{"id":186956,"date":"2026-01-26T08:15:24","date_gmt":"2026-01-26T07:15:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/undervisere-i-klemme-der-er-faktisk-ikke-en-stillingskategori-til-saadan-nogle-som-os\/"},"modified":"2026-01-26T13:48:08","modified_gmt":"2026-01-26T12:48:08","slug":"lecturers-in-limbo-theres-no-job-category-for-people-like-us","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/lecturers-in-limbo-theres-no-job-category-for-people-like-us\/","title":{"rendered":"Lecturers in limbo: \u00bbThere\u2019s no job category for people like us\u00ab"},"content":{"rendered":"

The contracts of Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen and Agus Djaja Soewarta at the Department of Arts and Cultural Studies at the University of Copenhagen (UCPH) are set to expire this summer. Department management would like to keep them on. But only in a job category that has no allocated time for research, and no real opportunities for career advancement.<\/p>\n

Their situation is now the cause of a dispute between department management and staff representatives over working conditions, finances and \u2014 not least \u2014 what research-based teaching actually means in practice at the university.<\/p>\n

Teaching is research<\/h3>\n

Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen loves teaching. He loves the buzz of the classroom, and what he calls the interplay between the students, the texts and the present. He feels this is where he can actually make a difference. Sure, you can spend a long time writing a good academic paper, he says, even if it gets read by some people and praised by a few of them: But how much difference does it really make?<\/p>\n

For his colleague Agus Djaja Soewarta, teaching is not just about communication \u2014 it\u2019s part of an ongoing process of discovery. In his encounters with students, he gains insight into his own position as a lecturer. It always goes both ways, he says. How do you set up a space that is not overshadowed by traditional hierarchies, and where independent thinking can flourish?<\/p>\n

Personally, I think teaching matters more to me than research.<\/p>\n

Agus Djaja Soewarta<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\u00bbPersonally, I think teaching matters more to me than research. In one way, I see teaching as a type of research. You get so much out of your interactions with students,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n

READ ALSO<\/strong>: Petition launched for University of Copenhagen lecturers in contract limbo<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen and Agus Djaja Soewarta have been key lecturers on the Literature programme for decades. They both now face the prospect of either having to leave the university when their contracts expire, or being retained in a position with no research time and no career outlook.<\/p>\n

Job with no future<\/h3>\n

Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen and Agus Djaja Soewarta are employed in the assistant professor category. For now. Their contracts run until the end of August this year, and it remains unclear whether \u2014 and how \u2014 they will be rehired.<\/p>\n

Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen has been teaching at UCPH since 2001, always in temporary positions.<\/p>\n

\u00bbI have never had doubts that I would be rehired in some capacity. This time though, I have no idea what \u2014 if anything \u2014 I\u2019ll be offered,\u00ab he says.
\n
\nThe department’s management wants to employ them as ‘teaching associate professors’. This is a job category with no allocated research time. You teach full-time, cannot supervise master’s theses, and are not allowed to teach research-based courses. The category is designed for methodology and practical subjects. On the Musicology programme, for example, teaching associate professors teach piano.<\/p>\n

Before Christmas, a group of students launched a petition to keep the popular lecturers and to fight for decent working conditions on their behalf. The petition had 173 signatures at the time of this article’s deadline.<\/p>\n

The study board for Literature has been asked by management to come up with a list of courses that are not research-based and which a teaching associate professor could teach. The problem is, there are no practical subjects in the Literature programme.<\/p>\n

\u00bbThe paradox is that no one actually wants to get rid of us. The department head wants to keep us, the union rep wants to keep us, and the students want to keep us,\u00ab says Agus Djaja Soewarta.<\/p>\n

\u00bbBut we\u2019ve ended up in a dilemma that\u2019s not just about us. It\u2019s about how a university is run.\u00ab<\/p>\n

READ ALSO:<\/strong>\u00bbNo matter what I do, I won\u2019t get a permanent position\u00ab<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Deficit in the budget<\/h3>\n

Tue Andersen Nex\u00f8 is an associate professor and union representative at the Department of Arts and Cultural Studies. He says it comes down to the department\u2019s finances.<\/p>\n

The department has to cut six to eight per cent of its budget in the coming year \u2014 the equivalent of three to four positions. But it is already struggling to cover the teaching needs.<\/p>\n

