Open Letter for the participation of professionals from the arts in higher education

agenda

DATE

10 Jul 2026

AUTHOR

Umbigo

Open Letter for the participation of professionals from the arts in higher education

AUTHOR

Umbigo

Umbigo supports the core principles of the Open Letter to the Minister for Education, Science and Innovation – Calling for the participation of professionals in the arts in higher education, an initiative that defends the recognition of professional practice and artistic experience as fully qualifying credentials for teaching in higher education in the arts. The letter will be sent to the Minister for Education, Science and Innovation on 27 July 2026; signatures will therefore be collected until 26 July 2026.

Among the main proposals presented, one that particularly stands out is the revision of the proposed amendment to the Legal Framework for Higher Education Degrees and Diplomas, which, in its current wording, only allows professionals in the arts to co-supervise master’s theses and prevents them from being employed on permanent contracts. The letter proposes the creation of a single category of teaching staff with recognised professional or artistic experience, equivalent to a PhD, calling for professionals in the arts to be able to fully perform teaching duties, supervise master’s theses, coordinate study programmes, sit on examination boards, serve on the governing bodies of higher education institutions and be counted towards accreditation ratios, on an equal footing with lecturers holding a PhD. It is based on the principle that excellence in arts education depends on the integration of academic research and artistic practice, enabling students to learn from active professionals.

The proposal aims to remove the restriction on permanent contracts; to expressly include courses in the arts, design and related fields in the diploma; to allow these lecturers to act as co-supervisors for doctoral students; and to safeguard the continuity of the coordination and supervision currently provided by specialist lecturers.

The document also argues that the revision of the Academic Staff Career Statute, announced for 2027, should integrate professionals in the arts into university and polytechnic teaching careers, through an appropriate transitional arrangement enabling them to fully carry out teaching, supervision, accreditation and academic management duties. Finally, the letter requests the beginning of the process of drafting a specific law for higher education in the arts, as provided for in Article 1(3) of the Legal Framework for Higher Education Institutions (RJIES), involving schools, sector entities and professional associations.

The letter follows the mobilisation of 129 lecturers from ESAD. CR (Leiria Polytechnic Institute), who published an initial letter on 13 May 2026, and is aligned with the framework already in place in countries such as Germany, France and Spain, where artistic practice is recognised by law as a full qualification for teaching, and is considered a fundamental element for the quality of education and for the training of future cultural professionals.

The letter will be sent to the Minister for Education, Science and Innovation on 27 July 2026, with copies sent to the Prime Minister’s Office, the Education and Science Committee of the Assembly of the Republic, the CCISP and the CRUP. The gathering of signatures will run until 26 July, 2026.

By signing the letter, each signatory’s name, profession and organisation will be published on the public list of supporters. Email addresses will not be disclosed. The public list of supporters, which is constantly updated, can be viewed here.