Universities and organizations demand investment in education

The quality of academic education is declining, administrators of 18 organizations and 14 universities in a letter to n the AD. They demanded substantial investments in academic teaching and threatened action if it does not happen.

"Accountancy firm Pricewaterhouse Coopers stated last March that an additional investment of 1.1 billion euros is desperately needed," the directors wrote. "If that substantial investment of at least 1.1 billion euros is not made, that will be the signal for us to start follow-up action."

They claimed that universities' budget per student was said to have fallen "alarmingly deep," leaving too little room for qualitative academic education and teachers' research. University staff was also said to be working 30 percent overtime per week, which "threatens the standard of our education and causes more and more young people to leave science."

The pressure on students is also tremendous, according to schools, partly due to debts and the push to graduate quickly. Therefore, the directors asked the forming parties to "invest broadly in education and research and innovation to opt for more fixed financing and invest structurally.