University Autonomy in Europe IV: Country Profiles (I)
Austria, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Norway, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland
The 2023 edition of the European University Association’s Autonomy Scorecard, the most comprehensive yet, provides a full comparative analysis of the state of play of university autonomy in 35 higher education systems in Europe.
The Scorecard country profiles delve into in-depth system analyses, offering insights into recent developments and presenting the sector's perspective on various aspects. For the first time, each profile better contextualises the higher education landscape via a dedicated section, along with radar charts that visualise the system in question's autonomy score. For this edition, the country profiles will be released in three batches. This first batch comprises the following systems: Austria, Denmark, Finland, Germany (Brandenburg, Hesse, North-Rhine Westphalia), Iceland, Ireland, Norway, Poland, Sweden, and Switzerland.
By generating information on the current state of university autonomy and governance reforms, the Scorecard enables a more successful benchmarking of national policies with regard to university autonomy and facilitates the exchange of good practices. With more than 30 indicators, the Scorecard methodology offers evidence of institutional autonomy across four key dimensions:
- Organisational autonomy (covering academic and administrative structures, leadership, and governance);
- Financial autonomy (covering the ability to raise funds, own buildings, borrow money, and set tuition fees);
- Staffing autonomy (including the ability to recruit independently, promote, and develop academic and non-academic staff);
- Academic autonomy (including study fields, student numbers, student selection as well as the structure and content of degrees).
