Alumni who live and work in Brussels met on 18 February at the annual Leiden Alumni in Brussels Event. As well as celebrating Leiden University’s 450th anniversary, they also looked at the challenges Europe faces.

Leiden researchers from different disciplines look together at complex social problems. What happens when they join forces with artists? The results could be seen on Tuesday 11 June during a unique exhibition. Take a look for yourself:

Everyone has been watching the attack on Ukraine, a war on the European continent, with a sense of foreboding. It will bring devastation, loss, suffering and worry and it raises questions. With these words, Rector Magnificus Hester Bijl opened the meeting on the war in Ukraine at Wijnhaven on Thursday…

An article in Leiden University’s Mare newspaper on 24 September states that the University Council advised against reappointing President of the Executive Board Annetje Ottow. The Board of Governors, deans and Annetje Ottow respond below.

Being rejected always hurts, but so does having to reject someone. Social psychologists have discovered that at interviews to select suitable housemates students dehumanise candidates to make it easier to reject them. That may sound harsh but, according to the researchers, it is also logical.

The Master of Medicine at Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC) has won the national biennial award for best educational innovation in medical teaching. It was awarded the prize by the Netherlands Association for Medical Education (NVMO) for its MasterMinds Challenge (MMC).

On Wednesday 5 November, Jasper sets off on the annual study trip for the Board of Deans together with the Executive Board. Because of budget cuts, they’re staying a bit closer to home this year. But that doesn’t make the trip any less enjoyable — as you’ll read in this column.

From chilling on the beach to a speech by the mayor. HOPweek is a speedy way for hundreds of ‘Leiden’ students who are going to be studying in The Hague to get to know each other. Many of them come from abroad. ‘I actually dare to cycle here.’

When Floris Harm took up his role as director of the Leiden Asia Centre, he made a remarkable discovery on the university website. It turned out that a past family member was one of Leiden University’s first sinologists.

By making use of artificial tax arrangements via the Netherlands and other countries, corporations and wealthy individuals worldwide together manage to avoid paying $472 billion in tax.

In the online panel discussion of ESOF 2022 ‘The effect of the online world on adolescents’, together with Amy Orben, Professor Eveline Crone, Sterre van Riel, Professor Anne-Laura van Harmelen and Professor Jan Sleutels, Professor Ton Liefaard shared his research on adolescents and the online world…

On Tuesday 5 September, the opening of the faculty year took place at the Kamerlingh Onnes Building. Staff and students gathered in the Cleveringa Room to take part in the interactive part of the programme.

Quietly read a book in our new reading nook, listen to interesting and bizarre stories set in early twentieth-century Leiden, walk past literary locations in Leiden and watch the best film adapted from a Leiden novel as decided on by you. April is Literary Leiden month! A month in which we pay special…

It is the eighth year in a row that the Faculty of Archaeology is placed in the top ten of archaeological institutes worldwide. The QS World University Rankings by Subject looks at criteria like academic reputation and citation ratios.

As of 1 October, Marlies Reinders (1973) will be the new Dean of the Faculty of Medicine and will sit on the LUMC’s Board of Directors. This will return the board to full strength.

It is the seventh year in a row that the Faculty of Archaeology is placed in the top ten of archaeological institutes worldwide. The QS World University Rankings by Subject looks at criteria like academic reputation and citation ratios.

We hebben 6 van de 9 grenzen overschreden die bepalen of menselijk leven in de komende generaties nog mogelijk is op aarde. Kunnen we het tij nog keren?

De Universiteit Leiden kan van start met de bouw van 300 studentenwoningen en 500 overige woningen in het Leiden Bio Science Park.

And there you are. A couple of suitcases with you, in a new (unknown) country. You've arranged a room in advance. You know which university you're attending. But other than that ... Evert-Jan, master's student in Encyclopaedia and Philosophy of Law, studied at the Université Paris Panthéon-Assas in…

The sixth edition of the lecture series Duurzaamheid & Recht was held during the last semester. Once again, it attracted many students.

Prof. dr. Pancras Hogendoorn is stepping down as dean of the Faculty of Medicine and vice-chair of the Executive Board of Leiden University Medical Centre (LUMC). He is also resigning from all associated secondary posts. Hogendoorn has taken his decision in anticipation of the findings of an inquiry…

He had been back from Australia for less than 48 hours, but there was no sign of that. Michel Mandjes of MI had the honor of kicking off the very first Tuesday Talks: Science Insights on Tuesday. He did so with a presentation on complex networks.

Carlo Beenakker has been appointed a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the organisation behind the journal Science. Among the Fellows, he is the third Dutch person and first Leiden researcher.

Elections for the Faculty Council are scheduled for May. Like to have a say in ongoing issues at our faculty or advise the Faculty Board? Find out what the Faculty Council does and how you can stand for election.