\u00bbIn conversations with management, I get the impression that they basically want Agus and Michael to do the same work as the rest of us \u2014 that is, to deliver research-based teaching. But the Ministry\u2019s regulations clearly state that teaching associate professors may only teach tools-based courses, practical subjects or introductory courses that are not based on recent research,\u00ab says Tue Andersen Nex\u00f8.<\/p>\n

Research is essential if you want to get through the eye of the needle to an associate professorship.<\/p>\n

Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Or, as Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen puts it: \u00bbThe problem is that there\u2019s no job category for people like Agus and me.\u00ab<\/p>\n

When Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen and Agus Djaja Soewarta were hired in 2024 under assistant professor-like conditions, there was, according to the union representative, a clear expectation that tenure track positions would be advertised in the autumn of 2026 \u2014 positions they could apply for.<\/p>\n

But in the meantime, the department has run a deficit, and management now wants to rehire them as teaching associate professors \u2014 a cheaper job category.<\/p>\n

\u00bbA teaching associate professor is cheaper for management because they can cover more teaching hours. This isn\u2019t about new teaching needs \u2014 it\u2019s about getting teaching capacity more cheaply,\u00ab says the union representative.<\/p>\n

READ ALSO: <\/strong>\u00bbIt would be nice to know that the university felt a sense of obligation towards me\u00ab<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

When the system trips you up<\/h3>\n

Even if permanent positions were advertised, the two lecturers don\u2019t feel they\u2019d be strong contenders. The reason is simple: they\u2019ve spent most of their working lives teaching.<\/p>\n

\u00bbWhen you teach that much, you\u2019re tired when you get home. You don\u2019t just sit down and do research. And research is essential if you want to pass the tough selection for an associate professorship,\u00ab says Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen.<\/p>\n

Agus Djaja Soewarta agrees.<\/p>\n

\u00bbWe struggle to compete for researcher positions because we haven\u2019t had the opportunity to build up long publication lists,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n

The truth is that even on a good day, the prep time never seems to be enough.
\n
\n\u00bbEveryone \u2014 even the most experienced \u2014 agrees that the preparation time you get per teaching hour is completely inadequate. No one can make it work,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n

For associate professors on a permanent employment contract, preparation time eats into their allotted research hours. They have to apply for external funding to be released for research. And this, in turn, means that someone else has to cover their teaching. And that\u2019s where a lecturer that has no allotted research time becomes a convenient way out.<\/p>\n

READ ALSO:<\/strong> Associate professor: The world of research is \u00bbvicious\u00ab<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Staff rep: A matter of principle<\/h3>\n

According to Tue Andersen Nex\u00f8, the use of teaching associate professors could set a dangerous precedent.<\/p>\n

\u00bbIf we accept that large parts of the teaching are done by lecturers with no time for research, we undermine the model of research-based teaching. This sets a precedent,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n

\u00bbIf teaching associate professors can be used in the same way as associate professors and professors, there won\u2019t be any new permanent hires in these categories for many years to come,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n

Tue Andersen Nex\u00f8 understands that the department is under financial pressure. What he doesn\u2019t understand is why that pressure should always impact staff working conditions.<\/p>\n

\u00bbI find it hard to understand employees always have to accept worsening working conditions, when there are other options on the table. My impression is that management is willing to take liberties with the guidelines on using teaching associate professors just to make the budget work,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n

Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen has been employed at UCPH since 2001. What do you think about the fact that, after 25 years, he still doesn\u2019t know whether he\u2019ll have a job this summer?<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00bbIt\u2019s horrendous. I think the various university managers over the years should do some serious soul-searching and ask themselves whether they really believe this is good staff care,\u00ab he says, adding that both Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen and Agus Djaja Soewarta are more than qualified for research positions.<\/p>\n

\u00bbThere are always more people who want a research position than there are jobs available, and the university exploits this by leaving some staff to fend for themselves with low pay. Management will say that they can\u2019t afford to offer permanent jobs to Agus and Michael \u2014 but in reality, we depend on them. We are understaffed in the Literature programme, and there simply aren\u2019t enough people to cover the teaching,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n

READ ALSO:<\/strong> \u00bbI felt that the work was the most important thing in the world. But the coffee tastes better now\u00ab<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

\u00bbAll I know how to do\u00ab<\/h3>\n

Neither Agus Djaja Soewarta nor Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen wishes to criticise department management. On the contrary, they feel they are supported. The problem is structural, they say.<\/p>\n

But they are worried.<\/p>\n

If Agus Djaja Soewarta is offered a teaching associate professor position, he will likely accept.<\/p>\n

