FHK thanks the nine state councillors for their extraordinary commitment and valuable support
Vienna (OTS) - The Austrian Conference of Universities of Applied Sciences (FHK) welcomes the clear position taken by the state councillors for science on the strained financial situation of universities of applied sciences (UAS). The results of the nationwide conference in Salzburg make it clear that the existing framework conditions no longer do justice to the growing tasks of the FH/HAW sector.
„The federal states are openly stating what has been apparent for years: without reliable financial framework conditions, our universities will come under increasing pressure in their role for teaching, research, innovation and regional development,“ emphasises FHK President Ulrike Prommer.
Structural underfunding jeopardises quality and further development
The financial imbalance identified by the federal states confirms the FHK's analyses. Real losses in the value of student place funding, the lack of automatic valorisation and the lack of structural basic research funding make sustainable personnel planning, competence development and the strategic further development of UASs considerably more difficult.
„Over the past decades, our universities have developed into supporting pillars of the Austrian higher education, research and innovation system. These achievements can only be secured in the long term if there is a realistic balance between funding and statutory tasks,“ says FHK Secretary General Kurt Koleznik.
Further development of the FH/HAW sector and the location needs doctoral programmes as a new scientific perspective
The science councillors of the nine federal states have recognised that without independent doctoral studies, our universities and Austria will lack an important development perspective in application and transfer-oriented research and development. As a result, our universities are losing the international connection and Austria is losing the highly qualified talent it so urgently needs. „We are delighted that the state councillors for science have recognised this and are unanimously calling for our universities to be able to offer doctoral programmes. We have great confidence that Federal Minister Eva-Maria Holzleitner will accept this broad support as a mandate and push ahead with its implementation,“ said Prommer.
Planning security and autonomy as a prerequisite for innovative capacity
The demand of the federal states for the rapid presentation of a new UAS development and financing plan 2026-2030 is expressly supported by the FHK. Planning security is a basic prerequisite for UASs to be able to make long-term investments, retain skilled staff and develop new areas of expertise.
The FHK also believes that the reduction of bureaucratic hurdles demanded by the federal states - particularly in the area of programme accreditation - is a key lever. „Anyone who expects our universities to react flexibly to technological developments and the shortage of skilled labour must also give them the necessary decision-making and creative freedom,“ said Koleznik.