Educational strategies and collaboration in the ITM Faculty Board
The Faculty Board of the ITM School held its first large meeting with the college on 21 November. We spoke to teacher representative Bengt Wittgren about the meeting and his role on the board. “The conversation about the career system is a good way forward, but we need more discussions with the college,” says Bengt, who is passionate about the development of KTH's programmes.
As a member of the ITM School's Faculty Board and its Committee for Undergraduate Education, Bengt Wittgren has the chance to improve the quality and processes of the school's programmes. During the autumn, the board has begun a strategic review of the programmes to combine a long-term perspective with ongoing work, such as approving syllabi.
“The interests of students, KTH's research and the needs of society must be taken into account to succeed”, says Bengt. “Our programmes need to equip students for a future in business and society, where both bachelor graduates (högskoleingenjörer) and engineers with a master’s degree (civilingenjörer) fill important roles.”
The new Bachelor of Engineering programme in Industrial Engineering is an example of innovative thinking. Students start with a broad base and choose specialisation in year two. But it's a balancing act: too much choice can reduce the relevance of the programme to industry, says Bengt.
“Students want programmes that lead to jobs. Another challenge is that many of KTH's teachers lack industrial experience, which is favourable for training university engineers.”
Strategic work and collaboration with industry
The Faculty Board also discusses how the ITM School can strengthen its position for research funding, where industry-funded research is highlighted as an important piece of the puzzle. The strategic work is ongoing to ensure the quality of the organisation.
Discussion on the career system
Another task is to anchor the work collegially. In November, the Board held a School Meeting where Dean Nina Wormbs presented KTH’s report on the career system. After the presentation, career paths for lecturers and researchers were discussed. For example, the proposal means that researchers and lecturers with a PhD can be considered for a special associate professor (lektor), without the right to be promoted to professor. The fact that these positions get their own career path outside the so-called Tenure Track was met with both positive and negative reactions.
“Nina Wormbs made a good presentation, although I think that the proposal contains more limitations than opportunities for several staff categories”, says Bengt.
Guest speaker Åse Nygren from Blekinge Institute of Technology presented a review of merit systems in the Nordic countries. She highlighted the increasing focus on pedagogical skills and collaborative merit as important elements in modern systems. According to Åse, UKÄ also agrees with the importance of giving more space to collaboration and pedagogical skills when meriting employees at higher education. Technical lecturer and collaborative lecturer are positions that have emerged in recent years at Swedish higher education institutions to include the collaboration aspect. Something that she can miss in KTH's proposal for a new career system. Bengt agrees:
“To attract and retain staff, especially from industry, we need to be flexible. The engineering programmes would benefit from recruiting lecturers with industrial experience, but today's limited career opportunities and salary development make it difficult.”
The way forward
The report on the career system is a first step and requires wider discussions. A follow-up meeting is planned in January to gather more input before the Faculty Board submits its response in February.
“Maybe it's time for KTH to dare to try something new,” Bengt concludes.
Please contact one of the Board's representatives to submit your suggestions for improvement now.
Text: Ulrika Georgsson
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Read the article