\u00bbIt\u2019s also about unemployment. Teaching at university is pretty much all I know how to do \u2014 and I\u2019m not exactly getting any younger,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n

Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen is a bit more hesitant.<\/p>\n

\u00bbIn theory, the offer could be so poor that I\u2019d have to turn it down. But it does get to you, that you cannot make any long-term plans.\u00ab<\/p>\n

He still hopes the department can find the money to post openings for permanent roles with allotted research time. For him, the issue isn\u2019t just about his own future:<\/p>\n

\u00bbWhen people are lost like this, we stand to lose the very foundation of the discipline: that literary scholars teach literature.\u00ab<\/p>\n

Management responds<\/h3>\n

The University Post presented the criticism raised in this article to the head of department at the Department of Arts and Cultural Studies, Helle Munkholm Davidsen. She declined to be interviewed but provided the following written statement:<\/p>\n

\u00bbI\u2019m pleased to hear that students value their lecturers. We always strive to retain talented teachers and to provide them with the best possible conditions within the rules and the financial framework that we have as a department.\u00ab<\/p>\n

This article was first written in Danish and published on 22 January 2026. It has been translated into English and post-edited by Mike Young.<\/em>
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Til sommer udl\u00f8ber deres nuv\u00e6rende kontrakt."},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/lecturers-in-limbo-theres-no-job-category-for-people-like-us\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Lecturers in limbo: \u00bbThere\u2019s no job category for people like us\u00ab"}]},{"@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\/b7dd1ffcbe0d2c4ea49ef92a35a7b7eb","name":"Maria Brus Pedersen","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/40ecc6e938eb818f39c144a5345e5caeee6436bb9bd5537ee4b719f2d5591fdb?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/40ecc6e938eb818f39c144a5345e5caeee6436bb9bd5537ee4b719f2d5591fdb?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/40ecc6e938eb818f39c144a5345e5caeee6436bb9bd5537ee4b719f2d5591fdb?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","caption":"Maria Brus Pedersen"},"url":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/author\/maria_brus\/"}]}},"advancedCustomFields":{"expression":{"term_id":18,"name":"Feature Article","slug":"feature_article","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":18,"taxonomy":"expression","description":"","parent":0,"count":1200,"filter":"raw"},"enable_comments":true,"align_content":"alignleft","feature_color":"#d15710","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":186840,"id":186840,"title":"DSC_4280","filename":"dsc_4280.jpg","filesize":584678,"url":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4280.jpg","link":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/undervisere-i-klemme-der-er-faktisk-ikke-en-stillingskategori-til-saadan-nogle-som-os\/dsc_4280\/","alt":"","author":"109","description":"","caption":"Agus Djaja Soewarta og Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen har undervist p\u00e5 Litteraturvidenskab i \u00e5rtier. Til sommer udl\u00f8ber deres nuv\u00e6rende kontrakt.","name":"dsc_4280","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":186830,"date":"2026-01-21 10:04:13","modified":"2026-01-22 09:27:05","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1514,"height":1024,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4280-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4280-480x325.jpg","medium-width":480,"medium-height":325,"medium_large":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4280-768x519.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":519,"large":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4280-1280x866.jpg","large-width":1280,"large-height":866,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4280.jpg","1536x1536-width":1514,"1536x1536-height":1024,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4280.jpg","2048x2048-width":1514,"2048x2048-height":1024,"featured-soft":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4280-290x196.jpg","featured-soft-width":290,"featured-soft-height":196,"featured-hard":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4280-290x180.jpg","featured-hard-width":290,"featured-hard-height":180,"narrow":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4280-700x473.jpg","narrow-width":700,"narrow-height":473,"extended":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4280-990x670.jpg","extended-width":990,"extended-height":670}},"style":"full","text_placement":"metadata-below","image_link_url":"","image_link_title":"","caption_prefix":"","enable_alternative_caption":true,"alternative_caption":"Agus Djaja Soewarta and Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen have taught courses at the Department of Comparative Literature for decades. Their current contracts expire this summer."},{"acf_fc_layout":"Standfirst","subject":"Precariat","text":"To popul\u00e6re undervisere p\u00e5 Litteraturvidenskab risikerer at miste deres arbejde, n\u00e5r deres ans\u00e6ttelser udl\u00f8ber til sommer, eller at blive fastholdt i stillinger uden forskningstid. Historien handler ikke kun om dem, men om, hvad forskningsbaseret undervisning skal v\u00e6re fremover.","use_post_excerpt":true},{"acf_fc_layout":"Byline","is_author":true,"contributors":false},{"acf_fc_layout":"Content","content":"<p>The contracts of Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen and Agus Djaja Soewarta at the Department of Arts and Cultural Studies at the University of Copenhagen (UCPH) are set to expire this summer. Department management would like to keep them on. But only in a job category that has no allocated time for research, and no real opportunities for career advancement.<\/p>\n<p>Their situation is now the cause of a dispute between department management and staff representatives over working conditions, finances and \u2014 not least \u2014 what research-based teaching actually means in practice at the university.