Trends in University Autonomy in Europe and Ireland Thomas Estermann Director Governance, Funding and Public Policy Development Dublin

850 members in 43 countries

…4… Structure I. Why university autonomy II. The state of university autonomy in Europe/Ireland: data – trends – scorecards  Staffing autonomy  Financial autonomy  Organisational autonomy  Academic autonomy

Positive correlations exist between autonomy and:  performance  quality  degrees of income diversification  internationalisation  efficiency and effectiveness Institutional autonomy:  allows universities to decide on strategic priorities according to their strengths;  does not automatically lead to better performance, but it is an important prerequisite. Why university autonomy? …5…

Challenges Institutional autonomy:  is a complex concept that consists of various interconnected elements  is contingent on the diverse cultural, political, legal and historical backgrounds of Europe’s HE systems  cannot be measured objectively  There are diverse systems, even within countries  There is not just one model – context is very important The Autonomy Scorecard:  had to take into account constantly changing legislative frameworks and at times contradictory policy developments  had to simplify complex situations …6…

Methodology of the Autonomy Scorecard The scoring system:  is based on deductions → restrictions on institutional autonomy are assigned a deduction value based on how restrictive a particular regulation is seen to be;  produces percentage scores for each indicator;  calculates the score for one autonomy dimension as an average of the scores for all indicators making up that dimension. …7…

Organisational Selection procedure/ criteria for rector Dismissal/ term of office of rector Inclusion/ selection of external members in governing bodies Deciding on academic structures Creating legal entities Financial Length/ type of public funding Keeping a surplus Borrowing money Owning buildings Charging tuition fees for national/ EU students Charging tuition fees for non-EU students Staffing Staff recruitment procedures Staff salaries Staff dismissals Staff promotions Academic Deciding on overall student numbers Selecting students Introducing/ terminating programmes Choosing language of instruction Selecting QA mechanisms/ providers Designing content of programmes …8…

Staffing autonomy - trends Recruitment procedures are less prescribed than before. In most systems, restrictions still apply to staff salaries, although these are less likely to be due to the civil servant status of university staff. Staff dismissals and promotions remain restricted in more than half of the systems studied. The financial crisis has affected staffing policies in some countries.

Staffing autonomy – the scorecard …10…

Staffing autonomy issues now The financial crisis has affected institutional autonomy The Employment Control Framework has reduced staffing autonomy in all indicators and effects other dimensions as well Salary bands are prescribed at central level Additional restrictions and lower salaries at entry level for new staff Reductions in salary through between 6-14% gross Increased taxation, larger pension contributions, and other social charges impacts on salaries

Staffing autonomy 2014 Original scorecard Updated 2014 version ChangeMain reason 82% “high” cluster 43% “medium low” cluster -39%Increased deductions on recruitment, salaries and promotions. Change in collective agreements on dismissal.

Financial autonomy – trends Universities generally receive their public funding as a block grant, although its allocation may be restricted. Surpluses can be kept and money borrowed in a majority of systems, but in practice, various limitations still apply. Universities in most systems are able to own their buildings, but often require external permission to sell them. The situation is complex, but universities tend to be more free to set tuition fees for MA and non-EU students. …13…

Financial autonomy – the scorecard 2012 …14…

Financial autonomy issues now Earmarking of parts of the block grant for specific purposes should be kept to minimum as well as top slicing Institutions should be able to keep a surplus Funding linked to student numbers requires reflection Capacity to borrow money could be more flexible Universities should have a longer funding period Discussion on fees for national and EU students at Bachelor level

Financial autonomy 2014 Original scorecard Updated 2014 version ChangeMain reason 66% “medium high” cluster 63% “medium high cluster” -3%Higher deduction to reflect increase in top-slicing from general budget

Organisational autonomy - trends External members are now included in university governing bodies in a majority of systems, though external authorities often remain involved in their selection. Universities in nearly all systems are free to create legal entities and decide on academic structures. Rectors are always chosen by the universities, although external authorities often have to confirm the appointment.

Organisational autonomy – the scorecard 2012 …18…

Organisational autonomy issues 2014 Organisational autonomy in IE is advanced but: more advanced countries have more flexibility in composition of governing bodies and smaller bodies Threats to academic structure if legislation over staff numbers is implemented Regulation on employment in legal entities should be made more flexible.

Organisational autonomy 2014 Original scorecard Updated 2014 version ChangeMain reason 81% “high” cluster 73% “medium high” cluster -8% Change due to further deduction on capacity to decide on academic structures and further deduction on capacity to create legal entities

Overall student numbers are limited in nearly all systems. Universities in Europe still have little freedom in choosing QA mechanisms. Accreditation is still compulsory for BA/MA programmes in a majority of systems. The language of instruction can be chosen freely in approx. 2/3 of all systems. Ireland is the most autonomous system evaluated in the Scorecard. => No change in 2014 Academic autonomy - trends …21…

Academic autonomy – the scorecard 2014 …22…

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Other autonomy issues 2014 Universities Act in principle strong framework for autonomy – but danger of reduction through additional legislation or threats of emergency legislation to force compliance. General direction of state policy towards increasing control of universities has intensified. Declining public budget and increasing state control in relation to staffing Draft legislation regarding ministerial directives, national labour agreements has the capacity to significantly impact on university autonomy Binding decisions of the Labour Court have an impact on institutions without their involvement.

Other autonomy issues II Strategic dialogue and performance contracts should not be taken out of the core funding These apply for the first time for 2014/2015 and funding was held back by the HEA on that basis Public service reforms (e.g. shared services initiatives, central procurement, employment control framework, etc.) have an impact on universities' ability to manage their own affairs (individually and/or collectively) The introduction of a National Research Prioritisation Exercise that orients competitive research funding towards 14 priority areas reduces scope for internal strategic decision-making.

9-10 October 2014, Bergamo, Italy Strategies for sustainable funding of universities

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