On January 10, 2024, the Academic Staff Council hosted a presentation of the recently published book "Die ungleiche Universität. Diversität, Exzellenz und Anti-Diskriminierung" (“The unequal university. Diversity, Excellence and Anti-Discrimination” Vienna: Passagen-Verlag, 2023) with co-author Johanna Hofbauer. Johanna Hofbauer works at the Institute for Sociology and Social Research, is a member of the Research Institute Economics of Inequality (INEQ) and is a long-standing member of the Equal Opportunities Committee (AKG).

As Johanna Hofbauer emphasized at the beginning of the discussion about the book, it was deliberately written as a political intervention. Central issues in the book, such as the increasing (pseudo-)marketization of universities, the precarization of university employment and the tension between the dominant understanding of excellence and anti-discrimination policies, are the subject of public debate in both Austria and Germany. The book discusses university inequality structures in both countries. Johanna Hofbauer's co-author, Sabine Hark, teaches gender studies at the Technical University of Berlin, where she heads the Center for Interdisciplinary Women's and Gender Studies.

At the beginning of the discussion, the focus was on the organizational reforms at universities, which resulted in organizational autonomy vis-à-vis the responsible ministries, but at the same time a comprehensive inclusion in a competitive dispositive. The latter is reflected in steering via numerous indicators that are intended to promote the pursuit of excellence. The flexibilization - less euphemistically the precarization - of employment relationships was also claimed to be conducive to excellence. This is clearly questioned in the academic debate, but also in the debate at the book launch. It was also addressed that the excellence criteria, such as the ranking of journals, often have an implicit discriminatory effect in multi-paradigmatic sciences, including against certain theories. Even in institutions that initially supported the new competitive dispositive, a debate is now beginning in some cases about the need for a certain amount of self-correction. For example, Johanna Hofbauer quoted a recent publication by the German Science and Humanities Council, in which it called for the "instrument of competition" to be used "much more sparingly and purposefully" in science.

Another focus of the discussion was the tension between the dominant understanding of excellence and internationalization on the one hand and university inclusion and anti-discrimination policies on the other. The unanimous assessment of the participants was that "excellence" was in fact given priority. One example of a problematic relationship between the priority of excellence and internationalization on the one hand and anti-discrimination on the other was the mandatory requirement of a longer period of work abroad for a qualification agreement position at WU. This requirement is often difficult or impossible to fulfill for applicants with small children, disabled persons, etc.

In the end, there was a lively discussion on possible steps towards a more equal and inclusive university. One focus here was the issue of highly precarious employment relationships. There was a broad consensus in the discussion that the relationship between temporary and permanent positions should be balanced differently. More stable employment relationships were considered important not only to increase the attractiveness of a university career, but also to provide real support for freedom of research and the pursuit of long-term research projects. One possibility for this would be the definition of minimum permanent positions. First in Germany, and now also in Austria, the option of a statutory definition of such a minimum threshold has been put on the political agenda. The increasing dependence on externally funded projects has also been criticized due to the precarious employment and shortage of research funding that this entails. More basic funding for research - outside the project area - would be desirable.

A rebalancing of excellence and inclusion was also seen as necessary. These considerations should also be openly discussed for the definition of recruitment criteria, etc.

Starting points for the creation of a more equal university can therefore be found at both the (national) political and university level.

^01.02.2024

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