How do you look back on your years as Vice Dean of Education?
'When I started as Vice Dean of Education, student workload and academic performance were high on the agenda. Together, we took several steps in addressing these issues, but they continue to demand significant attention. We should remain dedicated to tackling these issues.
I also worked towards increasing the enrollment of students from the Mediterranean region. I consider it a loss that so few students from that region find their way to our faculty. I believe this results in a loss of talent. Due to the COVID-19 period, this initiative is still in its infancy.
The COVID-19 pandemic changed everything. It was quite hectic, but at every level, you could see everyone working together. The lockdowns certainly had a negative impact on students. However, I hope that we were able to minimise this impact by offering alternative education and assessment methods. I also consider the practical lab sessions that could continue while maintaining social distancing, thanks to the hard work of many, as a success. I found it rewarding to lead in this effort. We learned a lot from the pandemic period - about new forms of education, collaboration, teaching methods. Some aspects of hybrid education didn't work, but others proved beneficial. I am proud of how we navigated through this period.'
You will step down from the Vice Dean position on October 1st; what are your plans for the future?
"I am currently working on three research projects. These projects suffered due to my role as Vice Dean. I am glad that I will now have the time to delve deeper into these projects. I want to dedicate more time to ATLAS, and I have an exciting research project in Italy involving neutrinos. Additionally, I have recently received a Demonstrator grant for research on calcium isotopes. These three projects will easily fill my week. I pass on my Vice Dean role to Laura van Niftrik with complete confidence that she will do an excellent job!"
About Nicolo de Groot
Nicolo de Groot studied physics in Amsterdam and Twente. After obtaining his PhD at the University of Amsterdam on the DELPHI experiment at CERN, he worked as a researcher at CERN and the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (USA), as a lecturer in Bristol, and as a senior researcher at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory. Since 2004, he has been a professor of experimental particle physics at Radboud University in Nijmegen, working on the ATLAS experiment at CERN. He was involved in the discovery of the Higgs boson in 2012 and served as the programme leader of ATLAS Netherlands from 2013 to 2018. He is currently working on measurements of the properties of the Higgs boson and neutrinos.
