We reflect on an eventful year. Tensions within the university increased, which we also experienced first-hand within our own faculty. These events have left their mark, particularly on colleagues who personally experienced incidents.
2025 was also the year in which we succeeded in making significant financial adjustments. This was necessary due to budget cuts, declining student numbers and rising costs. It has been painful: vacant positions could not be filled and material budgets were substantially reduced. And we are not there yet; we will need to maintain this approach in the coming years as well. We will also have to make do with less (office) space.
Thanks to these measures, we have been able to prevent compulsory redundancies among academic staff. However, the situation remains uncertain for support departments, as 2026 will clarify the exact consequences of the savings programme for everyone. Part of the support services will be consolidated at university level and in some areas service provision will become more basic. We will have to say 'no' more often, and that remains difficult. I therefore ask once again for understanding: we are doing this together. Quality education and high-level research simply cannot exist without proper support.
In 2025, considerable work was done on the new university strategy Connected for Impact, which will be translated into a new faculty strategy in 2026. It is good to work on ambitions for the future. Yet during this period it also feels as though we are simultaneously accelerating and braking—something I wrote about previously here.
Personally, after more than five years, my time at the Faculty of Science and Radboud University is coming to an end. I look back on this period with gratitude and great pleasure. I have learnt much from colleagues and students, and I have enjoyed everything that happens within the Faculty of Science. From the dedication of staff members and the tremendous commitment of students. I am proud of the organisation we have built and the quality of our support services. I look to the future with confidence and believe the faculty will navigate the coming period well.
After 1 March, I will continue to dedicate myself with equal energy to education and research, as Director of Business Operations at SURF. I wish everyone a pleasant festive season—a moment to relax with family and friends. I look forward to seeing you in the new year!
