Reducing bureaucracy at universities: This is how science should be freed!

Reducing bureaucracy at universities: This is how science should be freed!

The Association of Chancellors of German Universities published a position paper on March 17, 2025 that calls for steps to streamline administration in higher education. In this document, university management criticizes an “excessive level” of regulation that hinders academic work. The paper is a response to increasing bureaucratic demands and calls for more trust and personal responsibility within state institutions. news.rub.de reports that the chancellors would like to make concrete proposals to the legislature and ministries. These proposals include standardizing processes and reducing reporting requirements in order to reduce bureaucracy.

In particular, the position paper emphasizes the urgency of quickly reducing bureaucracy in order to promote scientific activity in universities. Dr. Christina Reinhardt from the Ruhr University Bochum and Dr. Oliver Fromm from the University of Kassel acts as chair of the de-bureaucratization working group, which is driving the movement forward.

Overview of bureaucracy and its effects

Bureaucracy is often viewed as a necessary evil in the debate about administrative simplification. It is important to distinguish between bureaucracy and bureaucratism. While bureaucracy is seen as rational administration, bureaucracy is often perceived as burdensome and inefficient. According to an analysis by hof.uni-halle.de De-bureaucratization measures usually only have an impact in the long term. These measures are often politically unattractive because citizens feel immediate burdens while the benefits only become apparent later.

It is crucial for universities to receive support from university management to address bureaucratization. The de-bureaucratization process includes two essential aspects: On the one hand, universities themselves should take responsibility for their bureaucratization. On the other hand, many efforts often fail due to the logic of the bureaucracy itself. De-bureaucratization takes place in three phases: freeing the staff from misplaced tasks, making redundant tasks visible and finally dealing with secondary concerns.

Challenges of bureaucracy at universities

In her analyses, Waltraud Kreutz-Gers addresses the bureaucracy at universities and refers to earlier reforms in the 1990s, which introduced instruments of decentralized resource responsibility such as financial autonomy and multi-year financing agreements. These reforms aimed at deregulation and reducing the detailed control of the state. In recent years, however, there has been a shift away from these goals, as temporary financing puts a strain on basic funding and pushes universities into the role of applicants. forschung-und-lehre.de explains that this development could lead to administrative effort, a lack of planning security and a feared reduction in quality in teaching and research.

A concrete example of inefficient bureaucracy is the A1 certificate for employees in other EU countries. This certificate must be applied for during a stay abroad, which causes considerable administrative effort. In other countries, such as Austria, regulations are in place that allow a flat-rate application for up to 24 months and thus significantly reduce the administrative burden.