Leiden University gives its students the opportunity to assemble part of their programme themselves, which enables them to choose their own areas of emphasis. One way in which they can do this is to follow a minor, a coherent package of courses worth 30 credits.

In recent months, we have been working hard to develop the faculty minors we will offer as of the 2027-2028 academic year. In that year, for the first time, the elective courses for regular bachelor's students at our faculty will be fully concentrated in the fifth semester.

The Faculty Board has decided to introduce a renewed and future proof minor portfolio starting in the 2027 – 2028 academic year. With this updated package, the Faculty aims to offer an attractive and academically strong selection of minors that aligns with current themes, societal developments, labour…

As of academic year 2021-2022 Leiden University is offering a minor Business Administration in The Hague. What is this minor and what can you achieve with it?

Minority governments only become an option when attempts to form a government collapse. PhD candidate Corné Smit explored why such governments have become rare in the Netherlands and what advantages they might offer. ‘Broad majority coalitions often fail to make substantial progress on key issues.’

The formation of a new government is in full swing in the Netherlands. Or more accurately, it is in full deadlock. As a result, the possibility of a minority government is being discussed. Would that be a good idea?

Inaugural lecture

Every year, the ‘Kluitersprijs’ is awarded to students who achieve excellent results in the minor Intelligence Studies.

Nineteen students who obtained excellent results in the minor Intelligence Studies received the annual Kluitersprijs.

In the academic year 2022-2023 the Social Resilience and Security interdisciplinary programme will offer a new minor for students who are interested in studying interpersonal violence and who are entering the third year of their Bachelor's degree. The announcement went down well with students: the available…

The universities of Delft, Leiden and Rotterdam are working together to show their students what artificial intelligence (AI) means for their own field. Three AI minors will start in the 2022 – 2023 academic year and will answer questions such as: ‘How best can you use AI in your research discipline?’…

Three new minors at the intersection of security and resilience will launch in September 2026 at the Faculty of Governance and Global Affairs. A distinctive feature is that all three combine academic coursework with a practical placement in the field, within defence, the police, or emergency service…

The ‘Kluitersprijs’ is awarded to students who achieve excellent results in the minor Intelligence Studies every year.

Future proofing student skills with a new cohort of Digital Humanities & AI students.

The English taught interdisciplinary minor Violence Studies looks into various facets of interpersonal violence. Is this minor for all Leiden students? These two 'colleagues' are certain of it.

Safety and security risks ranging from cybercrime to terrorism threats are a growing concern worldwide. Technological developments have made security issues increasingly complex. This is typically a topic for the multidisciplinary Leiden-Delft-Erasmus Universities (LDE) curriculum.

The interdisciplinary AI & Society minor of Leiden University brings together students and lecturers from a wide range of disciplines. Together they look at the impact of AI on society. Students are enthusiastic about this merging of worlds.

Carlotta Rigotti and Christina Pasvanti Gkioka from eLaw – Center for Law and Digital Technologies, have published an article titled 'Overlapping Offences, Divergent Logics: Reconciling EU Law on Sexual Imagery of Minors' in the New Journal of European Criminal Law.

Tax scandals, like the Panama Papers, the Paradise Papers, and the Pandora Papers, have made tax avoidance by large multinationals and rich individuals a major topic of public debate. Policymakers are pushed to close tax loopholes and reform the global tax system. But this is no easy task.

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.

Why are health problems such as loneliness and obesity so persistent? What causes them to occur more frequently in some neighborhoods than others? And how can we solve them? You will learn about these topics in the new minor 'Co-creating a Healthy Society'.

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’.

In September 2023 the new minor Sustainability, Climate Change and Food starts. This minor critically examines the complexities of food sustainability through ecological, socio-economic, political, and cultural systems.

Students presented the prototypes of educational tools they made in the first ten weeks of the new minor Living Education Lab. We asked two students and a teacher about their first experiences in this minor.

How do students start asking more questions on a museum visit? Let them free an Egyptian princess from a sarcophagus! In the minor Living Education Lab, students from TU Delft, Leiden University and Erasmus University Rotterdam designed an escaperoom.

From a bachelor's degree in English Language and Culture to a master's degree in International Relations: a minor made it possible for Evanthia Andreadaki. 'For me, this is the perfect combination.'

Leiden University and the LUMC will introduce a new ‘Sustainable Health and Care’ interdisciplinary minor in September. The organisers received support in the form of a Kiem grant. Lead applicant Martijn Sijbom advises new Kiem projects: ‘Work to a deadline.’

From telescopes to science fiction: in just one semester, students with no background in physics or astronomy get to explore the universe. The first group of students started last month in the new minor Our Universe.

The new minor in 'Creative strategies for a society in change' will start in September. The Leiden Academy of Creative and Performing Arts (ACPA) has entered into a partnership with the The Hague Film House and will be letting students experience what it is like to work as an artist. ‘We want to teach…

The film Blade Runner as part of the law curriculum? It’s not that weird to Maartje van der Woude, Professor of Law and Society, and Frans-Willem Korsten, Professor of Literature, Culture and Law. ‘The film raises a fundamental question: what’s a human and what’s not?’ From the next academic year onwards,…

Despite a lack of specific legislation on this issue, Dutch Minister of Justice and Security Dilan Yeşilgöz is allowing the national police force to experiment with facial recognition technology.

Hanan Hammad and Eftychia Mylona give a master class focusing on conceptual and methodological challenges in writing histories of marginalized social groups.

Minoren en keuzeruimte

What starts off gently may end dramatically. Many young people these days fall victim to sexual exploitation. How can we prevent this suffering? Ieke de Vries points to the living environment of (potential) victims.

Did you know that research and education in the field of digital innovation are key pillars of the Faculty of Governance and Global Affairs? Over the next seven days, we are organising Cyberweek on our social media channels to showcase what we have to offer.

The academic year officially commences on 1 September and ends on 31 August. On collective closing days the university is closed and no lectures take place. The academic calendar applies to the whole university and to all study programmes with the exception of medicine.

In accordance with Article 1.21 of the WHW, Leiden University is obliged to draw up a reporting protocol that students and staff can follow if they perceive signs that students, children, or staff are experiencing domestic violence or child abuse.

If you travel abroad for your work, you can claim expenses for lodging, meals, minor costs and transport. The amount reimbursed depends on the country you travel to. You must have approval to travel from your manager.

Onderwijs-en Examenregeling (OER)

Access to education for people from the lower socio-economic class has improved immensely in Europe from the 1950s onwards. Yet the Roma and Sinti were unable to reap benefits from this. PhD candidate Anita van der Hulst researched why so few Roma and Sinti went on to higher education. PhD defence on…