The call for the ’26-’27 Kiem grant opens on Monday 30 March. Leiden University staff can apply for 10,000 euros for an interdisciplinary research or teaching initiative. This is the last Kiem round.

Education

‘We’re going to see each other again on campus. We’re so pleased, but we do have to say safe.’ Rector Magnificus Hester Bijl is looking ahead to the new academic year, which begins on 6 September. No more 1.5m distancing, but we do have to take responsibility for other people’s safety.

The announcement was made shortly before the summer break: from 1 September the annual Performance & Development (P&D) interview will have a new format and also a new name. The P&D interview will be changing to GROW (Gesprekken over Resultaat, Ontwikkeling en Welzijn): Conversations on Performance,…

From practicing ultrasound techniques in augmented reality to chatting with virtual ancient Greeks about what an archaeological site looked like back in the day: video & innovation specialist Nathan Saucier gives an insight into the many possibilities of the interactive media and simulations studio…

Towards the end of February, three Leiden University buildings will be assessed for their accessibility to people with a disability. The assessment will be carried out by Ongehinderd, a social enterprise committed to making the Netherlands more accessible. Its founder and director, Gerard de Nooij,…

We can all look back on a turbulent year, a year in which we rapidly switched to working – and learning – online. Because pandemic or not, many staff members have continued to work on their development. Last year the Learning & Development team developed a wide range of online courses and training,…

Presentations, city tours, themed cafés and information fairs − there was plenty to discover on the Bachelor’s Open Day last Saturday. Around 6,000 prospective students and 4,000 parents visited faculties in Leiden and The Hague to soak up the atmosphere and imagine how it would be to study at Leiden…

How do you move 3,000 fragile clay tablets that date back thousands of years? This was the challenge faced by staff from the Netherlands Institute for the Near East (NINO). After years of preparation, the Liagre Böhl collection has been moved on trolleys to its new home.

People in leadership roles are unlikely to discuss leadership skills with their colleagues. But that is precisely what we as a university would like them to do. Because trust in one another’s abilities will make us an agile university that innovates and makes room for talent.

To tackle the high workload at our university, and at the insistence of the University Council, the Executive Board launched the Workload Reduction Fund last year. The first fund-financed projects have since begun. Two staff members explain how their ideas can help others.

The Leiden Ranking – Open Edition is completely transparent. The ranking compiled by the CWTS uses open data and publishes the algorithms that are used.

Leiden University is announcing its approach for sensitive collaboration with external partners. This has been prompted by the ongoing, troubling situation in the Middle East and the recent advice from the Committee on Human Rights and Conflict Areas regarding current collaboration with Israeli part…

To what extent can global issues be solved by multistakeholder collaboration, a relatively new type of organisation? Jan Aart Scholte, the coordinator of the Global Transformations and Governance Challenges (GTGC) interdisciplinary research programme, has received a Dutch Research Council (NWO) grant…

It’s time once again to take the National Student Survey (NSE), the annual student satisfaction survey for all students at research universities and universities of applied sciences. Annie de Jong is a Policy Officer for Quality Assurance at Strategy and Academic Affairs and the central contact person…

Professor of Privacy and Cybercrime Bart Schermer researches the relationship between new digital technologies, enforcement and human rights. What cybercrime trends can he see that are relevant to an organisation like Leiden University?

We, the Executive Board and deans, have recently heard from different sources that the conflict between Israel and Hamas continues to evoke strong feelings of tension, anxiety and insecurity within our university community. We take this very seriously and so are once again addressing you all.

When do we say violence was used in an incident? The answer may seem obvious at first. But interim results from a study by Jolien van Breen show that Dutch people are labelling events in increasingly broad contexts as violent.

At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers from 15 departments at Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC) realised they could do more for patients if they joined forces. This is how the BEAT-COVID group has been able to rapidly gain knowledge about COVID-19, the role of the immune system and…

As from April 2023 all students at Leiden University, Delft University of Technology and Erasmus University Rotterdam will start using the eduXchange portal to register for a minor.

