The strategy process must be open

One of the ambitions of the University of Aarhus is that the strategy process is characterised by both openness and staff involvement.To help achieve this ambition, the university has set up an e-mail address that all members of staff can use.There is no limit to the questions that can be asked.Questions and answers of general interest will be published anonymously below.

Please use the form at the bottom of the strategy’s web pages or write to: strategi@au.dk .

Questions

• The strategy mentions that the university will establish an effective, professional and proactive research support unit. When will this happen?
• It says in the strategy that a flexible credit system will be set up – one that gives the students an opportunity for new and unconventional subject combinations.When will this be ready?
• Does the adopted strategy include the development of a joint e-learning system, and how much progress has been made on the process?
• What initiatives have been taken as regards increasing the commercialisation of research results, and why is this necessary?
• When does the University of Aarhus expect to set up a human resources (HR) organisation?Will it be centrally or decentrally based, and how extensive is it expected to be?
• Are the university’s plans for a high-rise building on the corner of Ringgaden and Nørrebrogade part of the new strategy?
• Will the strategy come to mean anything for the students?
• Has credit been given to the fact that the university is much more than the yellow brick buildings in Aarhus?
• What’s happening as regards internationalisation at the University of Aarhus?
• It says in the strategy that service and administration must be adapted to the actual needs of the individual unit based on geography, main academic area and other characteristics. Does this mean there will be greater differences in the level of service around the university?
• What are the specific plans regarding shared administrative systems?

The strategy mentions that the university will establish an effective, professional and proactive research support unit. When will this happen?

When it states in the strategy that the University of Aarhus will establish a strong research support unit, this is to contribute to helping the university’s researchers to become even better at preparing applications to Danish and international foundations and other entities empowered to make grants. We must improve the success rate of our applications in the years ahead so that we increase our share of external funds – with the clear aim of maintaining and boosting our research quality, of course.

We are sticking to this aim and making determined efforts to achieve it. However, we have revised the method mentioned in the strategy. Instead of actually establishing a research support unit, we have chosen to develop the collaboration we have had with the research support unit at Aarhus Hospital in recent years. There has indeed been considerable satisfaction with this collaboration, and it will now be developed to cover the entire university and include a number of services. We consider that close collaboration with Aarhus Hospital is the best starting point for the future work.

The research support unit will shortly provide more details about its work.

It says in the strategy that a flexible credit system will be set up – one that gives the students an opportunity for new and unconventional subject combinations.When will this be ready?

There is definitely a great need for making the degree programmes more flexible – including via credit – if the enormous potential for unconventional subject combinations at the university is to be exploited.The content of the degree programmes is partly regulated by the academic regulations and via decisions in each individual board of studies.In the Study Committee, we work on creating the overall framework for making the degree programmes and credit systems more flexible.Even on this point, however, the strategy can only be put into practice if it is actively supported in the academic environments.The question of merit, for example, comes within the competence of the boards of studies, according to the University Act.The members of the boards of studies, including the students, thus share responsibility for redirecting the practice as indicated by the strategy.

Does the adopted strategy include the development of a joint e-learning system, and how much progress has been made on the process?

An integrated part of the strategy is that the university’s diversity must be used for projects such as developing new degree programme combinations.This must be supported in terms of systems, and one of these must be developed to ensure that students and teachers have an opportunity to use modern communication cutting across degree programmes and the main academic areas.Whether this necessarily requires a completely joint e-learning system has not been determined as yet.The matter is urgent, but must await the setting up of a joint IT infrastructure under a joint IT management.The first steps in this direction have already been taken.

What initiatives have been taken as regards increasing the commercialisation of research results, and why is this necessary?

Several years ago, the University of Aarhus set up a new unit (Patent and Contract Unit) and last autumn, a deputy director of Technology Transfer and Innovation Service was appointed.These units will help researchers to turn their results into patents, product development, etc.All in all, the University of Aarhus wants to strengthen its efforts within the areas of innovation, technology transfer and business collaboration.There is a clear desire from the university (and a demand on the part of the community) that research results should benefit society as quickly as possible.

When does the University of Aarhus expect to set up a human resources (HR) organisation?Will it be centrally or decentrally based, and how extensive is it expected to be?

