The link between Research and Higher Education

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1 The link between Research and Higher Education some observations and food for discussion Hans van Himbergen Utrecht University, The Netherlands First the context from which I speak, for your comparison with Moldova The Netherlands Population 16 M; Universities 14 Students in Universities Utrecht largest (and highest ranked) in NL (comprehensive students, BA/MA =3/2 research 45 bachelor programs university) 107 master programs (2000: 190) PhD s per year (stable), of 200/120 external grants in 2010/ full profs (+100 associated profs) roughly 2000 fte teaching equivalent; teaching/research 30-40/70-60 depending on field LERU Universities: sizeable variations, but many figures are of similar order of magnitude

BA/MA =3/2 research 45 bachelor programs university) 107 master programs (2000: 190) 400-500 PhD s per year (stable), of 200/120 external grants in 2010/2006 500 full profs (+100

2 Purpose of this presentation To review a few important trends that shape the relation between research and education and to examine some of the consequences for educational practice Trends in. Research (as such) Education (in general) Societal Context With (typical) university response/strategy

consequences for educational practice Trends in.

3 Research (as such) Scarcer/more diverse sources of funding drive competition and quality demands Focus and Mass: Fewer focus areas per university with more coherent programs coupled to areas of research strength Drives specialization, preferredpartnerships, efficiencyof international mobility (also of students at various levels!) Leads to master (and of course PhD) programs intimately linked to focus areas, and hence reduced in numbers Education (in general) Emphasis on excellence: every student realizes her/his full potential and takes responsibility for it Recognition of the role of research (outcomes and active participation!) as a key to fostering interest, motivation, and then individual excellence Realizing the most optimal path of development for every individual throughouther/his education process and engineering ultimate success

) Leads to master (and of course PhD) programs intimately linked to focus areas, and hence reduced in numbers Education (in general) Emphasis on excellence: every student realizes her/his full

4 Education (in general) continued The interface between research and education is fading, a new paradigm emerges long development lines from basic education to graduate school with consistent build-up of exposure to (hands-on) research There is and will be much more collaboration across all traditional boundaries in education, e.g. universities are also actively involved in secondary education There is and will be much more talent scouting and talent retention on the basis of better insights following from such closer collaborations, than on rule-based or diploma-based outcomes alone(active matching of students to study programs, broader selection criteria, career advice,..) Educational content (curricula) and student guidance will be built much more (consistently) around new paradigms, such as student responsibility, tailor-made study programs, consistent build-up and monitoring of learning outcomes at transition points in the educational process Altogether more active interactions of all involved about the quality of the educational experience and its lasting value for future activities. Societal context and here things start to connect to previous remarks and to converge to implementations in education on the basis of all these observations taken together Need to focus on Grand challenges (1) Young people are eager to actively contribute to making the world a better place (2) Present generations will have to be fit for a flexible job market or a diverse career (2) As a special case of this: careers inside Academia will also change, of course geared towards sustained individual success of teacher-researchers, but also in order to fulfill the high demands posed on them in preparing students for their role in society (3)

universities are also actively involved in secondary education There is and will be much more talent scouting and talent retention on the basis of better insights following from such closer

5 As a consequence (1) Research focus shift towards issues connected to Grand challenges which requires/entails Enhanced, but selective/directed international collaboration More emphasis on interdisciplinary research in the interplay between research and education Better ability to work in groups and basically understand the relevance of each others specializations The need to safeguard and organize the comprehensive nature of (undergraduate) education and/or the access of students to all fields of study (including e.g. structured mobility to assure that students are in the right place for them all the time), Organizing subcritical activities in individual universities into bustling places by interuniversity collaboration, particularly in in Doctoral education (see also short appendix) As a consequence (2) Universities should engage much more with employment sectors outside academia(of course obviously for many other reasons) in order to define and explain the added value of performing at academic level in these sectors. (this is one example of causes that LERU champions) Within competence-based education (across the board), more efforts should go into generic skills building at all levels, and these skills should be built-up systematically to a high final level. (e.g. LERU puts much efforts in the high end of this) Development of such skills in connection to research competencies would be a very good tool (or guiding principle) with many cutting edges; high schoolkids (not master-, or even worse, PhD candidates) should start learning about research paradigms and methodology, and learn to write papers and present posters; bachelor studentsshould have their first try at original research in a final project, and PhD candidates should only have to perfect such basic skills in their technical context and concentrate on additional added value (such as entrepreneurship, intellectual property, fund raiding, etc ).

6 As a consequence (3) With respect to careers inside academia (on which we in universities have the inclination to concentrate too much at the expense of academic careers outsideacademia, given that almost all our graduates end up in the latter), we see (or it would be good if) trends (were strengthened) to further enable our teacher-researchers by having mixed teacher-research careers as a rule, with relevant time to deliver high-quality research, and appreciation for teaching excellence on equal footing with that of research Supporting their careerdevelopment in researchby personal grant opportunities tailored to the point at which they are in their career, and in teachingby appropriate tools (e.g. formal merit-based teaching qualifications and chances of further professional development) Enabling them to bring high quality research, and the collaborative spirit it entails, to the content of curricula, also at undergraduate level, and to their teaching practices. Final remarks The intention of this presentation is to solicit debate on issues like these. Even if not everything in this presentation can actually be talked about (which is extremely likely), the written presentation should facilitate debate. The situation in Moldova is different from the context of the kind of universities that are implied here. The challenges may be very similar though. Comparing shared features, as well as contrasting differences may be fruitful. In as much as recommendations sound through in the above, they are of course also meant as invitations to further discussion, not as pertinent references to the state-of-affairs in Moldova, of which the speaker is only a beginning student. I am not qualified, and therefore very modest, to speak directly to issues that may be playing in Moldova.

rule, with relevant time to deliver high-quality research, and appreciation for teaching excellence on equal footing with that of research Supporting their careerdevelopment in researchby personal

7 Appendix on the efforts to organize Doctoral education, already long-standing and quite successful in some European countries (such as The Netherlands), and a topic of (renewed) interest in the EU (commission) in view of systematic implementation of structured doctoral education in the EU s present (in e.g. The Netherlands) Formation of Doctoral schools or Research schools 2000 s (as a result of Bologna) Organization of graduate education : master and PhD, leading to Graduate schools. See also for a LERU position paper on the future of doctoral education Objectives (achievement in various stages of development throughout European universities) of graduate schools and embedded research schools 1. Provide research focus and critical mass 2. guarantee proper planning, project monitoring, supervision, feedback and quality control 2. offer broader learning context in the field of study and beyond (generic skills) 3. offer exposure to the relevant international academic community and to professional practice 4. offer an academic community on a daily basis: ambiance, colleagues, opportunities

The Netherlands) Formation of Doctoral schools or Research schools 2000 s (as a result of Bologna) Organization of graduate education : master and PhD, leading to Graduate schools. See also www.leru.

The Role of Doctoral Programmes for Academic Careers in Germany. IPID International Doctoral Conference at the University of Cologne, 2-4 May 2013

The Role of Doctoral Programmes for Academic Careers in Germany IPID International Doctoral Conference at the University of Cologne, 2-4 May 2013 Prof. Dr. Barbara M. Kehm IBK.Kehm@t-online.de. 1 Structure