Always wanted to go to a real art auction? Now’s your chance! On 15 February over a hundred works from the LUMC’s art collection will go under the hammer. ‘It’s great fun just to be there, regardless of whether you buy anything,’ says dean and auctioneer Pancras Hogendoorn.

De Universiteit Leiden vindt de aanpassing van het bindend studieadvies geen verstandig plan.

The PERSPECTIVE project looks to address the concept of successfulness. What does it mean to be the ‘perfect student’, to be 'successful' at university and later in life. It explores perfectionism, setting expectations, performance pressure and more.

At the Dies Natalis Willem Otterspeer, Professor Emeritus of University History, presented the fourth and final volume of Groepsportret met Dame, his series on the history of Leiden University. De 'Strategie van de Aanpassing' covers the period 1876-1975. Otterspeer talked about his book in a podcast…

Research

Leiden University has decided to withdraw from EUniWell as of January 2023. The importance of synergy in our international portfolio and research and teaching agendas recently led us to accept the invitation to join Una Europa, an alliance of 11 leading European research universities. We have explored…

A national walkout will be staged on Monday 13 May. Leiden Scholars for Palestine has called on students and staff from Leiden University to meet at 11.00 at the Lipsius building in Leiden and the Wijnhaven building in The Hague.

ICT

ICT

Leiden University is concerned about the plans presented by Minister of Education, Culture and Science Robbert Dijkgraaf to limit English-taught courses in higher education. If these plans go forward, the university believes this could have major consequences for our international students and staff.…

Different PhD tracks are available for different PhD candidates. Information is given here about the types of tracks, the admission requirements and the administrative steps to be taken.

You can apply various means to increase your societal impact: through interaction with professionals, the commercial sector or general audiences. The University can support you in this process in a number of ways.

Use this step-by-step guide when you want to (re)design your course, lecture or assignment. SEEDS is here to help you every step of the way.

Are you planning to go abroad for work for more than one month? Do you have some ancillary activities abroad? Or are you planning to move abroad? If you are going abroad on behalf of Leiden University, it is important to make the necessary arrangements for working there.

PhD, Staff

This month's flash interview is with alumna Sytske Besemer, Criminologist, who works at a startup called Cradle. Sytske has specifically chosen to work for a company with societal impact. And she is about to move again, this time to Zürich.

Bring over a hundred driven researchers together in one room and the good ideas will start to flow: that was the thinking behind the internal networking meeting on interdisciplinary collaboration on Wednesday 17 May. Representatives from the nine interdisciplinary programmes were waiting at their stalls…

The SAILS conference The Future of AI is Here (and Guess What … it’s Human) brought together researchers and policy makers to discuss the important issues in the area of artificial intelligence (AI). Where are the opportunities and what are the dangers?

We can accrue pensions, reinforce dykes and make our homes more sustainable. But how do we make our higher education fit for the future? And what skills should we be teaching our students now for jobs that don’t yet exist? Lecturers and educational developers looked to the future during the keynote…

For some it will sound like music to their ears, but for others is may sound less appealing: now the advice on working from home has changed, we can once again go to the office. After a period of working from home, which for some lasted almost two years (with maybe a short break), it can be a big transition.…

Without academic freedom, we might not have antibiotics, nor a deep understanding of human behaviour. Literary criticism, climate models, and ecological restoration would be severely limited; just like ethical reflection on artificial intelligence, justice, trauma, parenting, faith and hope. All these…

The interdisciplinary, English-taught minor ‘Violence Studies’ looks at violence from very diverse scientific perspectives. What are the benefits from this approach? Students and lecturers evaluate: ‘This minor’s a goldmine’.

The outbreak of coronavirus has radically changed our life and work. We have had to work, teach and conduct research from home. How has coronavirus changed your work? What do you miss most? And what is keeping you going? We asked a few colleagues.