How to implement good leadership? This is the central question posed during the inspiration seminars of the LLP, in which renowned guest speakers share their insights. A seminar at the beginning of May imparts this message: “Keep listening to one another.”

The Faculty of Archaeology is on the eve of a new Faculty Strategic Plan (FSP) that will cover the years 2026-2028. Dean Jan Kolen stresses the importance of involving both staff and students in this process. 'We want everyone to think along about the direction we should take as a faculty. We want a…

On Tuesday the 5th of September the Faculty of Archaeology officially opened its academic year. All staff and students were invited to this festive occasion.

A festive opening with plenty of orange, a well-attended lecture by Ionica Smeets and an unforgettable party for staff and students. We celebrated the opening of the new building together. Join us as we look back on this exciting week of celebrations.

On March 11, a travelling photo exposition on the Mayan archaeological site El Mirador, in Guatemala, saw its festive opening at the Van Steenis building. For the occasion a special Faculty Lecture was organised, entitled 'Water Legacy: Mayan World Meets the Netherlands'. We were honored to receive…

Whilst 2020 has been an unusual and taxing year for colleagues at the Institute of Security and Global Affairs (ISGA), the Institute nevertheless can look back on an impressive range of successful grant applications during the previous year. This impressive result was achieved on top of excellent results…

‘Men must make way. GroenLinks–PvdA voters are sending at least three additional women into the House of Representatives through preferential votes,’ Trouw headlined this week. What would happen if we allocated all seats on the basis of preferential votes? And would we see differences between the pa…

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Cotton is the most widely used natural fibre for clothes. But how polluting are our jeans and shirts actually? Environmental scientist Laura Scherer coordinated an international research project on the impacts of cotton. ‘The purchases of consumers in Europe can contribute to water scarcity in China…

On 8 March, International Women’s Day, equal opportunities for women worldwide, empowerment, and gender equality take centre stage. For years, the role of women in the past has been nearly invisible. Four archaeologists reflect on this inequality of focus, from hunter-gatherers in the palaeolithic to…

Alternative demonstrations were held in Leiden and The Hague on Thursday 14 November after the national protest in Utrecht was cancelled. Leiden University supports these protests, which were organised by WOinActie. Read our live blog of the demonstrations.

On March 25, the Advanced Masters of Science in International Relations and Diplomacy (MIRD) celebrated the 20th Anniversary of the programme. The celebrations began with the Reconnect event, bringing current students and alumni together, and concluded with the MIRD Gala. Throughout the day, the tight-knit…

Permission was recently given for all members of the examining committee and co-supervisors at PhD ceremonies to wear academic dress, even if they’re not full professors. How historic is this change?

Een mijlpaal voor de Class of 2025 van de MSc International Relations and Diplomacy: een prestigieuze en internationale opleiding gevierd in Den Haag en Leiden.

Here you can find some examples of previous projects and output.

Arts and culture

Do all graduates in the humanities pursue a career in education? What does support for incoming students look like in Leiden? And what makes a language study so enjoyable? These and more questions were answered during an information session organised specially for twenty deans from West Brabant.

Every week, Uwe Hensch walks past the Old Observatory in Leiden. In corona times, he decided to make a LEGO design of the historic building. His design is now finished and might go into production. You can help to make it happen.

Seventeenth-century Danish scientist Niels Stensen made groundbreaking discoveries in the anatomy of the body and of Earth. This Leiden alumnus’s theories are still relevant, as an exhibition at the Oude UB shows.

Leiden University and the Municipality of The Hague signed a collaboration agreement on sustainability on 1 November. Their main goals are to build a network, share knowledge and explore the possibilities of a Climate Centre for the people of The Hague.

Beads are among the oldest types of human artistic expression. Even so, the small ornaments have a bad status record regarding archaeological investigation. PhD candidate Mette Langbroek, usually at home studying early medieval beads, had the opportunity to work on a publication and exhibition on 5000…

The Faculty Council is the most important co-participatory body of the Faculty of Archaeology. Its members represent staff and students in meetings with the Faculty Board, and they can have a profound impact on the Faculty's policies. We speak with the council's chair, Merlijn Veltman, about the goals…

Money, cultural anthropologist Coco Kanters concludes in her dissertation, is not an intangible or acultural phenomenon. It is a ‘product’ that arises from specific values and can be used for certain goals.

We talk too little about silence, thinks university lecturer Gerlov van Engelenhoven. He has been awarded a Veni grant to investigate the role of silence in protest movements. Does silence sometimes really say more than a thousand words?

Leiden Law School is organising a summer conference on Law and Artificial Intelligence as part of the interfaculty and interdisciplinary research programme on Artificial Intelligence (SAILS) at Leiden University.