NRW Universities Warn of Staffing Cuts, Quality Decline Due to Budget Cuts
Universities in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) have united, with ten senates signing a resolution expressing concern over state government budget cuts. The joint statement, written and adopted by elected representatives from professors to students, warns of potential damage to teaching, research, and staffing levels.
The universities, including RWTH Aachen, Bielefeld, Bochum, Duisburg-Essen, Köln, Siegen, Wuppertal, FernUniversität Hagen, Technical University Dortmund, and the German Sport University Cologne, fear cuts in staff across teaching, research, administration, and technology. Reduced personnel could lead to fewer start-ups and exacerbate the skills shortage in NRW.
Budget cuts may also reduce the number of staff available for research and third-party funding. The universities warn that this could result in a decline in teaching and research quality. The planned annual reduction of 150 million euros in basic funding is seen as a threat to the permanent performance of universities.
The resolution passed by the senates of multiple universities in NRW highlights the potential impacts of budget cuts. These include a worsening student-to-professor ratio, reduced study places, and increased dropout rates. The universities urge the state government to reconsider the planned cuts to avoid these consequences.
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