Episode 4, Part 2: Katja Årosin from CIP talks with her three guests about how, as a manager or colleague, you can welcome and include new international colleagues. Guests: Kristine Cecile Harper, Department of Science Education, Daniel Hershcovich, Department of Computer Science, and Lisa Storm Villadsen, Department of Communication, all from UCPH.
Podcast Series: Language Use at UCPH. Summary of Ep. 4, Part 2
How to welcome your new international colleague – tips for linguistic, academic, and social inclusion
Introduction
What is it like to arrive at the University of Copenhagen (UCPH) as an international employee? How can managers and colleagues help ensure that new international staff feel included – linguistically, academically, and socially? That’s the topic of Episode 4, Part 1 and 2 of Language Use at UCPH, (recorded on September 3, 2025). This episode is primarily in Danish, since we find it important to give international employees a voice in Danish as a second language. Danish summary below.
Guests:
Host:
Production:
|
Summary of Episode 4, Part 1 and 2
This is a summary of Part 2 of Episode 4 on inclusion of international employees. In Part 1 of Episode 4, Kris and Daniel, two international researchers talk about their arrival at UCPH and their experiences with learning Danish. We also talk about the language policy of UCPH, and Lisa emphasizes the importance of offering Danish lessons tailored to the needs of the individual employee.
Limited opportunities to speak Danish at some departments
When talking about opportunities to practise Danish at UCPH, Daniel admits that he primarily speaks English at DIKU, because most of his colleagues are international. But he has gradually built connections with a few colleagues, including administrative staff, with whom he communicates in Danish. He also speaks Danish with colleagues from the Faculty of Humanities, with whom he is engaged in interdisciplinary collaboration. Kris points out that there are almost no opportunities to speak Danish at IND, as many of her colleagues are young international researchers in temporary positions, and they do not have time to learn Danish.
Colleagues' lunch conversations in Danish are difficult to follow
Kris notes that it is difficult for her to follow lunch conversations conducted exclusively in Danish. She finds it difficult to follow the conversation and is unable to make sense of what is being said and to contribute to the conversation before it has moved on. She does not want to ask others to switch to English for her benefit, for example at lunch, so she sometimes ends up eating lunch alone in her office. In her experience, it can be difficult to practise speaking Danish. Danes often switch to English, because she speaks slowly and with an accent or has difficulty pronouncing the words.
Need for an ongoing conversation about parallel language use
Lisa believes that Danes have a lower tolerance threshold for Danish spoken with an accent than people in other countries. But she also finds that most Danish colleagues make a genuine effort to include colleagues who do not speak Danish. She calls for an ongoing conversation about what parallel language use means. She also emphasizes that Kris’ story about lunches being conducted in Danish illustrates that it can be difficult to apply the parallel language principles in practice.
Varying degrees of energy and motivation to practise Danish
Daniel points out that the energy level and motivation to speak Danish vary depending on the day and communicative situation. He explains that, when you’re in the process of learning Danish, sometimes it’s easier to speak the language you feel more comfortable with, and other times you are motivated to speak Danish. Lisa adds that this applies to all employees, including Danes who speak English or other languages. Daniel would prefer if people asked him which language he would like to speak in each situation, and he often wants to speak Danish.
Exclusion from committees and management teams due to language barriers
The results from the University of Copenhagen's recently published inclusion survey conducted in the fall of 2024 show that the biggest exclusion factor for international employees is language challenges, both at informal social events, but also when it comes to professional and career-enhancing activities. Daniel has noticed that people in management positions are often Danes and Danish speakers. Kris herself is employed in a management role, and she admits that she is linguistically challenged when participating in long management meetings in Danish. She does not understand all the details, and it’s difficult for her to follow the conversation, especially when there is a change of topic. Sometimes she has ideas for solutions to problems, but she does not have time to formulate them in Danish before her colleagues have offered theirs, and in this way, she loses out on opportunities to contribute to discussions.
Mentorship as a tool for inclusion
Lisa is a mentor for an Italian colleague, which involves, for example, she and the colleague following up on meetings conducted in Danish in case the colleague has questions about what was discussed. In addition, the mentorship includes conversations about teaching practices, the notion of an external examiner, Danish students' teaching expectations, and the University’s obligations towards Danish society. Daniel agrees that these academic, cultural and community-related practices can be challenging to understand, and that the conversation about these topics can easily take place in English.
Danish learners’ lunch club at UCPH
In the spring of 2025, Kris and a colleague established a Danish lunch club at North Campus, as she believes it is very important for international employees to practise Danish across the faculties. She was inspired by the Danish lunch club at Southern Campus, which was launched in February 2025 on the initiative of an international employee learning Danish and Julie Riegels from CIP. All international employees are welcome to participate in the Danish lunch club, which allows them to practise Danish in an informal forum while enjoying a free lunch. At the end of the conversation, I ask about the social events at Lisa's department, and she explains that she and her colleagues regularly meet privately in each other's homes, usually for dinner, which strengthens their relationships.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Podcastserie: Sprogbrug på KU. Resumé af episode 4, del 2:
Tag godt imod din nye internationale kollega – gode råd til sproglig, faglig og social inklusion
Indledning
Hvordan føles det at ankomme til KU som international ansat? Hvordan kan man som leder eller kollega bidrage til, at ens nye internationale kollega føler sig inkluderet – både sprogligt, fagligt og socialt? Dét og meget mere taler vi om i episode 4, del 1 og 2, af Sprogbrug på KU (optaget 3.9.25). Denne episode er primært på dansk, da vi finder det vigtigt, at internationale ansatte har en stemme på dansk som andetsprog.
