Report on the administrative burden in higher education institutions
A report from the Swedish Higher Education Authority (UKÄ) has concluded that the administrative burden in the higher education sector could be reduced by measures both within each higher education institution and in the government agencies that task them with conducting various evaluations. Photo: Getty images.
Short notice, short response times and a pile-up of evaluations that overlap somewhat. These are some of the problems highlighted in the Swedish Higher Education Authority (UKÄ) report on the impact of evaluations on the administrative burden in higher education institutions (HEI).
Tasked by the Swedish Government to do so, UKÄ has mapped the impact of evaluations on the administrative burden in HEIs. The report titled Utvärderingars inverkan på den administrativa bördan i högskolesektorn (the impact of evaluations on the administrative burden in the higher education sector) was published in December 2024.
There are problems
The report shows that the administrative burden on HEIs is being affected by how government agencies cooperate and how they choose to design their tasks.
The report is only available in Swedish, so the following are translations of parts of the report’s summary: “The administrative burden on higher education institutions is being impacted by short notice, short response times and agglomeration of tasks of a somewhat overlapping nature. The administrative burden is especially great when different tasks concern the same environment at the HEI. There is also a gender equality aspect to administrative work that needs further investigation.”
Furthermore, the summary states that: “The lack of a clear purpose in some evaluations, or components in these evaluations, is a bigger problem than the choice of method or that different staff groups are contacted. When the purpose is not clear, internal planning becomes more difficult, the administrative burden increases and it becomes more difficult to use the collected data for the HEI’s own operational development.”
Proposals for measures
The report contains both proposals for overarching measures and more specific measures for each government agency.
The overarching measures are summarised below and it should be noted that they also address the higher education institutions:
- review the level of ambition and strive for effective forms of evaluation
- clarify intention, purpose and objectives through intensified dialogue
- focus on forward planning and enable long-term planning
- coordinate and use existing data to a greater extent.
These are some of the more specific proposals addressed to the HEIs:
- Clarify the needs, purpose and objectives for different parts of the evaluations conducted within the HEI.
- Review and evaluate how external evaluations can be useful, and be utilised, to improve the quality of the HEI’s own operations.
- Work on how to involve different staff groups at an appropriate level in evaluations, and how to ensure that time is set aside in core activities for this.
- Develop internal administration with a view to benefiting core activities.
- As far as possible, make available data that the government agencies can collect on their own.
Anders Berndt