Multi-annual Accord on the Ministry of Culture's Study Programmes As part of the realisation of the Government's "Better Education" action plan and with a view to making a series of necessary improvements to the quality of the study programmes under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture, the Danish Government (the Liberal Party and the Conservative Party), the Social Democratic Party, the Danish People's Party, the Socialist People's Party, the Social-Liberal Party, the Christian People's Party and the Danish Red-Green Alliance wish to give these programmes a known and stable financial framework for the period 2003-06. The point of departure for this accord is that the budgets for education under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture are to be maintained at the level of the 2003 Budget Act and that this area is to be exempted from general cutbacks during the period of agreement. This accord on budget security means that, through reprioritisation and adjustments to admissions on the basis of employment and falling numbers of young people, financial room for manoeuvre can be created which makes it possible to embark on a series of new cohesive initiatives in the education field. The accord is to result in performance contracts between the Ministry of Culture and the education institutions. These initiatives are to cover the following focus areas: Introduction of 3+2 structure and greater internationalisation Work on the development of the Ministry of Culture's study programmes will gradually be organised such that these programmes correspond as far as possible to other tertiary study programmes and equivalent foreign programmes. Initiatives are to be taken to: Stronger design research Design research is to be strengthened and coordinated. The Ministry of Culture is to set aside more funds for design research, and collaboration between the schools of design and architecture on design research is to be extended. The aim is for it to be possible to offer research-based design training in Denmark in the coming years. Initiatives are to be taken and funds set aside to: Geographical spread and more specialised professional environments Initiatives are to be taken to: Emphasis is also to be given to: Higher IT standards Initiatives are to be taken and funds set aside to: Sharper focus on job opportunities in the cultural professions Better opportunities for credit transfer and flexibility in the Ministry of Culture's study programmes will make it easier to combine these programmes with more business-orientated elements from other tertiary study programmes. Opportunities for vocational experience are also to be increased. The Ministry of Culture's study programmes must increasingly equip students to exploit their creative potential in new professional contexts outside the cultural professions and prepare them for working to a great extent as freelancers and as self-employed, with respect for the differences between the programmes. Initiatives are to be taken and funds set aside to: Better continuing education Initiatives are to be taken and funds set aside to:
October 29, 2002
In accordance with the Bologna Declaration, in the future the Ministry of Culture's study programmes are wherever possible to be organised on the basis of a 3+2 structure corresponding to the structure of other tertiary and artistic study programmes abroad. The idea is to create a more flexible, transparent and cohesive education system with greater freedom of choice for the individual student, better cohesion between programmes and better opportunities for adapting to demand in the labour market.
· Establish Bachelor's and Master's degree programmes at the schools of architecture and design and the academies of music
· Increase the opportunities for credit transfer between the Ministry of Culture's study programmes and between these and other tertiary study programmes
· Promote international student exchanges
· Increase the use of foreign guest lecturers
· Enlist the best international experience in the development of the programmes
According to the Culture and Business Policy Report "Denmark's Creative Potential" among others, the design field has particularly great growth potential. If this potential is to be realised, it is essential that Danish design research is given a boost. Research-based design training is a prerequisite for ensuring a 3+2 structure and full credits and so flexibility for students.
· Strengthen research in the design field and establish binding research collaborations between the schools of architecture and design on a joint centre of expertise for Danish design research. The idea is to provide a platform that enables the two design schools to offer research-based design training
· Establish professorships and PhD programmes in the design field based on binding collaboration between the schools of design and architecture or other research-based tertiary study programmes. The aims are (1) to strengthen design research and train more teaching staff with a research background (PhDs) for the design programmes, and (2) to start up research-based training at the design schools from the end of the period of agreement.
· Strengthen research in the Ministry of Culture's study programmes where relevant
At a time of rapid professional development, the considerable geographical spread of the Ministry of Culture's educational institutions entails a risk of these professional environments being so small as to undermine the professional standard of their study programmes. To maintain high professional standards and a rewarding study environment, cooperation and collaboration between the institutions are to be increased so as to create larger and more specialised professional environments. This will boost the professional standard of their study programmes while still retaining the institutions' geographical spread.
· Strengthen professional standards while still retaining the institutions' geographical spread. The future distribution of study programmes between the schools of design and architecture and the academies of music is to be adjusted accordingly
· Establish binding collaborations between the institutions on the distribution of subjects, tuition, artistic development, research, credit transfer, etc.
· Continue the binding collaboration between the Holmen schools on Workshopscenen
· the Holmen schools increasingly opening their facilities to the public
The Ministry of Culture's study programmes are largely oriented towards professions in the information and media society. To strengthen professional standards in these programmes and their direct vocational relevance for graduates, it is essential that the programmes have IT expertise and production equipment that is up to date in terms of the professions in which graduates subsequently seek employment. The focus on IT expertise must therefore be seen in the light of both the desire to raise professional standards and the initiatives to increase vocational orientation.
· Raise the study programmes' IT standards through investments in up-to-date IT expertise and production equipment so as to increase the programmes' room for manoeuvre in terms of acquiring new knowhow and purchasing new technology
· Integrate DIEM's activities into one of the music academies
If the growth potential in the cultural professions described in the Culture and Business Policy Report "Denmark's Creative Potential" and elsewhere is to be realised, it is important that the study programmes take account of the status of the cultural professions for which training is being provided and that interaction between the cultural professions and the education institutions is stepped up. The Ministry of Culture's programmes must ensure that graduates are flexible in terms of job opportunities in the future labour market. The need to set up new programmes is also to be explored.
· Introduce credit-carrying vocational experience schemes with their starting point in the programmes' professionalism
· Explore whether – and if so where – a new musical programme can be funded by converting places on the acting programme
· Make the extra numbers on the National Film School of Denmark's TV programme permanent
· Modernise the employment rules in line with equivalent rules at the universities with a view to strengthening the management's employment expertise
Lifelong learning must also be an option within the Ministry of Culture's programmes and so opportunities are to be provided for continuing education in relevant areas of the arts. The aim is to provide graduates with extra skills that can improve their job opportunities and meet employers' demand for new skills.
· Further explore the need for continuing education
· Develop, establish and provide continuing education in the Ministry of Culture's programmes