I became acquainted with administration when our previous professor of archaeology retired and the Institute for Cultural Research needed a new director. I had practically no choice but to take on this responsibility. I had no experience of the work, but that soon changed. I received help from others and by pondering things together we made progress.

Although things at the University were constantly being overhauled and changed, even that did not feel unreasonable. I also participated in the activities of the faculty council, and in addition I became acquainted with the development of advanced and post-graduate studies through various groups at the Faculty of Arts.

Taking care of administrative tasks does not seem to be close to the heart of many research-oriented university folk. Nevertheless, participation in university administration has had its interesting moments. The Formulation and construction of policies and practices has sometimes led to unexpected and interesting conversations that have given me new perspectives on how to manage seemingly mind-numbing tasks.

I fully appreciate the problem that without a functional administration the university would either be autocratic or would function worse than it does today. The current problem is nevertheless that there is often an insufficient emphasis on performing basic teaching and research. It is nonetheless essential to highlight different perspectives as long as reforms and changes are made, as of course we will also need to develop the University in the future.