The Personnel Faction, the largest party in the University Council of the University of Groningen (UG), strongly opposes a potential faculty merger, as reported by UKrant on Wednesday. ‘The priority must remain on academic quality and diversity.’
As the Personnel Faction in the university council, we are deeply concerned about the possible plan to merge smaller faculties into larger ones or to combine multiple faculties into a single mega-faculty.
Although efficiency, flexibility, and cost savings are often cited as justifications, the disadvantages of this organisational change outweigh the benefits and pose significant risks to the quality and diversity of academic education and research.
Loss of quality, identity, and history
Smaller faculties often have their own academic and cultural identity, history, specialised knowledge, and unique teaching methods. This is reflected in their consistently high ratings in, for example, the Keuzegids (Dutch university guide).
A merger with larger faculties may lead to the disappearance or subordination of this specialised expertise to broader, more generic structures. This would be detrimental to both educational quality and scientific research.
Loss of autonomy and flexibility
Smaller faculties can quickly adapt to new scientific developments and educational needs. In a larger, more cumbersome organisation, decision-making slows down, reducing innovation and making it harder to tailor education and research to specific needs.
Disruption and demotivation among staff
Staff members strongly identify with their faculty and field of expertise. A forced merger creates uncertainty, a loss of influence, and potentially reduced job satisfaction. This could lead to increased workload, demotivation, and even the departure of valuable teachers and researchers.
Negative impact on students
Students often deliberately choose a smaller faculty for its intimate setting and specialised approach to their field. Mergers may erase these unique characteristics, making it harder for students to find a good fit for their educational needs.
A larger faculty could result in less personal guidance and a more bureaucratic education system. Additionally, students widely recognise that the bigger the faculty, the worse its organisation, especially regarding scheduling and student support services.
Erosion of the academic landscape
Smaller faculties contribute to the diversity of the university. If they are absorbed by larger faculties, there is a risk of narrowing the academic offering, and certain interdisciplinary or niche areas may disappear. This would undermine the university’s academic richness and innovation capacity.
Practical and organisational challenges
A merger involves restructuring administrative processes, integrating different educational systems, and redistributing resources. This is a long, complex process that often incurs higher costs and greater problems than initially estimated.
Perceived vs. real flexibility
Proponents of the merger argue that scaling up increases the university’s administrative flexibility. In reality, however, a larger faculty often results in increased internal bureaucracy.
Decision-making becomes more complex due to longer consultation structures, additional administrative layers, and the need to balance the interests of various disciplines. This slows down responses to scientific and educational developments.
Moreover, faculty-level flexibility shifts to the central university administration, distancing decision-making from the day-to-day reality of education and research. As a result, the specific needs of academic departments receive less attention, and top-down management replaces flexibility, ultimately stifling innovation.
Our call to action
We advocate for the preservation of the current faculty structure and urge the university administration to consider alternative strategies that ensure both efficiency and quality without undermining the valuable identity and autonomy of smaller faculties.
A university is not a corporation but a community of knowledge and research. The focus must remain on academic quality and diversity.
The Personnel Faction in the University Council: Dinie Bouwman, Hans van Gestel, Jessica de Bloom, Marijke Nieborg, Janet Fuller, Henk van Putten, Manuel Reyes, Ane Walinga, Björn de Kruijf