AU scientists to coordinate knowledge transfer to developing countries

Universities Denmark (DU) has responded to a request from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark, with Minister for Development Cooperation Søren Pind, and reorganised its Building Stronger Universities in Developing Countries initiative. This is in line with the priorities outlined by DANIDA (Danish International Development Agency). The seven focus areas on which previous work was based have now been combined in four themes. Aarhus University is chairing two of the groups responsible for the themes.

The 4 steering groups          Chairmanship

1. Environment & Climate   Aarhus University
2. Growth & Employment    University of Southern Denmark
3. Vulnerability, etc.           Aarhus University
4. Human Health                University of Copenhagen

Chair for the theme Environment & Climate is Professor Erik Jeppesen, Department of Freshwater Ecology, NERI. The theme Vulnerability, etc. will be chaired by Associate Professor Jens Seeberg, Section for Anthropology and Ethnography, Faculty of Humanities.

The universities must nominate members of the steering groups by 16 August. Members must have core competences in the academic field of the respective themes. The investment will be higher in 2010 and 2011, and DU expects that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will announce the amount of the increase during the summer.

• Read more about Building Stronger Universities in Developing Countries

More Master’s students look towards AU

Aarhus University’s work to strengthen its Master’s degree programmes appears to have paid off. A provisional report for 2010 shows that 5,440 students chose one of AU’s Master’s degree programmes as their first priority, which is almost 300 more than the year before, corresponding to an increase of six per cent. These figures do not include the supplementary degree programmes at DPU and the new Erasmus Mundus students.

It also appears that education is high on the agenda among young people, and that the university can therefore expect many applications for Bachelor’s degree programmes, for which the deadline for application was 5 July. AU expects to announce the total number of applicants on 13 July.

Analysis work well under way at the main academic areas

At the university management meeting on 30 June, the deans and the Rector’s Office discussed the framework for the major analysis work that will result in a proposal for organising the four new main academic areas. All areas are now well under way with setting up working groups that consist of staff and students cutting across the present main academic areas.

It is generally agreed that the challenges are very different at each main academic area, and that the work plans can therefore not be identical. The importance of maintaining a focus on the involvement of employees and students wherever possible has been emphasised – particularly in the process regarding the new boards of studies.

The website for the academic development process will closely follow the analysis work. A special subpage has been set up in this regard, providing a forum for students and staff to share their thoughts and ideas about interdisciplinary collaboration on research and education. The site will be updated with new interviews and video features during the summer and autumn.

• Thoughts and ideas from staff and students (in Danish only)

Budget 2011

Aarhus University expects the Finance Act subsidy to increase from DKK 3.085 billion in 2010 to DKK 3.263 billion in 2011. This is naturally an estimate as regards the Finance Act, where a large part of the increase will go to educating more PhD students. The 2011 budget will be adjusted, partly when the main academic areas report more precise figures for growth in STÅ rates (revenue in terms of student productivity), and partly when the Finance Act is approved this autumn. The total turnover for 2010 is expected to be DKK 5.6 billion.

As regards the 2010 budget, the Board of Aarhus University has decided to build up a management pool of DKK 200 million as of 2011, to be partly used to support academic integration, the degree programmes and developing the new main academic areas. Another change is that the four new main academic areas will budget with an income objective amounting to zero, and will thus not be able to make future-oriented transfers of debts/assets. However, 2011 will be a transitional year.

International conference on talent development

Aarhus University is represented at ESOF2010 – the Euroscience Open Forum (ESOF) – the major international university conference currently being held in Torino.

This year’s conference focuses particularly on developing research talent, with sub-themes such as early recruitment of research talent, career development, identification of talent and talent development. Aarhus University is paying great attention to this year’s theme, which is close to its overall aim of increasing efforts in the area of talent development.

Representing the Rector’s Office is Lauritz B. Holm-Nielsen. In connection with the conference, he has just been re-elected as a Governing Board member of Euroscience, the organiser of ESOF2010.

• Read more about the Euroscience Open Forum

Newsletter in July

The Rector’s Office would like to wish everyone a really good summer holiday. This newsletter will not be issued during the rest of July. However, we will provide information about important subjects such as the number of applicants and admission figures for Bachelor’s students when the figures are available.

Calendar

• 12 August: University management meeting
• 23 August: Deadline for applications for the four new dean positions
• 30 August: University management meeting
• 10 September: Aarhus University’s annual celebration

Have a good summer!

Kind regards
The Rector’s Office
7 July 2010

The Rector’s Office publishes a newsletter every week. This newsletter includes a brief description of current activities and discussions. You can sign up for the Danish version of the newsletter at http://info.au.dk/medarbbreve, after which you will receive an e-mail whenever the newsletter is issued.
If you would like to subscribe to the English version of News from the Rector’s Office, please go to http://info.au.dk/medarbbreve/index.asp?sprog=en. The English version of News from the Rector’s Office is available at http://www.au.dk/en/uni/rectorate/newsletter. You can read previous editions of News from the Rector’s Office at http://www.au.dk/en/about/uni/rektorat/newsletter/2010/.

The Rector’s Office publishes a newsletter every week. This newsletter includes a brief description of current activities and discussions. You can sign up for the Danish version of the newsletter at http://info.au.dk/medarbbreve, after which you will receive an e-mail whenever the newsletter is issued.