Gæster:
Vært:
Produktion:
|
Resumé af episode 4, del 1 og 2
Dette er et resumé af episode 4, del 2 om inklusion af internationale ansatte på KU. I episode 4, del 1 fortæller Kris og Daniel, som er internationale ansatte, om deres ankomst til KU og deres erfaringer med at lære dansk. Vi taler også og KU’s sprogpolitik, og Lisa understreger vigtigheden af et tidligt tilbud om danskundervisning, som er tilpasset den enkelte ansattes behov.
Begrænsede muligheder for at tale dansk på KU
Da vi taler om mulighederne for at tale dansk på KU, siger Daniel, at han primært taler engelsk på DIKU, fordi størstedelen af hans kolleger er internationale. Men efterhånden har han fundet et par kolleger, bl.a. i administrationen, som han taler dansk med. Derudover taler han dansk med kolleger fra Humaniora, som han har et tværfagligt samarbejde med. Kris fortæller, at der er meget begrænsede muligheder for at tale dansk på IND, da mange af hendes kolleger er unge internationale forskere i tidsbegrænsede stillinger, og de har ikke tid til at lære dansk.
Kollegers frokostsamtaler på dansk er svære at følge med i
Kris fortæller, at det er svært at følge med i frokostsamtaler, der udelukkende foregår på dansk. Hun kan føle sig forståelsesmæssigt bagud i samtalen, og hun kan ikke nå at forstå pointerne og bidrage til samtalen, før den har bevæget sig videre. Hun har ikke lyst til at bede andre om at skifte til engelsk for hendes skyld, fx til frokost, og hun ender derfor med nogle gange at spise frokost alene på sit kontor. Når hun taler dansk med danskere, oplever hun nogle gange, at hendes samtalepartnere hurtigt skifter til engelsk, fordi hun taler langsomt, taler med accent eller har svært ved at udtale ordene, hvilket kan gøre det svært at øve sig i at tale dansk.
Behov for en løbende samtale om parallelsproglighed
Lisa har en opfattelse af, at danskere har en lavere tolerancetærskel over for dansk udtalt med accent, end man har i andre lande. Men hun oplever samtidig, at flertallet af de danske kolleger gør en stor indsats for at inkludere kolleger, der ikke taler dansk. Hun opfordrer til en mere løbende samtale om, hvad parallelsproglighed indebærer. Hun understreger også, at Kris’ historie om frokoster på dansk illustrerer, at det kan være svært at anvende de parallelsproglige principper i praksis.
Forskelligt sprogligt overskud i forskellige situationer
Daniel pointerer, at der er forskel på, hvad man har sprogligt overskud til i forskellige situationer. Når man er i en proces med at lære dansk, er det nogle gange nemmere at tale det sprog, man er mest tryg ved, og andre gange har man overskud til at prøve at tale dansk. Lisa tilføjer, at dette gør sig gældende for alle, også danskere, der skal tale engelsk eller andre sprog. Daniel foretrækker selv, at folk spørger ham, hvilket sprog, han helst vil tale i en given situation, og ofte vil han gerne tale dansk.
Eksklusion fra udvalg og ledelseslag pga. sproglige barrierer
Resultaterne af KU’s nyligt publicerede inklusionsmåling foretaget i efteråret 2024 viser bl.a., at den største eksklusionsfaktor for internationale ansatte er sproglige udfordringer, både i forbindelse med uformelle, sociale arrangementer, men også i forbindelse med faglige og karrierefremmende aktiviteter. Daniel genkender billedet af, at folk i ledelsespositioner ofte er danskere og dansktalende. Kris er selv ansat i en lederrolle, og hun fortæller, at hun er sprogligt udfordret, når hun deltager i ledelsesmøder på dansk. Hun forstår ikke alle detaljer, og det er svært for hende at følge med i samtalen, især når der sker emneskift. Nogle gange har hun forslag til løsninger på problemer, men hun kan ikke nå at formulere sine idéer, før hendes danske kolleger har budt ind med deres, og på den måde får hun ikke altid mulighed for at bidrage til diskussionerne.
Mentorordning som et redskab til inklusion
Lisa er mentor for en italiensk kollega, og denne ordning indebærer fx, at hun og kollegaen laver en fælles opfølgning på møder på dansk, hvis kollegaen har spørgsmål til noget, der blev sagt. Derudover består mentorordningen primært af samtaler om fx undervisningspraksisser, censorordningen, danske studerendes forventninger til undervisningen og om universitetets forpligtelser over for det danske samfund. Daniel er enig i, at disse akademiske, kulturelle og samfundsrelaterede praksisser kan være svære at forstå, og han synes, at samtalen om disse emner sagtens kan foregå på engelsk.
Dansk frokostklub på KU
I foråret 2025 tog Kris sammen med en kollega initiativ til at oprette en dansk frokostklub på Nørre Campus, da hun synes, det er meget vigtigt, at internationale ansatte har mulighed for at øve dansk flere steder på KU. Hun blev inspireret af den danske frokostklub på Søndre Campus, der opstod i februar 2025 på initiativ fra en dansklærende international ansat og Julie Riegels fra CIP. Alle internationale ansatte er velkomne til at deltage i dansk frokostklub, hvor de har mulighed for at øve dansk i et uformelt forum samtidig med, at de får en gratis frokost. Til sidst spørger jeg ind til de sociale arrangementer i Lisas afdeling, og hun fortæller, at de jævnligt mødes privat i hinandens hjem, fx til middage – hvilket styrker relationerne og trygheden mellem dem.