<\/p>\n<h3>Teaching is research<\/h3>\n<p>Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen loves teaching. He loves the buzz of the classroom, and what he calls the interplay between the students, the texts and the present. He feels this is where he can actually make a difference. Sure, you can spend a long time writing a good academic paper, he says, even if it gets read by some people and praised by a few of them: But how much difference does it really make?<\/p>\n<p>For his colleague Agus Djaja Soewarta, teaching is not just about communication \u2014 it\u2019s part of an ongoing process of discovery. In his encounters with students, he gains insight into his own position as a lecturer. It always goes both ways, he says. How do you set up a space that is not overshadowed by traditional hierarchies, and where independent thinking can flourish?<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Personally, I think teaching matters more to me than research.<\/p>\n<p class=\"quotee\">Agus Djaja Soewarta<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\u00bbPersonally, I think teaching matters more to me than research. In one way, I see teaching as a type of research. You get so much out of your interactions with students,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n<p><strong>READ ALSO<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/petition-launched-for-university-of-copenhagen-lecturers-in-contract-limbo\/\"><em>Petition launched for University of Copenhagen lecturers in contract limbo<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen and Agus Djaja Soewarta have been key lecturers on the Literature programme for decades. They both now face the prospect of either having to leave the university when their contracts expire, or being retained in a position with no research time and no career outlook.<\/p>\n<h3>Job with no future<\/h3>\n<p>Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen and Agus Djaja Soewarta are employed in the assistant professor category. For now. Their contracts run until the end of August this year, and it remains unclear whether \u2014 and how \u2014 they will be rehired.<\/p>\n<p>Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen has been teaching at UCPH since 2001, always in temporary positions.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbI have never had doubts that I would be rehired in some capacity. This time though, I have no idea what \u2014 if anything \u2014 I\u2019ll be offered,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"Image","image":{"ID":186849,"id":186849,"title":"DSC_4292","filename":"dsc_4292-1.jpg","filesize":552972,"url":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4292-1.jpg","link":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/undervisere-i-klemme-der-er-faktisk-ikke-en-stillingskategori-til-saadan-nogle-som-os\/dsc_4292\/","alt":"","author":"109","description":"","caption":"Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen har undervist p\u00e5 KU siden 2001, altid i midlertidige stillinger.","name":"dsc_4292","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":186830,"date":"2026-01-21 10:09:37","modified":"2026-01-22 09:17:25","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1476,"height":1024,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4292-1-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4292-1-480x333.jpg","medium-width":480,"medium-height":333,"medium_large":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4292-1-768x533.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":533,"large":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4292-1-1280x888.jpg","large-width":1280,"large-height":888,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4292-1.jpg","1536x1536-width":1476,"1536x1536-height":1024,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4292-1.jpg","2048x2048-width":1476,"2048x2048-height":1024,"featured-soft":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4292-1-290x201.jpg","featured-soft-width":290,"featured-soft-height":201,"featured-hard":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4292-1-290x180.jpg","featured-hard-width":290,"featured-hard-height":180,"narrow":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4292-1-700x486.jpg","narrow-width":700,"narrow-height":486,"extended":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4292-1-990x687.jpg","extended-width":990,"extended-height":687}},"style":"extended","text_placement":"metadata-below","image_link_url":"","image_link_title":"","caption_prefix":"","enable_alternative_caption":true,"alternative_caption":"Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen has taught at the University of Copenhagen since 2001, always in temporary positions."},{"acf_fc_layout":"Content","content":"<p>The department’s management wants to employ them as ‘teaching associate professors’. This is a job category with no allocated research time. You teach full-time, cannot supervise master’s theses, and are not allowed to teach research-based courses. The category is designed for methodology and practical subjects. On the Musicology programme, for example, teaching associate professors teach piano.<\/p>\n<p>Before Christmas, a group of students launched a petition to keep the popular lecturers and to fight for decent working conditions on their behalf. The petition had 173 signatures at the time of this article’s deadline.<\/p>\n<p>The study board for Literature has been asked by management to come up with a list of courses that are not research-based and which a teaching associate professor could teach. The problem is, there are no practical subjects in the Literature programme.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbThe paradox is that no one actually wants to get rid of us. The department head wants to keep us, the union rep wants to keep us, and the students want to keep us,\u00ab says Agus Djaja Soewarta.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbBut we\u2019ve ended up in a dilemma that\u2019s not just about us. It\u2019s about how a university is run.