Students remain ‘very satisfied’ with their degree programme in 2022
Almost 3,000 students from the Faculty of Humanities completed the National Student Survey (NSE) in the spring of 2022. With a response rate of 38%, the Faculty scored slightly above the national average.
The NSE is conducted for a very good reason: the responses of the 2,910 students are used by the departments and the faculty to reflect on areas that are going well and those that require additional attention. Curious to find out how your degree programme performed? Take a look at the results for each of the programmes.
‘Excellent lecturers and a high level of engagement’
The results indicate that students are ‘satisfied to very satisfied’ across almost all themes. Notably, the scores for Humanities degree programmes are higher than the University average in almost all areas.
One such area is our excellent lecturers; as in previous years, students continue to be very positive about our teaching staff. Students are also very positive about the content and international elements of their programme, as well as about lecturer engagement and contact within the programme. The Faculty also received high scores for the development of general skills.
Room for improvement
But, of course, there are also areas that need improving. This year, for instance, the Faculty of Humanities once again scored comparatively lower on average for ‘Career preparation’. Fortunately, progress has been made: all programmes show a clear trend towards increasing levels of satisfaction. In other words, students feel that there has been an improvement in the extent to which they are prepared for the labour market and in the methods used to prepare them.
For example, the Humanities Career Service regularly organises a wide range of activities to prepare students for the labour market, and many programmes have also stepped up their efforts. One example here is the launch of the practical course LEAP in which students create a journal. In short, this is an issue that the Faculty is already working hard on and will continue to work on in the coming years!
In the spotlight: international elements of the degree programmes
Humanities students have for many years been very positive about the international elements of their studies, especially at Bachelor’s level. This was also the case in 2022, with the Faculty scoring very well compared to the University average.
For humanities programmes, it seems only natural to embrace an international dimension; cultural expressions from all continents and all eras are objects of research and study. Many programmes therefore encourage students to spend time studying or doing an internship or fieldwork abroad. Fortunately, now that the pandemic seems to be behind us, there are more opportunities for this type of international mobility.
The international character of the Faculty is also reflected in its student and staff population. Even for those students who do not cross physical borders during their studies, the Faculty of Humanities provides frequent exposure to the world’s wealth of languages and cultures. In this international learning environment, the degree programmes continue to prepare students for a labour market that needs graduates who can understand and provide solutions to global issues and who are mindful of a multicultural context.
Want to have your say on your degree programme?
How would you like to be prepared for the labour market? Do you have any good ideas about teaching or examination methods? If you would like to take part in the discussion on these or other topics, contact your programme committee or send an e-mail to the assessor, Anne Wellink, at assessor@hum.leidenuniv.nl.