Leiden University is proud of its research and teaching, its staff and its students. This is why we are keen to inform society of what goes on at the University.

‘If you want to implement open science, you at least need someone at each faculty who can help researchers to solve practical problems.’ Dorien Huijser spent two years managing the transition to a new working method at the Institute of Psychology’s Brain and Development Research Center.

Leiden University has an active open science community. Open science means transparency in all phases of research by precisely documenting every step of the way and making this publicly available. ‘It’s time to be open,’ say psychologists Anna van ’t Veer and Zsuzsika Sjoerds. There is increasing awareness…

An organisation the size of Leiden University requires careful internal communication.

Transferable skills

The Dutch Research Council (NWO) has rewarded four projects in which Leiden researchers are bringing science and society closer together. What are these projects?

Complete open access may not be possible because of various reasons: research ethics, privacy legislation, intellectual property, continuing research. The Easy archive at KNAW/DANS provides various access levels to deal with these issues.

Young researchers met this month for the fifth Science Communication Summer School. ‘This is the first time some participants get to meet other researchers who also enjoy science communication. It’s great to see’, says Julia Cramer, one of the coordinators.

Communication

Greater transparency in science. Broader career paths. Less work pressure. A dynamic conversation at the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences (FSW) focused on these goals.

Paul Wouters has been involved in open science for 30 years, from his first introduction to a preprint server in 1992 to his recent roles as Dean of the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences and open science ambassador for Academia in Motion. Wouters is now retiring. He is leaving with high hopes…

Facility

We want to be an engaged community where we feel heard and enjoy working together. But how do we have an open conversation about difficult topics?

Professor of Science Communication Ionica Smeets will be awarded an honorary doctorate by the Open University. She receives the award because she exemplifies how science communication can bridge the gap between experts and the general public.

Education, Research

Leiden University has received a €50,000 grant from Open Science NL to develop a roadmap for integrating open science into the strategic priorities of various institutes and translating this into human resource (HR) policies.

Bjørn Peare Bartholdy is Archaeology’s representative in the Open Science Community Leiden (OSCL) . We spoke with him about the value of Open Science and how to make a good start. ‘Open Science is headed to be a regular way of academic work.’ So better to jump on the Open Science bandwagon early on.

An organisation the size of Leiden University requires careful internal communication.

If you need any help with your research or if you encounter problems during your PhD track, Leiden University provides several different types of support for PhD candidates. There are also groups, networks and communities in which you can meet other PhD candidates.

Leiden University is proud of its research and teaching, its staff and its students. This is why we are keen to inform society of what goes on at the University.

If you need any help with your research or if you encounter problems during your PhD track, Leiden University provides several different types of support for PhD candidates. There are also groups, networks and communities in which you can meet other PhD candidates.

From study places to consulting collections and from a meeting with your faculty liaison to getting books after opening hours: the new Science Library offers it all. The library moved to a brand new location in the Gorlaeus building and will be open starting 15 April.

Minister Dijkgraaf (Education, Culture and Science) has appointed Ionica Smeets and Alex Verkade as coordinators of a new national centre for science communication. The centre will foster a dialogue between researches and society and will gather and share expertise to make science communication more…

Workshops, lectures

Communication, Working effectively, Transferable skills

‘Take science communication more seriously.’ This is the message that Ivo van Vulpen, professor by special appointment in Science Communication in Physics, wants to convey during his inaugural lecture. At the moment, a lot of researchers look down their noses at this while it is extremely important…

An endless stream of publications, data and software accessible to all? Professor of Science Studies Thed van Leeuwen calls for a more human-centred approach and an overhaul of the PhD system.

As of 1 September 2024, Thed van Leeuwen is professor by special appointment of the chair “Monitoring Open Science Policies and Practices” at the Centre for Science and Technology Studies (CWTS) at Leiden University. The mission of the chair will be to understand the changes in policies and practices…

A new university-wide survey is now open to all involved in conducting, teaching, advising on, or supporting research related activities at Leiden University, aiming to better understand the current state of Open Science awareness and practice. Initiated by Archaeology’s then PhD candidate, now guest…

Research

Two Leiden legal scholars have been awarded funding from the KNAW pilot fund 'Science communication by scientists: Appreciated!'. The fund supports scientists who have demonstrated a continued commitment to science communication.

A diverse team of Leiden archaeologists applied for, and was awarded, the KNAW ‘Appreciated!’ grant, meant to further their science communication endeavours. We speak with Dr Maikel Kuijpers, who is the main contact person of the application.

The National Bee Count initiative of Professor Koos Biesmeijer (Naturalis/Leiden) and Vincent Kalkman (Naturalis) has received the NWO Communication Initiative Award. The jury praises the initiative, which manages to reach a very wide and diverse audience, while at the same time contributing to the…

SRON, the Netherlands Institute for Space Research, is holding an open day on Sunday 25 September. It has had a branch at the Leiden Bio Science Park since 2021 and works closely with Leiden University.

Five projects with a lead applicant from Leiden will receive an Open Science Fund grant from the Dutch Research Council (NWO).

PhD defence