Together with the Ministry of Higher Education and Science and Denmark’s other seven universities, Aarhus University is in the process of finding a replacement for STADS. The system is technologically obsolete, and the search is on for an international system that can support and facilitate student life and further develop the student administrative processes across all the universities.

The joint steering committee between the universities and the Ministry have agreed to name the programme community Kopernikus, after the Polish astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus, who dared to assert that the Sun – and not the Earth – was the centre of the universe. Included in the steering committee is University Director Arnold Boon:

“With this name, we want to send a clear signal that a degree programme administration system is putting the student, instead of the university’s needs, at the centre and making their lives easier. For example, it can give them a more coherent overview of their study programme and access to more self-service.”

The solution will be a standard system, and the good experiences others have with such systems were also considered. The fact that it will be an international standard system also means that the development work is not the responsibility of the Danish universities. The new system is expected to be in operation within 5-6 years.

“We are aware that, with the system change, we have set in progress a comprehensive and lengthy project in which front-line employees will have to invest time. New systems inevitably cause inconvenience during a transitional phase. We don’t imagine that it will be easy, but we believe that we can use digital transformation to improve studies-related administrative processes,” says Arnold Boon.

The work of finding potential providers is still at an early stage, and the tendering process in the selection of provider is expected to last until the beginning of 2020.

The Ministry of Higher Education and Science, which leads the national project, has in connection with the determination of the name established a website providing an overview of the organisation, a general schedule and an introduction to the programme community, including a video in which University Director Arnold Boon, together with Aalborg University’s University Director Antonino Castrone, talks briefly about the vision. The website will be developed on an ongoing basis, according to the Ministry.

During the spring, it is expected that AU will be ready with our own programme site, which focuses on AU’s role and contribution to the process.

See the website from UFM (Danish only)

See the news article from December: “STADS approaching retirement age” 

Facts about AU’s role

• The local effort at AU is centralised in a programme led by Esben Wolf, with University Director Arnold Boon as chair of the steering committee.
• Arnold Boon and Deputy Director for AU Student Administration and Services Kristian Thorn are both in steering committees under the nationwide project, which is headed by the Ministry.
• In the nationwide process, AU proactively seeks to contribute to the selection and implementation of a new system.
• Staff and students will be continuously involved in AU’s contribution to the project.