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p><strong>READ ALSO:<\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/lige-meget-hvad-jeg-goer-bliver-jeg-ikke-fastansat\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>\u00bbNo matter what I do, I won\u2019t get a permanent position\u00ab<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<h3>Deficit in the budget<\/h3>\n<p>Tue Andersen Nex\u00f8 is an associate professor and union representative at the Department of Arts and Cultural Studies. He says it comes down to the department\u2019s finances.<\/p>\n<p>The department has to cut six to eight per cent of its budget in the coming year \u2014 the equivalent of three to four positions. But it is already struggling to cover the teaching needs.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbIn conversations with management, I get the impression that they basically want Agus and Michael to do the same work as the rest of us \u2014 that is, to deliver research-based teaching. But the Ministry\u2019s regulations clearly state that teaching associate professors may only teach tools-based courses, practical subjects or introductory courses that are not based on recent research,\u00ab says Tue Andersen Nex\u00f8.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Research is essential if you want to get through the eye of the needle to an associate professorship.<\/p>\n<p class=\"quotee\">Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Or, as Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen puts it: \u00bbThe problem is that there\u2019s no job category for people like Agus and me.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p>When Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen and Agus Djaja Soewarta were hired in 2024 under assistant professor-like conditions, there was, according to the union representative, a clear expectation that tenure track positions would be advertised in the autumn of 2026 \u2014 positions they could apply for.<\/p>\n<p>But in the meantime, the department has run a deficit, and management now wants to rehire them as teaching associate professors \u2014 a cheaper job category.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbA teaching associate professor is cheaper for management because they can cover more teaching hours. This isn\u2019t about new teaching needs \u2014 it\u2019s about getting teaching capacity more cheaply,\u00ab says the union representative.<\/p>\n<p><strong>READ ALSO: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/det-ville-vaere-rart-at-vide-at-universitetet-foelte-sig-forpligtet-paa-mig\/\"><em>\u00bbIt would be nice to know that the university felt a sense of obligation towards me\u00ab<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<h3>When the system trips you up<\/h3>\n<p>Even if permanent positions were advertised, the two lecturers don\u2019t feel they\u2019d be strong contenders. The reason is simple: they\u2019ve spent most of their working lives teaching.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbWhen you teach that much, you\u2019re tired when you get home. You don\u2019t just sit down and do research. And research is essential if you want to pass the tough selection for an associate professorship,\u00ab says Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen.<\/p>\n<p>Agus Djaja Soewarta agrees.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbWe struggle to compete for researcher positions because we haven\u2019t had the opportunity to build up long publication lists,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n<p>The truth is that even on a good day, the prep time never seems to be enough.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"Image","image":{"ID":186842,"id":186842,"title":"DSC_4284","filename":"dsc_4284.jpg","filesize":409778,"url":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4284.jpg","link":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/undervisere-i-klemme-der-er-faktisk-ikke-en-stillingskategori-til-saadan-nogle-som-os\/dsc_4284\/","alt":"","author":"109","description":"","caption":"For Agus Djaja Soewarta er undervisningen ikke bare formidling, men en del af en l\u00f8bende erkendelsesproces.","name":"dsc_4284","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":186830,"date":"2026-01-21 10:04:16","modified":"2026-01-22 09:17:40","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1444,"height":1024,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4284-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4284-480x340.jpg","medium-width":480,"medium-height":340,"medium_large":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4284-768x545.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":545,"large":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4284-1280x908.jpg","large-width":1280,"large-height":908,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4284.jpg","1536x1536-width":1444,"1536x1536-height":1024,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4284.jpg","2048x2048-width":1444,"2048x2048-height":1024,"featured-soft":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4284-290x206.jpg","featured-soft-width":290,"featured-soft-height":206,"featured-hard":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4284-290x180.jpg","featured-hard-width":290,"featured-hard-height":180,"narrow":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4284-700x496.jpg","narrow-width":700,"narrow-height":496,"extended":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4284-990x702.jpg","extended-width":990,"extended-height":702}},"style":"extended","text_placement":"metadata-below","image_link_url":"","image_link_title":"","caption_prefix":"","enable_alternative_caption":true,"alternative_caption":"For Agus Djaja Soewarta, teaching is not just communication \u2014 it is part of an ongoing process of discovery."},{"acf_fc_layout":"Content","content":"<p>\u00bbEveryone \u2014 even the most experienced \u2014 agrees that the preparation time you get per teaching hour is completely inadequate. No one can make it work,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n<p>For associate professors on a permanent employment contract, preparation time eats into their allotted research hours. They have to apply for external funding to be released for research. And this, in turn, means that someone else has to cover their teaching. And that\u2019s where a lecturer that has no allotted research time becomes a convenient way out.