7. januar 2009 aarhus universitet aarhus university

7. JANUAR 2009

AARHUSUNIVERSITETAARHUSUNIVERSITY

RECTOR LAURITZ B. HOLM-NIELSEN FEBRUARY 2009

2

AARHUSUNIVERSITY

The vision of Aarhus University

is to belong to the elite of universities

and to contribute to the development

of national and global welfare


3

AARHUSUNIVERSITY

Aarhus University in the Global Market - The impact of university rankings

Outline

• Denmark in the rankings

• Staying in front

• A global market for education and research is emerging

• Aarhus University’s response

• Many kinds of benchmarks are neccesary


4

AARHUSUNIVERSITY

National Rankings

• Innovative capacity

Denmark number 5 in the world

Source: DIW, Deutsche Telecom Stiftung

• Global Competitiveness Index

Denmark no. 3

Source: WEF, 2008

• Subjective Well-Being Index

Denmark no. 1

Source: World Values Survey, 2008


5

AARHUSUNIVERSITY

Research systems ranking

•Research Impact

Denmark, US and Switzerland

in front on citation frequency

and Nordic countries all well

above world average

(Source: NIFU/STEP, Thomsons Reuters,

National Science Indicators)

World average


6

AARHUSUNIVERSITY

HE systems ranking

• University systems ranking

Denmark number 3, with only UK

and Australia in front

• Universities measured on

inclusiveness, effectiveness, life

long learning, access,

responsiveness, attractiveness

(Source: The Lisbon Council, Policy Brief,

2008)


7

AARHUSUNIVERSITY

Rankings controlled for population size

Times Higher top100 2008

• 2 Danish Univ (1 : 2.5 mio. people)

• 17 UK Univ (1 : 3.5 mio.)

• 4 Dutch Univ ( 1 : 4 mio.)

• 2 Swedish Univ (1 : 4.5 mio.)

• 37 US Univ (1 : 8 mio.)

• 3 German Univ (1 : 27 mio.)

Shanghai top100 2008

• 4 Swedish (1 : 2 mio.)

• 2 Danish Univ (1 : 2.5 mio.)

• 11 UK Univ (1:5.5 mio.)

• 54 US Univ (1: 5.5 mio.)

• 2 Dutch Univ (1 : 8 mio.)

• 6 German Univ (1 : 14 mio.)


8

AARHUSUNIVERSITY

Staying in front: A Globalisation Council

Members• Chaired by the Danish Prime Minister• Ministers of Finance, Trade & Industry, Science &

Technology and Education• Representatives from the key sections of the Danish

Society (from trade unions, industrial organisations, companies, the education and research community, and the Danish Government)

Function• Advisory Council to the Danish Government

• Answer the question: How does Denmark maintain it’s position as one of the wealthiest countries in the world and a country with strong social cohesion?


9

AARHUSUNIVERSITY

The Government’s objectives

Progress, Innovation and Cohesion

• Denmark shall stay among the most attractive countries in the world to live and

work in – also in 10 and 20 years from now.

• Denmark shall remain a country where everyone is optimally equipped to unfold

their abilities and create prosperity for themselves and for others

• A country that has a global outlook and plays an active role in the world

community.

• A country where everyone participates in the renewal process and where everyone

shares in progress and cohesion.


10

AARHUSUNIVERSITY

World top level universities

The Government’s objectives for ensuring world top level universities

• Danish universities should be comparable to global top performing universities.

• Universities should develop attractive academic environments and hereby contribute

to attracting and retaining highly qualified labour and companies in Denmark.

Three steps to reach the objectives

• Professionalising universities

• Reorganising HE&R institutions

• Modernising the funding compact


11

AARHUSUNIVERSITY

11

A global market for education and research

Distance has disappeared and now the challenge is for

universities to stay competitive in a developing global market for

higher education and research


12

AARHUSUNIVERSITY

Three decades of growth in student mobility

Students enrolled outside their country of citizenship (1975-2005)

Source: Education at a glance, OECD, 2007


13

AARHUSUNIVERSITY

13

Global challenges for universities

• Increased mobility and competition to attract the best

• Increased convergence of national higher education systems (Bologna, ECTS, EULAC etc.)

