Universities and universities of applied sciences are launching more new programmes than they are discontinuing, says Minister Eppo Bruins. It’s one of his arguments for forcing them into joint discussions. But is his count accurate?

Carefully worded but not very concrete – this is how universities, universities of applied sciences and students perceive Minister Eppo Bruins’ policy letter policy for secondary vocational education, higher education and scientific research. Especially the plans for a legal obligation for mutual coordination and capacity funding raise questions.

How does minister Bruins see the future of higher education and scientific research? In a letter, he sketches the broad outlines: more consultation between institutions on starting or closing study programmes, less government interference in, for instance, social safety, and institutions themselves should take care of the position of young researchers.

Acting as prosecutors and defenders, Industrial Design Engineering students faced off in the ‘courtroom’ this January. The case in question: the role of AI in design education. Lecturer Fernando Secomandi saw how his mock trial method forced students to think deeply. “This could work in other faculties too.”

The government is planning a language assessment for all English-taught Bachelor’s programmes: could they be given in Dutch? An advance survey of five such programmes reveals they have solid arguments for their choice of language of instruction.

One quarter of master’s degree programmes in the Netherlands do not admit applicants from universities of applied sciences, research by the Inspectorate of Education shows. This while universities are required to evaluate admission according to individual ability. At TU Delft, this pertains to three of the 34 master’s degrees.

Up to and including 9 March, all students can complete the National Student Survey. The survey is an important tool to measure the quality of higher education.

DUO, the agency in charge of administering student financing, incorrectly told 8,590 international students that they would receive compensation in connection with the student loan system. The error represents a total of 6.6 million euros.

Does degree programme X really need to be offered in English? Paul Rullmann, outgoing chair of the committee in charge of deciding this question, understands the rationale for introducing a language assessment. “But not”, he says, “in the context of a set of spending cuts.”