Demand for the Government of Serbia to Repeal the Regulation Amending the Regulation on the Standards and Norms for Budget-Funded Universities and Faculties’ Work Conditions

The Academy Board for Higher Education and the Academy Board for Science urgently call for the repeal of the Regulation Amending the Standards and Norms for Work Conditions at Budget-Funded Universities and Faculties, adopted on 24 March 2025.

The above-mentioned Regulation dramatically alters the existing management of the work of employed lecturers and associates without proper expert review, public debate and consultation with all relevant bodies in the field of higher education. This decision is enacted by the Government, whose mandate has ended, thus directly jeopardising the accreditation of scientific research, doctoral study programmes and ongoing scientific projects, as well as the professional development of young people at universities and faculties in the Republic of Serbia.

At this time, it is difficult to fully assess the immediate and long-term consequences of the aforementioned Regulation, which introduces a fundamentally new approach to managing higher education. However, what is certain is that the new approach to managing higher education will not contribute to its quality; quite the contrary, we believe that it will have a profound negative impact on higher education, which serves as the foundation of any society striving for sustainable development and progress.

In addition to overturning a management approach to higher education that has been in place for several decades, the Regulation introduces standards and norms that are not characteristic of renowned universities but are instead more suited to colleges. As a result, it poses direct and significant challenges to higher education, affecting employed lecturers and associates at universities and faculties, while also carrying both direct and indirect financial consequences for faculties and society as a whole.

Teaching associates and assistants, in addition to their regular teaching responsibilities, are also required to work on their theses and dissertations. Moreover, it is necessary to have a defended doctoral dissertation to further advance in a career. With 12.5% of their time that can be dedicated to the work on their theses and dissertations, associates and assistants will not be in a position to realize their obligations within the timeframe prescribed by the Law on Higher Education. The enforcement of this Regulation will likely result in the departure of young, talented associates from faculties and may even contribute to brain drain, ultimately jeopardizing the professional development of young scholars in higher education.

Furthermore, through their scientific and artistic work, lecturers and associates have the obligation of developing knowledge and skills, ensuring that curricula remain current in both theoretical and applied fields, which enables them to meet the required minimal conditions for career advancements, by means of publication of scientific papers and artwork production. A drastic reduction in the number of working hours spent on scientific and artistic work will have a direct effect on professional progression, and it may even lead to the loss of employment, as all academic positions, except for full professors, are based on limited five-year contracts. If rulebooks on position advancements were to be aligned with this Regulation, it would inevitably lead to a decline in the quality of teaching faculty employed at the universities and faculties. With the deterioration in the quality of teaching staff, the decrease in teaching quality in higher school institutions would inadvertently ensue, which certainly is not the vision and strategy of our society’s development.

A decline in both the quantity and quality of scientific research at universities and faculties would also jeopardize the international standing of our institutions, which are found in the Shanghai University Ranking. The data on the contribution of universities and faculties to the scientific output of the Republic of Serbia are available on the eNauka platform. As of today, approximately 65% of the country’s scientific contributions originate from employees at universities and faculties. The quality of research and the strong global reputation of our universities contribute to attracting international students, which, in turn, has positive economic implications for Serbia.

Additionally, the new redistribution between scientific research and teaching responsibilities poses a serious threat to the realization of ongoing international projects, as well as to the engagement of faculty members in both national and international projects. This is particularly alarming for faculties that function as scientific research institutions and are currently undergoing the accreditation process.

A prerequisite for accreditation is that at least 60% of faculty members holding research positions must be engaged in scientific projects, as stipulated in Article 15 of the Regulation on the Procedure for Evaluating Scientific Research Work of Institutes, Integrated Universities, Faculties, and Excellence Centers. The accreditation of a higher education institution as a scientific research entity is a necessary condition for the accreditation of doctoral academic study programs. Project managers of highly competitive European Research Council (ERC) projects are required to dedicate 50% of their working time to project-related activities. In accordance with this, no university professor will be able to meet this requirement to helm a project.

Science as a driving force behind innovations and scientific findings, which give birth to commercially relevant innovations, can be a catalyst for a whole society’s progress. The most prestigious universities in the world are the very ones which are the most prolific innovation hubs. Globally recognized institutions such as Harvard, Oxford or Cambridge are the most distinguished and successful research centres which integrate science, art and research with the goal of dissemination of general education and culture.

The significant reduction in the time that university staff can devote to science is in complete opposition to the objectives of the Strategy for Scientific and Technological Development of the Republic of Serbia for the period 2021-2025, ‘The Power of Knowledge’, which aims to increase research productivity and enhance international competitiveness. This strategy clearly highlights the necessity of a stronger commitment to scientific and research work as a critical factor for accelerated technological progress and a more active role of Serbia in European and global research networks. The reduction in the time allocated for research by researchers holding teaching positions directly contradicts these goals, indicating an inconsistency between strategic priorities and concrete measures being implemented.

In light of the aforementioned concerns, we respectfully request that you take immediate action to suspend the implementation of this Regulation since its potential consequences could not only jeopardize the future of higher education and the scientific community but also the broader socio-economic situation in the Republic of Serbia.

Belgrade, 31 March 2025

Respectfully,
Academy Board for Higher Education