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Public responsibility of higher education
Defining the higher education community's responsibility
Core concept
Public responsibility of higher education denotes the obligations of the higher education community to the broader society of which it is a part.
The community
This community encompasses all staff and students, institutional leaders, and members of higher education organizations (e.g., university, student, and staff associations).
Role in governance
While public authorities have final responsibility for regulatory frameworks, higher education institutions should engage in the design and implementation of these frameworks.
Self-regulation
Through its own actions, internal regulation, and policies, the higher education community must ensure that the fundamental values of higher education are respected, furthered, and implemented.
Core academic mission and knowledge as a public good
Pursuit of truth
The higher education community should pursue truth and the production, transmission, dissemination, curation, and use of knowledge as a public good.
Upholding standards
It must uphold and develop the standards of teaching, learning, and research within and across academic disciplines.
Societal contribution
The community should contribute to the development of society on the basis of scholarship and research as well as teaching and learning.
Informing the public
The HE community should continuously inform broader society of its work and results.
Engagement and problem solving
Responding to challenges
The community must engage with and respond to the aspirations and challenges of the world and to the communities they serve.
Problem identification
It should engage in the identification, analysis, and understanding of the problems that confront broader society and individual constituencies.
Designing solutions
The higher education community should participate in designing solutions to these problems and provide expertise to meet these challenges, in accordance with its own standards and values.
Public sphere engagement
It should engage in and with the public sphere, including in public debate, to ensure that societies are developed and governed on the basis of factual knowledge as well as critical and constructive thinking.
Improving opportunities
The community should work with society to help improve opportunities for all members of society, in accordance with the democratic and social missions of higher education.
Ethics, access and internal governance
Culture of integrity
The higher education community should seek to foster and disseminate, and should itself be guided by, a culture of democracy, solidarity, and integrity.
Risk information
It should provide information publicly about societal risks related to action or inaction, provided such risks can be determined on the basis of research and scholarship.
Policy integrity
The higher education community should design and pursue its policies and activities in ways that are consistent with fairness, non-discrimination, and transparency.
Access and equity
It must offer access to higher education to qualified candidates without regard to their economic, social, ethnic, or other background.
Student support
The community must provide support in order to enable those admitted to complete their studies with success.
Addressing global challenges
Major challenges
Major challenges of modern societies (including those relating to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, sustainable development, planetary survival, issues of war and peace, democracy, fairness and non-discrimination) cannot be met without a strong contribution by the higher education community.
Contribution method
This contribution is achieved through research, learning and teaching, societal outreach, and innovation and technology transfer.
Graduate preparation
The higher education community should equip its graduates with general, specialized, and ethical knowledge.
Developing agency
The higher education community must also support graduates in developing the ability to act and to decide what action to take and what action to refrain from taking.
Resources
Tirana Ministerial Communiqué
Tirana Statement on fundamental values
Paris Ministerial Communiqué
European Strategy for Universities
Slide deck on Fundamental Values (PPT)
Bologna Process Implementation Report 2024 - Fundamental Values Chapter