93de099f384be5e40cd?s=96&d=identicon&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/d4d9b5dddb77cea2ac19e3e80ebf0aadc7ed5310ede7f93de099f384be5e40cd?s=96&d=identicon&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/d4d9b5dddb77cea2ac19e3e80ebf0aadc7ed5310ede7f93de099f384be5e40cd?s=96&d=identicon&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Johanne Dahl Karlsen\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/author\\\/johanne_dk\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"University of Copenhagen management shuts down all retreat rooms \u2014 University Post","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"University of Copenhagen management shuts down all retreat rooms \u2014 University Post","og_description":"Retreat rooms are soon to be gone for good. Management is closing the controversial spaces so they can be incorporated into better facilities for students with disabilities.","og_url":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\/","og_site_name":"University Post","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/uniavis","article_published_time":"2025-11-24T04:45:19+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-11-24T09:05:30+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1280,"height":853,"url":"http:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/bederum61280x853.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Johanne Dahl Karlsen","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_image":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/bederum61280x853.jpg","twitter_creator":"@Uniavisen","twitter_site":"@Uniavisen","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Johanne Dahl Karlsen","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\/"},"author":{"name":"Johanne Dahl Karlsen","@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/#\/schema\/person\/01dc6a59ff1fda55a380ff01dc1f4457"},"headline":"University of Copenhagen management shuts down all retreat rooms","datePublished":"2025-11-24T04:45:19+00:00","dateModified":"2025-11-24T09:05:30+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\/"},"wordCount":613,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/bederum61280x853.jpg","articleSection":["Student life"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\/","url":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\/","name":"University of Copenhagen management shuts down all retreat rooms \u2014 University Post","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/bederum61280x853.jpg","datePublished":"2025-11-24T04:45:19+00:00","dateModified":"2025-11-24T09:05:30+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/#\/schema\/person\/01dc6a59ff1fda55a380ff01dc1f4457"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/bederum61280x853.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/bederum61280x853.jpg","width":1280,"height":853},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/university-of-copenhagen-management-shuts-down-all-retreat-rooms\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"University of Copenhagen management shuts down all retreat rooms"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/#website","url":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/","name":"University Post","description":"Independent of management","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/#\/schema\/person\/01dc6a59ff1fda55a380ff01dc1f4457","name":"Johanne Dahl Karlsen","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d4d9b5dddb77cea2ac19e3e80ebf0aadc7ed5310ede7f93de099f384be5e40cd?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d4d9b5dddb77cea2ac19e3e80ebf0aadc7ed5310ede7f93de099f384be5e40cd?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d4d9b5dddb77cea2ac19e3e80ebf0aadc7ed5310ede7f93de099f384be5e40cd?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","caption":"Johanne Dahl Karlsen"},"url":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/author\/johanne_dk\/"}]}},"advancedCustomFields":{"expression":{"term_id":15,"name":"News Article","slug":"news_article","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":15,"taxonomy":"expression","description":"","parent":0,"count":11489,"filter":"raw"},"enable_comments":true,"align_content":"alignleft","feature_color":"","article_updated":"","layout_group":[{"acf_fc_layout":"Headline","use_post_title":true,"headline":"","style":"default","highlighted_words":"","text_size":"small"},{"acf_fc_layout":"Image","image":{"ID":176289,"id":176289,"title":"bederum6-1280x853","filename":"bederum61280x853.jpg","filesize":303807,"url":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/bederum61280x853.jpg","link":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/ku-fjerner-alt-inventar-fra-bederum-se-foer-og-efterbillederne-her\/bederum6-1280x853-2\/","alt":"","author":"9","description":"","caption":"S\u00e5dan s\u00e5 stillerummet p\u00e5 S\u00f8ndre Campus ud, inden det i for\u00e5ret blev ryddet.","name":"bederum6-1280x853-2","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":175663,"date":"2025-04-24 08:00:50","modified":"2025-11-20 14:39:26","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1280,"height":853,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/bederum61280x853-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/bederum61280x853-480x320.jpg","medium-width":480,"medium-height":320,"medium_large":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/bederum61280x853-768x512.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":512,"large":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/bederum61280x853.jpg","large-width":1280,"large-height":853,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/bederum61280x853.jpg","1536x1536-width":1280,"1536x1536-height":853,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/bederum61280x853.jpg","2048x2048-width":1280,"2048x2048-height":853,"featured-soft":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/bederum61280x853-290x193.jpg","featured-soft-width":290,"featured-soft-height":193,"featured-hard":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/bederum61280x853-290x180.jpg","featured-hard-width":290,"featured-hard-height":180,"narrow":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/bederum61280x853-700x466.jpg","narrow-width":700,"narrow-height":466,"extended":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/bederum61280x853-990x660.jpg","extended-width":990,"extended-height":660}},"style":"full","text_placement":"metadata-below","image_link_url":"","image_link_title":"","caption_prefix":"","enable_alternative_caption":true,"alternative_caption":"This is what the retreat room on South Campus looked like before it was cleared out in the spring of 2025."