The university must do well in competition for the best employees.One of the ways we will ensure this is by establishing continuing education programmes that enable university staff to further develop the competences necessary to carry out the university’s core activities.Setting up an internal HR organisation is an important way of achieving this.The university has entered into an agreement with Rambøll Management,and the consultant’s report will identify the HR competences that already exist at the university, both centrally and decentrally. It will also provide the management with a basis for ideas and decisions regarding the placement, extent, development, etc. of such an HR function.Under the terms of the agreement, this report will be available by mid-March 2008.

Are the university’s plans for a high-rise building on the corner of Ringgaden and Nørrebrogade part of the new strategy?

Such a building is still part of the university’s vision, but no definite steps have been taken as yet.In accordance with the quality and diversity strategy adopted for 2008–2012, the university is currently working on a vision plan for the physical development of the entire university.

Will the strategy come to mean anything for the students?

Yes it will. One area given high priority in the university’s strategy is the study environment, and the university will work towards ensuring that the physical framework for a good study environment is developed on an ongoing basis as needs change.Student guidance will be modernised, and it must be ensured that all students, including international students, be integrated into the study environment e.g. by setting up reading groups, mentor and tutor schemes, and the use of interactive teaching methods.The university will regularly survey student satisfaction with the study environment.

The university will offer new degree programmes that reflect the needs of the future by utilising the entire breadth of its resources.As early as 1 September 2008, the university will offer three new degree programmes – a BSc in Agriculture, Food and Environment, an MSc in Agrobiology and an MSc in Sport Sciences.In addition, the university expects to be able to offer more new degree programmes in the course of the coming years.The university will work towards ensuring that the students themselves have better opportunities for making use of its extensive range of subjects to develop new and unusual subject combinations.

Has credit been given to the fact that the university is much more than the yellow brick buildings in Aarhus?

Yes it has. The university has decided to implement a number of initiatives to help give more coherence to the geographical layout of the university.These include preparing a coherent IT strategy with a shared campus network and systems support to effectively link the whole university.The university is also drawing up a joint development plan for its library facilities.A decision has also been made that the university’s service and administration must be adapted to the actual needs of the individual units based on their location and main academic area, etc.

What’s happening as regards internationalisation at the University of Aarhus?

Our research is international and, in the coming years, the university will strengthen this internationally acknowledged research even more, partly by assuming leadership and representation in international networks and forums, as well as consolidating the university’s key strategic international collaborative agreements.The university will attract more international researchers and students.It will also strengthen the administrative support of internationalisation, including the development of service packages for Danish and international students and staff.The students must have an opportunity to incorporate into their studies a period of study abroad that gives full credits internationally, to a minimum extent of 30 ECTS credits.More incentives to strengthen international researcher mobility will also be implemented in the coming period.

It says in the strategy that service and administration must be adapted to the actual needs of the individual unit based on geography, main academic area and other characteristics.Does this mean there will be greater differences in the level of service around the university?

The objective is to ensure professional support for the university’s core activities.Most people would agree that the service must be adapted to the actual needs, but the difficulty lies in determining who should settle the actual needs – and how.It will be up to the coming development projects in the administrative area to provide some of the answers.A number of these development projects will be based on indicators such as consumer surveys and other analyses that will ensure relevant and effective utilisation of the administrative resources.One method that could very well be considered for use in areas such as building facilities would be to let the areas themselves determine their request regarding the level of support in return for paying for the service provided.

What are the specific plans regarding shared administrative systems?

A number of different projects have been implemented in the administrative area.In the area of studies administration, the university has decided to join STADS, a joint study administrative system for universities.A preliminary project has been initiated and, within the course of six months, this will clarify when and how the transition to STADS will take place – as well as the work-related consequences.The Aarhus School of Business (ASB) and the Institute of Business and Technology (AU-IBT) already use STADS.The university has similarly decided to have a joint financial system in future – called Navision Stat.In this regard, plans are also under way for the transition,which will have the greatest impact on ASB and the Danish School of Education (DPU). ASB and DPU have previously used another system, but the entire university will notice the reorganisation as there will be a change to the latest version at the same time.Work is also being carried out regarding joint systems for human resources (HR), buildings and the area broadly described as office systems.

Plans for developing a joint IT infrastructure for the entire university are also important.