• Increased liberalization and trading in educational programs (WTO-GATS)

• Increased competition for research funding


14

AARHUSUNIVERSITY

Aarhus University’s response

• AU defends academic freedom• AU counter balances short

term trends• AU benchmarks – but believes

that no benchmark holds the whole truth

• AU engages the national and international community and offers leadership in international fora

• AU contributes to the global market for knowledge and talent


15

AARHUSUNIVERSITY

Examples of internationalisation at AU

• Focus on global change

• Proactivity in international fora

• Increased focus on centres of excellence

and research talent development

• New China-strategy –in Chinese

• A developing country strategy

• Wellcoming diversity


16

AARHUSUNIVERSITY

Knowing the current position is a prerequisite to reach the goal

Aarhus University seeks diverse information and many kinds of

benchmarks are useful:• Northern European Benchmarking Project• Bibliometric benchmarking project in collaboration with CWTS, Leiden• Participating in international workshops and seminars• Danish Universities database• Various university rankings and global indicator systems

• Shanghai• Times Higher• Leiden• Thomson Reuters subject rankings• Deutcher Telekom• Lisbon Council + OECD, WEF, World Bank


17

AARHUSUNIVERSITY

Up and down on Times Higher - but the older and larger universities dominate

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

200

2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

YEAR

RANK

Copenhagen

Uppsala

Aarhus

Amsterdam

London School of Economics

Leiden

Oslo


18

AARHUSUNIVERSITY

Leidens ’green’ list, an opportunity for the medium sized and specialised universities

• Controlling for size and

field gives another

picture

• Low P – but a high

impact factor


19

AARHUSUNIVERSITY

Northern European Benchmarking project

The benchmarking project focuses on developing tools and processes

by learning from each other

Themes• International Master Programmes

• PhD Studies stategies

• Research funding and management

• Internal allocation of ressources


20

AARHUSUNIVERSITY

Rankings – AU’s position

• Rankings and indicator systems are important positioning tools

• Rankings are important when it comes to attracting foreign students and

researchers

• Rankings play a role in the national debate

• Rankings are also important in our internal debate at AU

• Be precise and communicate what rankings tell - and what they don’t!• Times Higher: Peers, Bibliometrics and Internationalisation• Shanghai: Bibliometrics, Medals and Honours• Leiden: Bibliometrics

• Rankings should not be used in a ressource allocation model


21

AARHUSUNIVERSITY

21

The real challenge

-- is not funding but competing for the most advanced human capital…. and size matters

Nobel Laureate Jens Christian Skou, The Nobel Prize in Chemistry, 1997


22

AARHUSUNIVERSITY

22

Thank you for the invitation!

Basismidler efter kvalitet

Thanks for the attention [email protected]

Thanks for the attention!

[email protected]


23

AARHUSUNIVERSITY

Rector Lauritz B. Holm-Nielsen

Selected boards and councils• 2008- Board member EUA• 2008- Commisioner of the Prime Ministers Africa Commission• 2008- Chairman, Nordic University Collaboration• 2006- Vice-Chairman, Danish Rectors Conference• 2000-01 Vice-Chairman, Danish Research Commission• 1985-87 Chairman, Danish Science Research Council

Positions• 2005- Rector, Aarhus University• 1993-05 Lead Higher Education Specialist, World Bank, • 1986-93 Rector, Danish Research Academy• 1983-85 Director, Botanical Institute, University of Aarhus• 1976-79 Dean, Faculty of Sciences, University of Aarhus• 1979-81 Professor, P. Universidad Católica, Quito, Ecuador• 1972-86 Associate Professor of Botany, Aarhus University

7. januar 2009 aarhus universitet aarhus university

Documents