<\/p>\n<p><strong>READ ALSO:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/associate-professor-the-world-of-research-is-vicious\/\"><em>Associate professor: The world of research is \u00bbvicious\u00ab<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<h3>Staff rep: A matter of principle<\/h3>\n<p>According to Tue Andersen Nex\u00f8, the use of teaching associate professors could set a dangerous precedent.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbIf we accept that large parts of the teaching are done by lecturers with no time for research, we undermine the model of research-based teaching. This sets a precedent,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbIf teaching associate professors can be used in the same way as associate professors and professors, there won\u2019t be any new permanent hires in these categories for many years to come,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n<p>Tue Andersen Nex\u00f8 understands that the department is under financial pressure. What he doesn\u2019t understand is why that pressure should always impact staff working conditions.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbI find it hard to understand employees always have to accept worsening working conditions, when there are other options on the table. My impression is that management is willing to take liberties with the guidelines on using teaching associate professors just to make the budget work,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n<p><em>Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen has been employed at UCPH since 2001. What do you think about the fact that, after 25 years, he still doesn\u2019t know whether he\u2019ll have a job this summer?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u00bbIt\u2019s horrendous. I think the various university managers over the years should do some serious soul-searching and ask themselves whether they really believe this is good staff care,\u00ab he says, adding that both Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen and Agus Djaja Soewarta are more than qualified for research positions.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbThere are always more people who want a research position than there are jobs available, and the university exploits this by leaving some staff to fend for themselves with low pay. Management will say that they can\u2019t afford to offer permanent jobs to Agus and Michael \u2014 but in reality, we depend on them. We are understaffed in the Literature programme, and there simply aren\u2019t enough people to cover the teaching,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n<p><strong>READ ALSO:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/i-felt-that-the-work-was-the-most-important-thing-in-the-world-but-the-coffee-tastes-better-now\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>\u00bbI felt that the work was the most important thing in the world. But the coffee tastes better now\u00ab<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<h3>\u00bbAll I know how to do\u00ab<\/h3>\n<p>Neither Agus Djaja Soewarta nor Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen wishes to criticise department management. On the contrary, they feel they are supported. The problem is structural, they say.<\/p>\n<p>But they are worried.<\/p>\n<p>If Agus Djaja Soewarta is offered a teaching associate professor position, he will likely accept.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbIt\u2019s also about unemployment. Teaching at university is pretty much all I know how to do \u2014 and I\u2019m not exactly getting any younger,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n<p>Michael H\u00f8xbro Andersen is a bit more hesitant.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbIn theory, the offer could be so poor that I\u2019d have to turn it down. But it does get to you, that you cannot make any long-term plans.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p>He still hopes the department can find the money to post openings for permanent roles with allotted research time. For him, the issue isn\u2019t just about his own future:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbWhen people are lost like this, we stand to lose the very foundation of the discipline: that literary scholars teach literature.\u00ab<\/p>\n<h3>Management responds<\/h3>\n<p>The University Post presented the criticism raised in this article to the head of department at the Department of Arts and Cultural Studies, Helle Munkholm Davidsen. She declined to be interviewed but provided the following written statement:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbI\u2019m pleased to hear that students value their lecturers. We always strive to retain talented teachers and to provide them with the best possible conditions within the rules and the financial framework that we have as a department.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p><em>This article was first written in Danish and published on 22 January 2026. 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":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":18,"name":"Feature Article","slug":"feature_article","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":18,"taxonomy":"expression","description":"","parent":0,"count":1200,"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":674,"filter":"raw"}]},"featured_media_url":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dsc_4280-1280x866.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/186956","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\/109"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=186956"}],"version-history":[{"count":23,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/186956\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":187083,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/186956\/revisions\/187083"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/186841"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=186956"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=186956"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=186956"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}