CONFERENCE
During the plenary session the current situation in Latvia’s higher education and science, as well as future challenges were presented and analysed both by academic staff and policy-makers.
Maximal Gain with Minimal Assets
Rolands Broks, the Minister of Education and Science of the Republic of Latvia, mentioning that both the EU and Latvia state that the main task of higher education is to guarantee qualitative, efficient and accessible higher education in accordance with local needs, highlighted three higher education tasks to be solved within the present economic situation of Latvia.
„First of all, the question is how to increase education efficiency without decreasing its quality and accessibility? Secondly, how to organize decrease of expenses boosting productivity? Thirdly, given budget place cutting, how to distribute budget places in the most optimal way so that state funding would be used in the most benefitial way?” Minister Rolands Broks listed these topical challenges in his opening lecture Effective Higher Education in Latvia: Current Situation, Challenges and Future Outlook.” Studies have proved that the proportion of people with higher education determines the state’s prosperity, therefore the accessibility and quality of Latvia’s higer education shouldn’t be decreased. The more educated people the state has, the greater is the state’s rate of gross domestic product.”
Structural reforms, int.al. consolidation of higher education institutions, cutting expenses of study places, prevention of study program duplication within regions and other activities, have been already initiated in Latvia’s higher education aimed at implementing the outlined tasks. The Minister is sure that efficient management means maximal gain from the existing sources, adding that in case of Latvia we speak about minimal resources.
In order to develop successful higher education in Latvia, R. Broks encourages stakeholders to look for new development models, stimulate internationalization, create new partnerships and find ways, how to use intellectual potential in a more efficient way, promote education export and attract foreign students, implement university potential and advance international competitiveness by uniting intellectual resources.
No Innovation without Science
„Fundamental and applied science development is vitally essential for the development of state and society,” emphasized the UL Rector Marcis Auzins presenting the topic Higher Education and Science for Latvian Economy, adding that very often very little attention is devoted to science. „No innovation without science. Without innovation, there would be no economic growth of the state.”
Introducing attendants with global studies on science contribution, Rector M. Auzins named the following essential factors, which directly reflect science impact on the development of the national economy: strong presence of the local universities nationwide, the presence of qualitative scientific universities in the country and financial compliance of research promotion.
Besides, if comparing the US and Europe, science in the US shows significant superiority in different comparative criteria. For example, although Europe can be proud of a higher number of candidates for doctor’s degree, the US still shows more outstanding number of patents, which directly affect national development. In addition, UL Rector M. Auzins, with reference to the report of the Ministry of Education and Science presented in the plenary session, was sceptical about the proposal by the Minister of Education and Science R. Broks to achieve an increase in quality with the minimal or even reduced financial resources.
Rector M. Auzins presented TOP 10 world leading universities, where three of the places are taken by the universities of England, while other seven places are taken by US universities. M. Auzins analysed the success secrets of these educational institutions, based on the principles created after World War II in the US and serving the basis for US scientific development, whereas in Europe these are not effectively practised.
„Firstly, it is the government, not private entrepreneurs in charge of financing fundamental science. Secondly, fundamental science should be developed in universities rather than in state-financed laboratories or in specific research institutes. Thirdly, the government has to take care of financial aid to science and its sub-fields, while financial distribution and support to specific projects should be assigned to respective science expert panels of science sub-fields,” said M. Auzins. He also noted that following the priorities in science identified by the European Union results in a similar nature of scientific activity in most European universities, thus preventing them from focusing on the specialization of each individual country and university, which would be possibly better for science development in each separate country and in the European Union as a whole.
„We ourselves must take part in the development of science policy,” said M. Auzins, mentioning several successful world examples, when internationally recognised senior scientists and Nobel Prize winners take the leading positions within foreign institutions.
About the State Development of Knowledge Economy
Juris Ekmanis, the Academician and President of the Latvian Academy of Sciences gave a lecture on Science in Latvia. What we are doing and what we are not doing? This lecture focused on the question whether the current and near future science funding provides for the development of Latvia’s knowledge economy. Juris Ekmanis came to a conclusion that, taking into account the current situation in science, this hypothesis cannot be proved.
Although Latvia has promised to allocate 1.5% of its gross domestic product to science by 2020, the calculations proposed by J. Ekmans hardly allow for the achievement of 0.7% to 0.8% next decade. In comparison with other Baltic states, the recent years show that science financing in our neighbour countries Lithuania and Estonia is still remarkably increasing. The same situation is also in the other EU Member States, whereas in Latvia science financing has a tendency to decline.
Universities Need Branding
Coming to a sad conclusion that presently Latvia’s higher education miss branding, while it is dominated by a simple coincidence, Janis Vetra, the Chair of Higher Education Council of the Republic of Latvia, came up with a relatively provocative and controversial scientific paper Brand Names in Higher Education.
The reason why there is lack of achievements in Latvia’s higher education, branding might be related to such myths and misconceptions, when it is considered that the brand name is limited only to the logo, a synonym to advertising and is related only to commercial purposes, and can be practised only by appropriate and highly qualified industry professionals.
„Brand name means identity,” explained J. Vetra referring to the book On Brand by Wally Olins, emphasizing that brand should be used as a cohesive element which would replace the traditional organizational mission, future prospects and estimation of values with targeted branding.
The world borders of the brand are constantly expanding by adding new sectors to branding, for example, charity, health care, social assistance, and education. It only shows that Latvian universities in the near future must use their potential in brand creation, development and strengthening, thus building up a sense of uniqueness, as well as creating the awareness of community and having a wider range of potential clients, taking care of consequences and strengthening understanding from both parties.
Translated by students of the professional study programme Translator of the University of Latvia.
Translated by students of the professional study programme Translator of the University of Latvia.
