Universities should focus on making incremental changes to protect them against increased economic and geopolitical shocks, rather than their risking radical reform, according to the president of the European University Association (EUA).

Speaking at the Times Higher Education Europe Summit, Josep Garrell said that he felt the role of universities in society was changing as they took on greater social responsibilities.

“Trends from 2024 tend to demonstrate that higher education institutions in the European area are evolving rather than radically transforming”, Garrell told the event being held across the Semmelweis and Obuda universities in Budapest.

He described this as a “good” outcome, warning that rapid transformations and societal pressure to quickly adapt “risk there being wrong decisions”, with providers potentially making decisions without questioning “why, what is the best direction to travel?”.

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Garrell said while internationalisation should be a “top priority” for providers, universities “need to be prepared for the impact of geopolitical tension and geopolitical changes”.

“The fundamental values [that form higher education] are at stake. I’m talking about academic freedom. I’m talking about academic autonomy, institutional autonomy, the participation of the students in the decision[s] of the universities, so please don’t take it for granted.”

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Consequently, universities need to work together to “guarantee” that “the values that create universities” are not eroded.

Garrell warned that the amount that societies are asking of their universities is “increasing”, which he said “is good news for the sector”.

However, there were risks, he said, including the economic pressure this places on providers. He said that universities need to be “careful, because if you embark [on something] without the proper framework or the proper funding, it’s a real risk”.

Consequently, institutions may develop a “mission overload” and fall into the “trying to do more with less trap”, owing to a lack of funding and adequate frameworks, as well as a lack of recognition of activities carried out by higher education institutes.

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He added that universities need “urgent and proper reflection” on the “educational offering”, adding that changes to the composition of the student body and the rise of reskilling, upskilling and lifelong learning make this reconsideration more pressing.

juliette.rowsell@timeshighereducation.com