Column by Anders Bjarklev, President at DTU. Published in Frederiksborg Amts Avis on 11.10.2024.
DTU recently held an Education and Research Policy Summit, at which the Danish Parliament's spokespersons on higher education and research together with Christina Egelund, Minister for Higher Education and Science, were invited to debate the upcoming master's degree reform with representatives from the business community and universities.
There was disagreement in many areas, which is hardly surprising in light of the highly charged debate in recent weeks, where business leaders in the newspaper Politiken have called the reform "grotesque and insane", with the Confederation of Danish Industry warning in another newspaper, Berlingske, that the plans will make Denmark poorer should they be implemented.
However, leaving aside the criticism and the many disagreements, there was actually one thing at the summit which everyone could agree on: That knowledge and education are Denmark's most important resource.
"We make a living from it today, and we must also make a living from it tomorrow," said Lars Sandahl, CEO of the Confederation of Danish Industry.
"If we're going to do battle with China, it's going to be based on knowledge and research," said education and research spokesperson Lise Bertelsen from the Conservative People's Party.
"It's good that we're a knowledge society, and I'm very focused on this," said Christina Egelund, Minister for Higher Education and Science from the Moderates party.
Everyone in the hall shared the same view on this—right across the political spectrum. Education and knowledge are crucial for the Danish economy, Denmark's competitiveness, and the country's position as an attractive partner.
And it has left me feeling slightly confused. Because if education is so important, why do the parties behind the master's degree reform want to implement cutbacks in this particular area?
When facts don't make sense
As a qualified engineer, I've learned how to derive knowledge from facts. But in this case, it's not helping me.
The fact is that if the master's degree reform takes effect next year as planned, almost 2,700 fewer young people will fulfil their dream of completing a long-term higher education programme.
At DTU, where we educate engineers, we will have 132 fewer places compared to 2023, even though the MSc in Engineering programme this year was the study programme with most applicants in Denmark.
The master's degree reform will thus see us educating fewer engineers for the green transition, for the digitalization of society, and for contributing to growth within the life sciences.
This is unfortunate, as an analysis from Iris Group, a consultancy and analysis firm, shows that in 2030 there will be a shortage of 17,000-21,000 employees with technical degrees, including engineers, among companies on Zealand alone.
The facts also show that the cost of implementing the cuts will be enormous. According to a new analysis from Kraka Economics, the cuts in university education will cost society DKK 40 billion by 2050. Of this, the cuts in the technical and natural science programmes will account for 40 per cent of this sum. 40 per cent!
Rescind the cuts in university places
It must be obvious to everyone that the consensus that education and knowledge are Denmark's most important resource is not at all in line with current government policy.
If politicians want Denmark to maintain its position as a leading knowledge nation which can compete internationally and at the same time reap the socioeconomic benefits, it is necessary to apply the brakes now.
Addressing the lack of students on the main welfare programmes is understandable. But it doesn't make sense to solve the problem by creating a new and even bigger one.
The call from here therefore is to go back to the starting point:
Look at the facts. Abolish the cuts in university places. And decide on a framework for tomorrow's master's degree landscape that reflects the value which we all agree knowledge and education hold for our society.
They are our most important resource.
