Planning Policy

The Strategy for Education, Science and Technology, OG 124/2014 proposes measures that are in line with the envisaged strategies of the European Union, but also objectives that are expected to be achieved by 2025. In the area of higher education, the Strategy aims to ensure a quality personnel structure of higher education institutions as a basis for improving the quality of higher education, with the following objectives:

• to increase the scientific and teaching quality of teachers;
• to redefine mechanisms for determining the structure of working hours and work tasks of higher education teachers;
• to establish the standards for the personnel structure of higher education institutions and to define the organisation of jobs and employment policy.

Entry to the Profession

According to the Act on Scientific Activity and Higher Education (OG 123/03., (96/18.), associate titles assistant and postdoctoral student are selected from among the most successful students. The associates at the university are elected in accordance with the statute of the university, that is, the faculty under the conditions provided for by the Act on Scientific Activity and Higher Education.

Professional Status

Academic staff at higher education institutions are civil servants and as such their employment is regulated by the law on public services, in particular the Ordinance on Job Titles and Job Complexity Coefficients in Public Services (OG 25/13, (31/22)), the Collective Agreement for Science and Higher Education (OG 9/19, (52/20)) and the Act on Scientific Activity and Higher Education (OG 123/03, (96/18)).

Salaries

Salaries of academic staff are financed from the state budget or revenues of the institution itself. The amount of salaries of academic staff is regulated by the legislation on public services, in particular the Act on Salaries in Public Services (OG 27/01 and 39/09), the Collective Agreement for Science and Higher Education (OG 9/19, (52/20)) and the Act on Scientific Activity and Higher Education (OG 123/03, (96/18)). The salary of servants and employees is a multiplication of the job complexity coefficient of the workplace to which the servant and employee are allocated and the basis for calculating the salary, plus 0.5 % for each completed year of service.

The basic salary of employees shall be increased by:

• 8 % for the obtained academic degree of Master of Science
• 5 % for the obtained academic degree of Doctor of Science.

Where an institution generates its own income by carrying out its activity, employees who have directly or indirectly participated in the realisation of income shall be entitled to an appropriate salary increase.

The employee is paid an allowance for separation, if due to his/her place of permanent employment, other than his family's place of residence, he/she lives separately from his family.

During the sabbatical year, the employee is entitled to salary compensation in the amount of the average salary paid to the employee in the previous 3 months.

Working Time and Holidays

In accordance with the Collective Agreement for Science and Higher Education (OG 9/19 (52/20)), obligations of full-time employees in institutions are defined within a 40-hour working week (full-time). As a rule, every employee works 1800 effective working hours per year after the annual holidays and public holidays are deducted from the total annual paid working hours fund. The obligations of full-time teachers, scientists and associates at higher education institutions and public research institutes consist of:

• teaching obligations;
• obligation of scientific research or artistic work based on projects;
• institutional contributions and administrative affairs.

Members of the work council or trade unions who have taken over the rights and obligations of the work council shall have the right to a reduced volume and content of duties equivalent to 270 hours per year. Holidays are also regulated by the Collective Agreement and Labour Act. For each calendar year, an employee shall be entitled to a paid annual leave for the shortest duration stipulated by the general Labour Act, i.e. at least 4 weeks.

In accordance with the Act on Scientific Activity and Higher Education, each academic year starts on 1 October and ends on 30 September of the following year. However, the structure of the academic year is determined by institutions of higher education per semester and quarter. The most common structure is the division into two semesters in such a way that the winter semester ends and the summer semester begins in early February.

Promotion, Advancement

Categories of academic staff are defined by the Act on Scientific Activity and Higher Education. There are different selection criteria for different parts of the higher education system.

Scientific-teaching and artistic-teaching titles are assistant professor (Asst. Prof. PhD./D.A.), associate professor (Assoc. Prof. PhD./D.A.), full professor and full professor with tenure (Prof. PhD./D.A.). 

Scientific-teaching titles in the scientific component correspond to scientific titles as follows:

1. assistant professor – research associate,
2. associate professor – senior research associate,
3. full professor – scientific adviser,
4. full professor with tenure – scientific adviser with tenure.

Teaching titles are lecturer (Lec.), senior lecturer (Sen. Lec.), college professor (Prof.), lecturer, senior lecturer, artistic associate, senior artistic associate and artistic adviser.

At the universities of applied sciences and colleges of higher education, teachers are elected to the teaching titles and the jobs corresponding to those titles. By way of exception, teachers are elected to the teaching titles at the university as well.

Persons elected for the scientific-teaching, artistic-teaching, teaching and professional titles shall be contracted for an indefinite period of time, with the obligation to conduct re-election or election for the senior post.

The National Council for Science, Higher Education and Technological Development determines minimum conditions for promotion based on scientific achievements based primarily on scientific activity, approves requirements of the Rectors' Conference and the Council of Universities and University Colleges of Applied Sciences for appointment to scientific-teaching, artistic-teaching and teaching titles.

The selection procedure to educational and professional titles and corresponding positions is carried out by a higher education institution in accordance with the statute, on the basis of a public tender.

If another person is selected in the tender procedure, the employee who worked in that post until then will be offered another post, or in the absence thereof, the employment contract will be terminated.

Retirement and Pension

For an employee with the scientific-teaching, artistic-teaching, teaching and professional title at a higher education institution at the end of the academic year in which he/she turned 65 years of age the employment contract ceases due to retirement.

However, in accordance with the Act on Scientific Activity and Higher Education, when there is a need at the university or faculty for the employee to continue working at the institution, it can conclude an employment contract for a period of two years with the possibility of extension in two-year mandates with an employee who meets the criteria of excellence. The criteria of excellence for the selection of employees for the conclusion of an employment contract after the age of 65 are adopted by the National Council, and the university, university of applied sciences or college of higher education may also stipulate additional criteria of excellence by a general act. The conditions for retirement and pensions of academic staff in public institutions of higher education are also stipulated by the Labour Act and Collective Agreement.