rector henk zijm's new year's speech
UT to focus mostly on `external challenges'
According to the new rector magnificus, who spoke at the New Year's reception in the Faculty Club, there will be no major internal reorganizations in the near future, `although there might be some changes here and there.' Apart from that, the focus will be primarily on the outside world. However, the UT will work on a better internal distribution model and a smoother administrative relationship between institutes and faculties. It will also needs to work on its relationships with the ITC and Saxion Hogeschool.
After the departure of Frans van Vught and Huib de Jong, Zijm will join financial colleague Willem te Beest, who is also vice-chairman of the Executive Board, in leading the UT until June 1st, by which time Zijm believes there will be a new Executive Board chairman.
The rector spent time reflecting on the consequences of the tsunami in Southeast Asia and commended the work of the university employees who quickly provided information on the fate of university students and employees in the affected areas. None of the victims are connected to the university.
As a new rector should, he commended the university for its place in both the nation and the world. `Without having to exaggerate, I can tell you we are doing a good job.' Reviews consistently demonstrate the UT's high quality education; scientific output is `good to very good.' `We are getting a lot of funding, both through indirect government funding and through commercial funding, although not every part of this university manages to get as much as others.' According to Zijm, the UT's prominent position in the BSIK programs (Subsidies for Investments in Knowledge Infrastructure) is largely due to the strong focus on a limited number of leading fields in a limited number of leading institutes. `Obviously, we will be maintaining that strategy completely.' He was clear on the position of the institutes: they will not be touched. However, he did say that the UT `will have to work' on the administrative relationship between institutes and faculties.
`An important issue will be: how will we continue to finance our research in certain fields? As we all know, the problems with matching funds play an important role in that issue (the matching funds that the research groups are required to invest in projects that have been initiated externally -Ed.).' He claims that in some areas matching is such a major issue that funds are used that should have been invested in fundamental research. Closely related to this problem is the financing of UT education, the second issue that the Executive Board will have to deal with in the coming months. Zijm warns that it will be quite an undertaking to maintain the level of bachelor's programs - which are becoming increasingly broad in order to accommodate the diversity of the students - in order to ensure a sufficient number of students in the master's programs.
Zijm intends to continue following the path towards a federation of the three technological universities and maintain the vision of the university's role in that federation. `Our position is very clear: we think it is wise to try to institute that cooperation, for a number of reasons. Delft is bigger and has more history; and Eindhoven is embedded in a strong industrial area. We do not have those two properties, but we do have others that are not to be underestimated. We are much better at creating spin-offs, and we have a campus which can be used even more effectively. We have plans for that, too (but he failed to specify them -Ed.).' According to Zijm, the proximity to German hinterland can benefit joint research projects, cooperation with businesses and attracting students.
So, a federation: yes, but while using the UT's own strength and capacity for innovative activities. `We do not have to limit ourselves to the two other technological universities. We also want to cooperate with the universities of Nijmegen, Wageningen and Groningen, and that desire is mutual.' Closer to home, Zijm thinks the UT has to work more intensively with the ITC and Saxion Hogeschool. The latter institute is important for building relationships with small and medium-sized businesses, which are essential for the further development of Knowledge Park Twente, of which the UT was one of the initiators.
Zijm also promised to evaluate the effectiveness of the internal distribution model. How to stabilize financial contributions? What does that mean for the amount of research in a certain area? What are the matching requirements? How will they affect the relation between education and research?
Zijm: `Taking everything in account, the agenda for the coming years encompasses so much that you should not expect any new major reorganization from us, at least not internally, despite my doubts about the current structures.' He stresses, however, that this does not mean there will be no changes whatsoever. Rather, he sees the focus mainly on public placement in order to be able to face the `big external challenges.'
Finally, whether they succeed remains to be seen, but with the arrival of Zijm, the Executive Board wants to reintroduce an old plan: visits from board members to the university's `workplaces.'
Trans. Jeroen Latour
Bert Groenman |
登录
