A discount on textbooks is always welcome. But for these students joining a study association has meant much more than that alone.

She started her career in the police force, walking the beat as an officer. Now she has been appointed Extraordinary Professor of Diversity, Inclusion and Policing at Leiden University. Things have come full circle for Saniye Çelik. ‘It's very special.’

Dr. Eduard Fosch-Villaronga from eLaw collaborates with researchers from the Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology Delhi (IIIT-Delhi) and University of Delhi (DU) in an effort to explore and reflect upon the potential legal, ethical and pedagogical challenges of deploying a social robot in…

It is said that robots replace human interaction, but not always. This spring, the robots were the reason why the eLaw Center for Law and Digital Technologies at Leiden University in the Netherlands and Mykolas Romeris University (MRU) Law School in Lithuania got together.

We need to dispel the arrogant and misguided idea that modern humans are superior to earlier human species. It is thanks in part to all our predecessors such as Neanderthals that we are who we are today. This is what Marie Soressi, Professor of Hominin Diversity Archaeology, will argue in her inaugural…

How do we know what a quantum computer is good for when it hasn't been built yet? That's what PhD candidate Casper Gyurik investigated by combining two terms you often hear: quantum computing and machine learning.

International alumnus Alejandro tells us in a flash about why it is so important to physically be in Leiden for your studies, about how important his Advanced Master was to his employers and how AI and tech affects his line of work.

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.

What is it like to participate in the Erasmus+ grant programme as a Master's student from Ukraine? Yevhenii Radchenko did an eight-month internship at Leiden University in 2018. Soon after, he returned as a PhD candidate. 'You have little to lose, but a lot to gain.'

How ethical is research involving humans and robots? And can research on artificial intelligence cause problems when it ends up in the wrong hands? In any research involving humans or their data, the ethics committee assesses where the issues are. Associate professor at LIACS Suzan Verberne chairs the…

Physicist Remko Fermin from Leiden University was awarded a Rubicon grant from NWO. He will use it to study superconducting diodes that could contribute to reducing the CO2 emission of data centres.

An international visitation committee has judged the research programme of the Institute of Public Administration of Leiden University as excellent. The report, which looked at the period 2014-2019, was published last week.

Elephant toothpaste, a trip among the stars or a lecture on mathematical juggling: on Sunday 8 October 2023, the Faculty of Science opened its doors for the third edition of the Leiden Science Family Day. A programme jam-packed with workshops, demonstrations, lectures and peeks behind the scenes for…

‘I could hardly believe my ears when I heard that we had been awarded the Gravitation grant,’ says Berna Güroğlu, professor of the Neuroscience of Social Relations. This grant is awarded by the state, via NWO, to pioneering scientific top research. In terms of grants, this really is something special,…

December marks the 15th anniversary of the Dual PhD Centre (DPC). Director Johannes Tromp and associate professor Mark Dechesne look back and ahead. Dechesne: ‘The DPC forms a 'community of knowledge' in which science and society are connected.’

'You’ll know right away when you meet your true love’ or ‘Opposites attract’: Some persistent beliefs exist about love and attraction, but are they true? Researcher Iliana Samara investigates the dynamics of attraction and explains which love myths we can let go of.

Fifteen passionate lecturers earned their Senior Teaching Qualification (SKO) on Monday 22 January. Rector Magnificus Hester Bijl congratulated them in the Academy Building. Four of these lecturers talk about what motivated them to take the SKO and how it has benefitted them.

Leiden University is joining the Una Europa European University. Together with other partner universities Leiden University will draw on their collective strengths to shape the future of Europe through innovative education, research and international exchange.

Four PhD researchers of Leiden University have been selected to participate in the Europaeum Scholars Program 2022-2023. Two of them, Lena Riecke and Sophie Vértiter, are doing their research at ISGA. Time for a introduction.

The World Food Programme, Philips, the European Space Agency. An overwhelming list of organisations that Sarita Koendjbiharie, as founder of the PRINS consultancy programme of International Studies, has managed to recruit. ‘We keep reaching new highs and insights together with our students and organ…

What makes people in the Netherlands join radical and far-right groups? PhD candidate Nikki Sterkenburg followed several activists. ‘Some feel it is their duty to defend the Dutch nation.’ PhD defence on 19 May.

Thinking about the next step in your career, networking, preparing for the labour market or possibly meeting your future employer. Over 400 students and young alumni of the Faculties Governance and Global Affairs, Humanities, and Behavioural Sciences came together last week during the Campus The Hague…

The nominees for the IRO thesis prize 2021 and for the Prof. Dr. J.Th.J. van den Berg prize 2021. Who wrote the best Political Science bachelor’s theses?

Collaboration is worthwhile. A joint LUMC and Leiden Law School project has received €142,500 from the Dutch Research Council (NWO). This grant will advance research into the law and ethics of regenerative medicine.

The Advanced Nano-electrochemistry Institute Of the Netherlands (ANION) consortium will receive 23.6m euros in Gravitation funding for research on important electrochemical processes for energy transition. An additional four consortia with members from Leiden have also been awarded funding.

An internship at the Police Academy in Apeldoorn. This will be possible for the first time for third-year students of the bachelor's programme Security Studies as of September 2021, now that Leiden University and the Police Academy have joined forces. ‘The internships offer students a unique opportunity…

eLaw - Center for Law and Digital Technologies at Leiden University, hosted the first Horizon Europe BIAS Project co-creational workshop geared towards defining the requirements for identifying and mitigating diversity bias in AI systems used for recruitment purposes.

