2025 annual report: Operations balanced and research activity on the rise

There are several bright spots in the financial statement that Aarhus University has just finalised and presented to the university board.

Many will note the DKK 306 million budget surplus, which is a good DKK 200 million more than anticipated. Others will be delighted that AU’s researchers have exceeded expectations and secured significantly more external research funding than in previous years.

But chair of the board Birgitte Nauntofte singles out another highlight when assessing this year’s financial results:

“There’s certainly a lot to celebrate in the university’s financial statement, and it’s absolutely crucial for the board that AU’s operations remain financially balanced. Both the local units and the central administration have once again demonstrated sound financial management, and this is essential if we are to confidently move forward with the academic and infrastructure investments set out in the university’s Strategy 2030.”

Surplus funds should be spent wisely

This year’s surplus is primarily driven by an increase in external funding, but the bottom line has also been affected by additional core research funding from the Danish Finance Act and the sale of AU’s stake in Navitas. At the same time, costs have not risen at the same rate as revenue. This is partly because some of the costs associated with infrastructure investments at AU Viborg and Aarhus BSS’s relocation to the University City have been deferred to later years.

“We can be very pleased with yet another solid set of financial results, but what I value most of all is that this growth is linked to increased research activity. There has never been more research activity at Aarhus University than there is right now, and our researchers are performing exceptionally well in the international arena – thanks in no small part to the administrative support they receive,” says rector Brian Bech Nielsen.

He mentions the EU’s Horizon Europe framework programme as an example. Since the programme was launched, AU has secured 395 projects with a total budget of just under DKK 1.77 billion, putting the university in fifteenth place among all the institutions that have received funding from the programme.

Yet the rector is aware that these positive financial results also come with a responsibility: 

“For a university, finances are a means to an end; not an end in themselves. We are not here to make a profit, so we must invest in improving our core activities. We are committed to spending our resources wisely and pursuing our strategic goals for the benefit of our staff, students and society as a whole.” 

Several unknowns could affect AU’s finances

University director Kristian Thorn also welcomes the financial resilience that makes it possible to invest in AU’s core academic disciplines whilst also absorbing the expected and unexpected shocks that may arise both at home and abroad: 

“We find ourselves in an uncertain geopolitical situation where rising commodity prices, for example, could affect our operations and major projects. Here I’m thinking of our campus development, where we’re building new facilities and carrying out renovations in Aarhus, Viborg, Herning and Emdrup. At the same time, the government’s work programme is looming in the background, and it seems likely that administrative cuts will be required. We don’t yet know how these will be implemented, but we have one of the country’s most efficiently run university administrations, and we naturally hope that a new government will take this into account,” concludes the university director. 

• Read Aarhus University’s 2025 annual report (English version will be available shortly)

Highlights from the annual report

• In 2025, AU researchers secured DKK 3.138 billion in external research funding (the final figure is expected to be higher due to post-reporting)
• By 2025, the proportion of women in senior academic positions had risen to 37% (in 2022, it was 34%)
• In 2025, 5,948 students graduated and 524 completed a PhD
• In 2025, the Digitally Competent Graduates project was completed. As part of this project, over 70% of AU’s degree programmes carried out an analysis of their digital development needs with a view to curriculum development, and 2,300 members of teaching staff took part in competency development.
• In 2025, AU entered into 462 new research agreements with companies.
• In 2025, there were over 400 active start-up projects affiliated with The Kitchen, which received professional advice and mentoring to help them develop their business ideas and companies.