},{"acf_fc_layout":"Standfirst","subject":"","text":"This is a story about what will follow","use_post_excerpt":true},{"acf_fc_layout":"Byline","is_author":true,"contributors":false},{"acf_fc_layout":"Content","content":"<p>Retreat rooms at the University of Copenhagen (UCPH) are to be permanently closed on 1 December, according to an announcement by management via <a href=\"https:\/\/kunet.ku.dk\/newsroom\/news\/Pages\/Quiet-rooms-to-close-A-more-inclusive-framework-is-needed.aspx\">a press release<\/a> on KUnet. The news follows recurring public controversy, both inside and outside the university. The rooms have been criticised for encouraging behavioural policing\u00a0and gender segregation.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>We are all affected by the situation and feel that the decision has been made over our heads<\/p>\n<p class=\"quotee\">Ali Reza, spokesperson for Free Retreat Rooms<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>UCPH management had initially set up a working group to map out the use of the rooms, which have also been called quiet rooms and prayer rooms. But before the group had a chance to meet, lobby group <em>Universities Denmark<\/em> issued a set of joint guidelines for retreat room usage across all Danish universities. When Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen stated in a\u00a0 5 June Constitution Day speech that prayer rooms should not exist at Danish universities, UCPH management <a href=\"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/prayer-room-ban-prorector-says-danish-government-move-is-unnecessary\/\">reaffirmed to the University Post<\/a> that the retreat rooms still played an important role for students.<\/p>\n<p>Ali Reza, spokesperson for a new student party Free Retreat Rooms, which is fielding 63 candidates in the upcoming University of Copenhagen election for its Board, says:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbMy fellow students and I are deeply dissatisfied and disappointed by the decision. We are all affected by the situation and feel that the decision has been made over our heads.\u00ab<\/p>\n<h3>Retreat rooms for students with disabilities<\/h3>\n<p>The retreat rooms story is not over yet however. According to the press release, university management will now explore how to recreate the rooms to be more inclusive for people with disabilities.<\/p>\n<p>The decision is partly based on a just released report from the working group, which outlines how future retreat rooms could be designed with a focus on providing safe and calm spaces for students with disabilities. UCPH management refers both to the <a href=\"https:\/\/kunet.ku.dk\/om-ku\/organisation\/beslutninger-paa-KU\/f%c3%a6lles-niveau-ku\/r%c3%a5dgivende-udvalg\/senatet\/m%c3%b8der\/Lists\/Kommende%20mder\/Attachments\/43\/Rapport%20om%20stillerum%20%28final%29.pdf\">report\u2019s conclusions [in Danish]<\/a> and to a recent inclusion survey, which showed that students with disabilities feel excluded and call for better physical spaces at the university.<\/p>\n<p><strong>READ ALSO: <\/strong><em><a href=\"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/the-university-of-copenhagens-inclusion-survey-this-is-what-surprised-us\/\">The University of Copenhagen\u2019s inclusion survey: This is what surprised us<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u00bbThe study environment should be for everyone, but the report shows that the retreat rooms currently only serve a narrow segment of students and do not therefore fulfil their purpose. We need to rethink how to create spaces that accommodate all students who need a moment of peace,\u00ab says Prorector for Education Kristian Lauta in the press release.<\/p>\n<h3>\u00bbBurden on students\u00ab<\/h3>\n<p>Ali Reza fears the closure will negatively affect the wellbeing of those who used the rooms. With the rooms gone, students must now find alternatives if they need to, for instance, pray \u2014 often spending their breaks searching for vacant spaces on campus:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbI think this will be a burden on students and will contribute to increased stress levels, especially among those already facing significant challenges in their daily lives.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p>Asked whether he sees any upside to the rethink of the retreat rooms, Ali Reza replies:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbWe are critical of the entire process. The idea itself is fine, and it does show that UCPH cares about inclusion \u2014 unlike University of Southern Denmark (SDU), which chose to just close its retreat rooms. But we believe the rooms should have remained open in the meantime, and that we should have been included in the decision-making process.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p>The University Post contacted Lars Cyril N\u00f8rgaard, chair of the working group, who declined to comment for this article but has agreed to a longer interview about the report.<\/p>\n<p><em>This article was first written in Danish and published on 20 November 2025. It has been translated into English and post-edited by Mike Young.<\/em><\/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":3792,"name":"Student life","slug":"student-life","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3792,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":160,"filter":"raw"}],"post_tag":[],"post_format":[],"expression":[{"term_id":15,"name":"News Article","slug":"news_article","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":15,"taxonomy":"expression","description":"","parent":0,"count":11489,"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\/2025\/04\/bederum61280x853.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/184378","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\/107"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=184378"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/184378\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":184511,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/184378\/revisions\/184511"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/176288"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=184378"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=184378"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=184378"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}