Statement of the Student Initiative
Bildung braucht Budget (Education Needs Budget) 
at the Berlin University of the Arts 
on Budget Cuts Approved By the Berlin Senate 
on December 19, 2024 


– We are protesting! –



Current Situation
On December 19, 2024, Berlin’s black-red Senate imposed an 8% budget cut on the city’s universities. As Berlin’s smallest university, the University of the Arts (UdK) is disproportionately and critically affected due to its limited financial reserves.

Our Academic Senate has warned that this policy will result in “a significant decline in the quality of teaching,” a consequence that is, apparently, “to be accepted.” We refuse to do so.

Instead, we are aligning ourselves with the statement of our Academic Senate and decide to protest.


Impact on Education
It is unacceptable that students of Berlin’s universities, already severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, must now endure another blow due to the financial policies of the Berlin Senat. We, the student body of the UdK, are disappointed at a Senate that, instead of standing up, turns its back on us. 

The Berlin Senate has imposed a budget on its internationally renowned institutions that does not even allow them to function "in terms of necessary operations." The academic fields essential to the university cannot ensure fair working conditions with the proposed budget, as teaching staff is being cut without prior notice, making it impossible to plan the academic operations effectively.

We do not tolerate an academic institution where the urgent and necessary filling of professorships has long been neglected, expiring contracts of lecturers are not renewed, student assistants are forced to reduce their working hours, and the vacant positions can only be filled under precarious conditions if to be filled at all.

We do not tolerate an academic institution where, due to a 30% cut in the faculty budget, activities such as excursions, exhibition visits, guest lectures, and even the procurement of essential materials and consumables like office supplies—as well as ongoing and planned research projects—can no longer be remotely financed. 

We are deeply disappointed that student initiatives, which emerged solely through the voluntary commitment of individual students outside the curriculum, can no longer be supported and remain unrecognized. 

We perceive the freedom and long-term quality of our education as being under severe threat. We will not accept an academic institution that cannot meet the conditions promised in the study regulations. We are disappointed by the disregard for student engagement.

We question the legitimacy of a policy that effectively amounts to a termination of the Higher Education Agreement for the years 2024 to 2028. 

We will not accept an academic operation in buildings that are managed solely under the premise of "preservation and operational safety," reducing them, in the truest sense of the word, to mere façades of artistic work

Misguided Investments

As the responsible and central actors of the future, of social cohesion, and of the democratic fabric of this country, we are worth fighting for and deserve every form of support.

Yet, instead of standing up for the young citizens of this city and supporting them in this vital role, the Berlin Senate has chosen to invest €188 million in the demolition and reconstruction of the Jahn Stadium. This glaringly demonstrates its inability to fulfill its duty to uphold educational responsibility.

It is outrageous that while our university is on the brink of collapse due to the loss of just a few million euros, the Senate sees fit to squander hundreds of millions elsewhere. 

The violation of Berlin's Higher Education Agreements is a political choice, not an unavoidable financial necessity.


Protest
We, the students of the Berlin University of the Arts, are protesting to express our outrage about our university's financial cuts and deteriorating academic system.

We work tirelessly to produce artistic and scientific knowledge, stemming from one of Germany’s and Europe’s most renowned art universities. Even the Berlin Senate proudly touts our achievements. We dedicate ourselves to this work with passion, often working late into the night. It is an integral part of our lives.

For us, protesting means pausing our work to fight for the conditions promised to us and sacrificing an activity we deeply value. With the demands of our studies and part-time jobs, we have no time left for organized protests. Therefore, we are forced to devote the time meant for our education to resisting a shortsighted, conceptless, and irresponsible political agenda.

Safeguarding Diverse, Accessible Education

Over decades, the UdK has established a unique profile, one that makes it indispensable in Berlin’s academic landscape due to its distinctive blend of artistic and scientific focus. This profile has created high demand across all its programs.

The diversity of Berlin’s universities, with their distinct areas of focus, is a cornerstone of mutual inspiration and a fertile ground for innovative and creative thinking.

The academic programs we demand cannot be secured through tuition increases, the transfer of certain programs to other Berlin universities, or by private donations.

We refuse to restore our education at the expense of widening educational inequality. Nor will we allow our university to degenerate into a private institution for the privileged few.

We demand that the Berlin Senate honor its Higher Education Agreement and provide adequate funding through a fair and democratically responsible allocation of the city’s budget. This is not just its right—it is its duty.


Call for Action
We see no political strategy—let alone vision—from the Berlin Senate to ensure that culture, education, and science, as Berlin’s key assets, are safeguarded. These cuts already harm the public good, weaken our city, and jeopardize its future.

We, therefore, call on all members of the UdK, the wider student body of Berlin’s universities, and all citizens who care about the future of this city to join us and show solidarity with all protests against the cuts to education and culture imposed by the black-red Senate.

Our dissatisfaction, criticism, and demands are directed at the Mayor of Berlin, Kai Wegner; Finance Senator, Stefan Evers; Science Senator, Dr. Ina Czyborra; and her State Secretary, Henry Marx—not at the bodies or institutions of our university.

On the contrary, this situation calls for unity among all members of the university—students, faculty, and staff alike—who contribute their indispensable efforts to the operation of the Berlin University of the Arts. We stand in solidarity with everyone affected by these cuts and are confident in our mutual support!


Investing in us means investing in all future generations.

Investing in us means investing in the future of our city and our democracy.

Investing in us means investing in solidarity, innovation, and the culture of a society capable of navigating an increasingly complex world with nuance.


Education Needs Budget!
Bildung braucht Budget!

Berlin,  23.01.2025