Last week, two articles regarding internationalisation in higher education were released: an advisory from the Education Council on the legislative proposal "Balanced Internationalisation Act" (in Dutch) and a press release from UNL about measures which universities jointly take. For the policy of the Faculty of Social Sciences and our provision of Dutch and other language education, there are currently no changes. Our faculty aligns with UNL's message that internationalisation remains of great importance. The internationalisation policy of our faculty is being carefully developed, with the interests of students and staff, as well as education and research, taking precedence.
Balanced Internationalisation Act
Last summer, Minister Dijkgraaf published the legislative proposal "Balanced Internationalisation Act". This legislation aims to balance better the advantages and disadvantages of internationalisation in higher education. The proposed legislation introduces new requirements for non-Dutch language programmes and offers the possibility of introducing a so-called 'numerus fixus' (a predetermined maximum number of students). During the public consultation of the legislation, the minister received many critical responses. In response, in December 2023, he sought advice from the Education Council regarding the legislation.
The Council announced that advice on February 6. The Education Council advises further reflection and elaboration on the legislative proposal. In particular, the Education Council sees "problems with justification, proportionality, legal certainty, and feasibility" regarding the proposed measures to reduce the number of non-Dutch language programmes in higher education.
At the moment, it is still unclear whether and how the minister will heed the advice of the Education Council. As of the time of writing, the legislation has yet to be submitted to the House of Representatives, has not been adopted, and is therefore not in effect. The legislation may be adjusted based on the advice before being submitted.
On Thursday, February 8, UNL published, "Universities take measures to manage the intake of international students." This publication follows as a response to Minister Dijkgraaf's encouragement (in Dutch) for self-regulation from higher education and to the motion from Member of the House Herzberger (NSC) (in Dutch). In it, she requested universities to create a plan to reduce the proportion of English-language programmes. UNL emphasises the great value of internationalisation. At the same time, universities see that the growth in international students is leading to bottlenecks in some places. UNL announced in the press release that it will immediately take several measures. These do not affect the policy of the Faculty of Social Sciences.
On Wednesday, February 28, from 9:30 to 10:00 a.m., there will be a walk-in consultation in MM 01.630 with the Faculty Board for staff and students with questions and comments.