Psychology teacher of the year is Roy de Kleijn. The Master Thesis Awards are for Roosmarijn Goldbach en Matija Čuljak. Jeffrey Durieux receives the PhD Publication Prize; Maedeh Nasri the PhD Wild card: Team Science Award. Wilma van Velzen earns the OBP Prize and Jos Brosschot wins the Leiden Psychology…

As early as 2030, batteries in electric vehicles could fully meet the need for short-term electricity storage around the world. By connecting them to the power grid they can provide their stored energy, improving energy security and enabling renewable technologies in cleaning the grid.

Sergei Boeke has once again proven that there are more roads than one that lead to Rome with his PhD research into al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. It is both the core point of his conclusions as well as the leitmotiv for his approach. Boeke’s dissertation is comprised of five academic articles that…

Would you like to organise a session during the biggest multidisciplinary event in Europe - the EuroScience Open Forum (ESOF) conference - to be held in Leiden from 13 to 16 July 2022? If so, send us your proposal! Archaeologist Corinne Hofman is one of the driving forces behind the conference and…

Writing essays, refining grant applications, or creating a new course curriculum—ChatGPT assists students and researchers in these endeavours. What this new technology means for working in academia, was discussion at the fourth Psychology Connected event.

North Korea is generally thought to be an isolated country. But, according to PhD candidate Tycho van der Hoog from Leiden’s African Studies Centre, the opposite is in fact the case. North Korea actually has strong alliances with countries in southern Africa. Van der Hoog is trying to shed more light…

We are proud to share that Hadassah Drukarch, a graduate of our Advanced LL.M. in Law and Digital Technologies (class of 2022-2023), has been honored with the prestigious 2023 Brinkhof Internet Thesis Award for her thesis research that explores the intricate interplay between data protection regulation…

Prof. Marcel Reinders is a data science specialist at Delft University of technology. Using smart algorithms, he searches for links in complex data. For example, he studies patterns in DNA that lead to aberrant cell behaviour. This knowledge will help detect serious diseases such as Alzheimer's and…

Students gain practical experience while clients receive a solution to their software needs: the student software company LUDev hits two birds with one stone. ‘Through LUDev, students learn what else is involved in software development besides programming.’ Interested? You can now submit new projects…

A growing number of AI tools are being developed for the legal sector, to help professionals search lengthy texts or check court rulings. Leiden SAILS researcher Masha Medvedeva, an expert on the technical development of these systems, warns: ‘Users should know what’s under the hood.’

From scanners in lecture halls to systems for working from home: the discussion about new technology is being held on various fronts. That is why the University wants to make more use of its in-house experts. At the Technology and Trust symposium at Leiden University on 2 February, researchers from…

One discovered that arteriosclerosis resembles an autoimmune disease, while the other developed a system to aid in the search for new medications. For these achievements, Marie Depuydt and Jurren de Groot were awarded the Krijn Rietveld Memorial Innovation Award on the evening of Tuesday 4 June.

Education never stops because society is always changing. It is up to students and lecturers to align learning and teaching with current demands. During the Leiden Teachers’ Academy Education Festival, participants united in their search for ways to achieve that.

What happens in the brains of people with psychiatric illnesses? With a €23.23 million gravity grant, scientists from different fields will search for biological causes over the next decade. ‘By joining forces, we hope to improve diagnosis and treatment for patients with these diseases.’

How can we ensure that we act climate-proof and climate-neutral? We asked climate and earth scientist and lecturer at the Climate Change course Joeri Reinders.

Bankruptcy fraud is not being combatted effectively. When the trustee finds irregularities, the fraudster is not always punished. Politicians and the court case involving fashion chain Miss Etam’s ‘rescuer’ have rekindled the debate on bankruptcy fraud.

Automated government decisions can be cost-effective. But using algorithms also makes understanding the reasons behind decisions particularly complicated. Dr Melanie Fink, Assistant Professor at Leiden Law School, has received a Veni grant to fund her research into this.

Jekaterina Savicka is funding advisor at Leiden Law School. She is part of the Department of Research, the department responsible for organisational and policy support for research at the faculty. How has she experienced working here since starting her position back in March 2024?

The Veni grant is awarded annually by NWO (Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research). This year, multiple researchers from Leiden University and 2 researchers who will soon be working at the university will receive a Veni grant from the NWO. Thanks to this grant, which can amount to up to 320,000…

The university makes staff aware of the importance of cybersecurity at work. And that is essential, say our privacy and security officers. Because the number of cyberattacks is increasing, hackers are getting smarter all the time and by far the majority of problems are caused by human error. ‘Is that…

It’s not something the police force wants to see, but it still occurs: racist and misogynist police conduct. Human rights specialist Dr Linda Louis has studied how technology could help police officers behave correctly and comply with the applicable legal norms.

In the coming years, Hilde De Weerdt gets to spend over three million euros. She received grants from both the European Research Council (ERC) and the Dutch Research Council (NWO) for research on Chinese infrastructure. ‘It is great that it is also possible to develop large projects in the social sciences…

Due to its success, the Leiden2022 Q&A has been extended and is looking for even more thought-provoking, interesting or unusual questions.