That one handy little tool to do a quiz with students: can you use that or will you inadvertently put their privacy at risk? New privacy guidelines offers a solution.

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

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

In this ‘Educatips’ column, Psychology lecturers share their most important lessons about teaching. This month: Sepideh Saadat guides a support group for students who struggle with the Israel-Hamas war. ‘Some of them feel guilty about enjoying life while their family is suffering.’

Since 1 September, fourth-year student Thirza van 't Rood has been the new student member of the Institute Board at Cultural Anthropology. Her first task is to organise the elections for the programme committee. Her mission for the coming year is also to collect the opinions of less outspoken students.…

Alex Colling himself calls his bachelor's thesis ‘the highlight of his time in Leiden’. And according to his supervisors, that resulted in an outstanding thesis, with great attention to detail. The Mathematics and Physics student worked on a mathematical description of monopoles: hypothetical particles…

Infecting each other with viruses and bacteria while protecting yourself with medicines and vaccinations. Sounds like a fun evening, right? Master students Life Science & Technology Rafael Jezior and Dennis de Beeld certainly think so. Together, they developed ImmunoWars: an exciting card game based…

Since September, Jelle Oonk has been the chair of the Science Faculty Council. Jelle is a third-year student, combining Physics and Astronomy studies with this responsible role. Time to get to know him better. Five questions for the new chair.

A standing ovation. A wave and a smile from the president. A final selfie. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky addressed students in the Netherlands for the first time on Tuesday morning via a livestream in The Hague. He did so in front of two packed lecture halls at both Leiden University and The…

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

Turkish and Syrian students met Rector Magnificus Hester Bijl to discuss how the university can support students who have been affected by the earthquake.

How do we tackle financial stress among students? Policymakers and students came up with a plan. The outcome has been a report that the university can use to help answer the question. Vera Hilgevoord organised the brainstorm session with students and has compiled their ideas.

Education, Organisation, Human resources

Several Dutch universities have said they do not want foreign student numbers to grow any more in some of their degree programmes. They are reaching maximum capacity. We are also alert to this in Leiden, but I see many positive aspects to the intake of international students.

A new course is often challenging enough for students. But in addition to the new subject matter, they also face all kinds of additional challenges: how do I write a report, how do I find reliable sources, or how do I pitch a research proposal? The e-learning skills platform offers an online learning…

The first staff symposium on Student Wellbeing – from abstract idea to practical tips – will take place on 15 March 2022. Why have we chosen a practical approach and what can you expect? Sonja Wagenaar (SEA) is project manager and she tells us more about it.

The results of the National Student Survey (NSE) are now available. In 2024, students from the Faculty of Humanities were satisfied across the board. The expertise of lecturers was rated particularly positively.

Since 1 October, Sabina Chiță has been working as a coach for first-generation students in Physics. But who are first-generation students, and why might they need a coach? Six questions to Sabina Chiță.

Education

Students of the Advanced MSc in International Relations and Diplomacy visited the OPCW and ICJ in The Hague, gaining insights into key international organisations.

The student elections for the student representatives of the Faculty Council will take place from 22 to 25 April. Prominent members of four student parties engaged in a debate last Thursday on topics close to students’ hearts.

After two years in the Faculty Board, Student Assessor Imen el Idrissi makes room for a successor per September 1, 2024. Let’s meet the new Student Assessor Lidwien Meulenkamp. ‘I enjoy communicating with people.’

Roel Wouters (24), a biology student at Leiden University, is a finalist in the election for UN youth delegate for Biodiversity and Food. The digital polls open for a week on Friday 22 October. Under-30s can vote for Roel at www.stemroel.nl.

Since September 2024, Berber Verhalle has been the new student assessor for W&N, succeeding Nalani Verwoord. Berber is a first-year Master’s student in Biology & Business and is now the representative of the students at our faculty.

The construction of 285 student studios on land owned by Leiden University is a step closer. On Thursday, student housing organisation DUWO and the Real Estate department of the University signed the leasehold agreement for the parcel of land in the Oegstgeest part of the Leiden Bio Science Park.

On 28 October 2025, the FSW Education Festival returned, and brought together teachers, researchers, and students for an afternoon full of inspiration, dialogue, and hands-on learning.

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.

Emily Gdula, Liselotta Jahnke, Jason Irwin and Josephine Hercules are the newly appointed student representatives on the Programme Committee (OLC). This committee provides advice to the Executive Board and the Faculty Board of CADS on various educational issues, including the development of Course and…

In a new FSW Honours College course students from various academic disciplines dive into the world of artificial intelligence (AI). The course, 'Artificial Intelligence: Understand and Create' was designed by Marc Cleiren and Pieter Pierrot to be accessible to all students, regardless of their prior…

This September, Adina Akbik received the Political Science Teaching Award at Leiden University. Created by student members of the Bachelor's and Master's Programme Committees (OLC), the award recognises remarkable teaching at the Institute. Akbik was chosen from five finalists after receiving several…

A new academic year means a new student assessor. Ava Bauer has taken over from Joost Barendse as of 1 September. But who is Ava Bauer? And what exactly will she be doing this year?

The right student in the right place. That is what LIACS programme director Frank Takes and education coordinator Joyce Glerum are aiming to do with the ‘Wisselstroom’ project. By next year, they hope to have a standardised protocol that will make it easier for computer science students to transfer…

Supporting our students’ well-being is a priority for the University. Last week was our Student Well-Being Week, and throughout the year our students have access to mental health support such as buddy programmes, student support groups and study skills workshops. Each faculty is to have its own well-being…

‘It was the biggest bunch of flowers I’d ever seen,’ says Emily Strange about the moment she won the Leiden Teaching Prize 2022. The judge praised the conservation biologist for her passion, engaging personality, and the way she motivates her students. On the Dutch Day of the Teacher, we get to know…

Maria Moser, Mischa de Jong, and Ander Damiano Delliturri are the newly appointed student representatives on the Programme Committee (OLC). This committee provides advice to the Executive Board and the Faculty Board on various educational issues, including the development of Course and Examination Regulations…

Until now, systematic discussions of gender, race and law have received little attention from Dutch law faculties, especially at the undergraduate teaching level. At the same time, public calls for discussion of these issues increases rapidly.

De Regenboog primary school in The Hague has a high percentage of children whose first language is not Dutch. In the ‘Children of the City’ project, Education and Child Studies students help primary school children practise their Dutch.

An event where students came together to discuss the impact of AI on healthcare. Jurren de Groot and Yuxuan Zhu, master's students in Artificial Intelligence, took up the debate. They participated in SimuVaction, an event that brings students worldwide together in Atlanta to simulate an initiative of…

This academic year 49 promising international students will start their master’s degree here thanks to a Leiden University Excellence Scholarship (LExS). The students, all from outside the EU, were welcomed in a special ceremony on 5 September. Who are they?

ICT

Minerva, which calls itself the oldest student association of the Netherlands, has the reputation of being an impenetrable bastion. A lustrum exhibition shows the turbulent history and points to a diversity of contacts: from close bonds with Leiden ‘coffee ladies’ to the visit of Sir Winston Churchi…