Political agreement on new master’s degree reform

In the Government’s original proposal for reform of the education sector from March (in Danish:  https://ufm.dk/publikationer/2023/forberedt-pa-fremtiden-1), it was proposed that up to 50% of the education programmes would be restructured. In the agreement that has now been reached, the involved parties have agreed that 30% of the places on 2-year master’s programmes will in the future be converted into master’s programmes for working professionals (20%) and 1¼-year master’s programmes (10%).

- The reform has ended up being less extensive than was originally proposed by the Government. Fortunately, this means that fewer students than we had feared will be enrolled on short programmes. At the same time, the increased taximeter [the amount of money per student allocated by the state] in the social sciences and humanities programmes seems to have been made permanent after many years of uncertainty, says Rector Jens Ringsmose.

- Having said that, I would also like to emphasise that this reform is by no means the result of a desire on our part but is driven by the goal of increasing labour supply and revenue. A huge transformation of the university sector still lies ahead of us.

Shorter master’s programmes and master’s programmes for working professionals

According to the agreement, the intention is for 10% of future master’s students to study on a shorter programme of 1¼ years. The remaining 20% of students who cannot take an ordinary 2-year master’s programme will in future have to take a master’s programme for working professionals of up to 120 ECTS, in which part-time study is combined with work, or a business-oriented master’s programme with a mandatory company internship, although this has not yet been formulated in the agreement.

- The universities in Denmark contribute significantly to growth, prosperity and development in Denmark through our education programmes, research, innovation and collaboration. Common to us all is that we uphold standards of high quality and academic excellence, because that is the very prerequisite for us being able to contribute at such a high level. As a result, we have been deeply concerned about the consequences of the colossal shortening of the master’s degree programmes that were originally planned. So, in spite of everything, it is positive that with the agreement there is consensus that the short 1¼-year programmes should only account for 10 percent of the places, says Rector Jens Ringsmose.

Adjustment and international students

The agreement also places a cap on the universities’ future intake of new bachelor students, with a proposed reduction of 8% compared with the average intake between 2018 and 2022. In addition to the adjustments to the master’s degree programmes, the political agreement also includes a focus on strengthening the framework for further and continuing education and a greater intake of international students.

- All universities have now been set the task of working together to shape how this political agreement will be carried out. SDU will engage constructively in this work so that the agreement can be implemented as wisely and responsibly as possible, says Rector Jens Ringsmose.

The process going forward

Although the political framework for the master’s reform is now in place, there are still unresolved issues that will be negotiated in a so-called agreement addendum between the parties after the summer break. 

The Ministry of Higher Education and Science will also establish a so-called master’s committee in which all Danish universities will participate. Here, concrete proposals for the new landscape of master’s programmes will be developed and coordinated.

To support the distribution of master’s programmes for working professionals in the private labour market, a master’s partnership has been established between the Confederation of Danish Industry, the Confederation of Danish Enterprise, Universities Denmark and the Ministry of Higher Education and Science. Public employers – that is, the State (the Danish Employee and Competence Agency), the municipalities (Local Government Denmark) and the regions (Danish Regions), will also participate in the master’s partnership.

In 2028, the first master’s students will be admitted under the new system.

Read more about the reform on the Ministry of Higher Education and Science’s website (in Danish): https://ufm.dk/aktuelt/pressemeddelelser/2023/bredt-reformforlig-sikrer-milliardinvestering-i-uddannelse/bredt-reformforlig-sikrer-milliardinvestering-i-uddannelse