Newsletter from the Rectorate February 2012 · 17. February 2012
New University Campus in Copenhagen
On 19 January 2012, the Financial Committee of the Folketing accepted Aalborg Univesity’s tenancy of Nokia’s former Danish headquarters at Frederikskaj in Copenhagen. This means that our activities in the capital, including the Danish Building Research Institute, will finally be gathered in one location. The new premises include three buildings with a total area of 42,500 m2. Not only will we now be able to offer our students a fantastic physical location, but our target is to create the innovative university of the future with teaching, research and business under one roof. We have already made agreements with a number of international enterprises to move in with us, in addition to a number of high-technology upcoming enterprises.
On 1 February, the first students and teaching staff moved into the new premises, and we expect to gather our remaining activities during the spring and summer. This means that we will completely abandon our premises in Ballerup and Hørsholm.
Visitors from the Spar Nord Foundation
On Thursday 19 January, the Spar Nord Foundation board of directors came to visit Aalborg University. The board had been invited for a tour of the university as well as a number of presentations to provide them with a more comprehensive insight into the entire university and an encounter of some of the projects which have received funds from the foundation over the years. On their tour, the board members were introduced to Centre of Reliable Power Electronics, Public use of force – administrative enforcement, Holiday Homes in Future, Medical Science, collaboration with the North Jutland Region and Aalborg Hospital, and Genetic Expression and Biotechnology. The tour also introduced the board members to the ECO racing car, which is sponsored primarily by the Spar Nord Foundation. The board members were delighted with the event – not least with the large number of interesting presentations from the research environments.
Visit by the Minister for Science, Innovation and Higher Education
Morten Østergaard, Minister for Science, Innovation and Higher Education, visited Aalborg University 23 January on his tour of all Danish universities after he took up office as minister of higher education. In the AAU programme of the visit, focus was on the government platform for research and education, and the Minister was briefed about the way in which Aalborg University is already contributing to fulfilling the government platform requirements through for instance a speedy and high completion rate, an increase in intake, 80% pattern breakers, a high employment rate among new graduates etc. In addition, an increase in the intake to the medical programme, programmes abroad, and innovation were debated.
New development contract for the period 2012 - 2014
The Ministry for Science, Innovation and Higher Education informed the universities in January that they must prepare new development contracts for the period 2012-2014. The ministry has issued four mandatory targets for which the universities must establish benchmarks. In addition, each university must select 3-5 targets. The mandatory targets from the Ministry take the following areas as their starting points:
- Improved quality in the programmes
- Improved coherence in the educational system
- Shorter completion time
- Increased innovation capacity
It will be the task of each individual university to establish concrete benchmarks within each area, and these will finally be negotiated and settled with the Ministry. The new contract will be prepared during the spring of 2012, but will take effect retroactively.
The rectorate has prepared a proposal for benchmarks, and these have been circulated at the university in a hearing process.
Reintroduction of group exams
The Ministry for Science, Innovation and Higher Education has announced that the government wishes to reintroduce group exams at all levels from primary schools to universities. On this background, Aalborg University has been summoned together with the other universities to a process of dialogue in order to discuss proposals for new rules. The purpose is to clarify whether limits need to be established as to the number of group exams, number of participants in a group exam, and whether the students will be have a legal claim for individual exams, etc. The Ministry expects the new rules regarding group exams to take effect from 1 September 2012.
Aalborg University takes over the chairmanship of Nordic Centre
As of 1 January 2012, Aalborg University has taken over the chairmanship of Nordic Centre, and for the next three years, pro-rector Inger Askehave will chair the joint Nordic collaboration with Fudan University in Shanghai. This chairmanship includes the responsibility for Nordic Centre’s Nordic secretariat, which Aalborg University will host until January 2015. This will be located in the management secretariat. Nordic Centre is expected to interact with Aalborg University’s existing activities in China, and to contribute to the general profiling of AAU internationally.
Nordic Centre was established in 1995 with Fudan University as a main collaboration partner in China, and it is located in a separate building on campus at Fudan University in Shanghai. Fudan University is number three on the rating list of the best Chinese universities. 25 Nordic universities are members of Nordic Centre, and Denmark is well represented with five universities: University of Copenhagen, Aarhus University, University of Southern Denmark, Copenhagen Business School and Aalborg University. Today, Nordic Centre is a versatile platform which is working on the strengthening of Danish and Nordic Universities’ collaboration with Chinese partners within research and teaching.
AAU researchers may use Nordic Centre to make contact to Chinese research environments at Fudan University and other prestigious universities in the Shanghai region. In addition, Nordic Centre offers practical and financial assistance in relation to the conduction of for instance PhD courses in collaboration with Chinese partners, guest teaching programmes, business collaboration with Danish and Chinese enterprises, and student exchange programmes.
For further information please contact:
AAU member of Nordic Centre Council: Olav Jull Sørensen, Professor, Department of Business and Management.
Nordic Centre secretariat at AAU: Louise Bredgaard, and Mette Grønbæk Olesen.
Link to Nordic Centre in Shanghai: www.nordiccentre.org
ECIU agreement on sustainable campuses
In November last year ECIU held its traditional biannual board meeting. On this occasion, the majority of the universities signed Charter Sustainable Campus, which is a good example of the expansion of collaboration within the consortium. The ECIU universities must begin to focus on research, education and communication in relation to sustainability. This means that the universities oblige themselves to ensure that, during their studies, the graduates become well acquainted with the meaning of working sustainably, and thus are able to carry this knowledge into their new jobs. Particularly Strathclyde and Tecnológico de Monterrey, Mexico, are in the lead as far as sustainability is concerned.
EUniverCities
Another example of international collaboration which Aalborg University has just joined is a network called EUniverCities. This network focuses on collaboration between university and city, and it is therefore a precondition that the university and the city in question (local authorities) are joint members. Cities in the network are similar to Aalborg in size, and the following are members: Aachen, Ghent, Delft, Lausanne, Lviv, Trondheim, Tampere and Varna. This network is a platform for the sharing of knowledge and the development of ideas of how to organize collaboration on the creation of a good student city.
New International online study guide
AAU has launched a new recruitment website for potential international students. “Study guide” is one part of the implementation of Aalborg University’s web strategy for 2010-2015 in the international recruitment area and a result of the rectorate’s wish to focus on internationalisation and globalisation. “Study guide” has been developed by a cross-organisational group with participants from AAU Communication, AAU Portal, communication staff from the faculties, International Office, and the Central Study Guidance service.
The new international website is available at www.studyguide.aau.dk
Remember the Pedagogical Day
On 14 March, the Pedagogical Day will be held at all three campuses, and this year’s theme is the further development of Aalborg University’s PBL model. The purpose of the pedagogical day is to provide all teaching staff from all the main areas with an opportunity of inspiration and mutual sparring. Please visit the webpage for programme and enrolment.
Best regards,
Finn Kjærsdam and Inger Askehave
