Professor appointment termination

Resignation

A professor can submit their resignation to the Executive Board. Honourably discharged professors shall retain the right to act as PhD supervisors for a period of five years after their dismissal.

Emeriti

Under the Higher Education and Research Act (WHW), emeritus professors retain their ius promovendi right for five years and can continue to supervise their PhD students until they graduate.

In certain cases, emeritus professors may perform activities outside the scope of PhD supervision, such as holding lectures or teaching seminars that are crucial for the curriculum in question and cannot be offered in any other way as yet. A new employment contract can be entered into for this purpose. In this case, the dean will submit a reasoned request to the Executive Board. The Executive Board will decide whether or not to enter into the agreement, using the organisational interest as a starting point in addition to the following criteria:

  • The professor possesses exceptional qualities of considerable import for the faculty/university. The professor plays an important role in research or education. In the event of research, there must be one or more large research grants involved.
  • The professor has an employment contract with a maximum duration of at least one year. Legally, there is a maximum of six contracts within a total duration of four years.
  • The scope of the professorial appointment is between 0.2 FTE and 0.4 FTE.
  • The professor emeritus does not hold a leadership position.

Emeriti retain access to most Radboud University services and systems for five years after the emeritus date. After the first five years, when the ius promovendi expires, emeriti will retain access to their e-mail account, Eduroam, the University Library (both physical and digital) and the University Sports Centre.

For emeriti who are employed beyond their emeritus date, these rules apply when the employment contract ends.

Professorial title

Professors are entitled to use the title of ‘professor’. Former professors who have been honourably discharged for health reasons, early retirement or upon reaching retirement age are also authorised to use this title.

A professor who has resigned (honourably) for other reasons and who does not hold the position of professor elsewhere may no longer use the title under Dutch law.

Professors by special appointment who remain in office until retirement age may also use the title after retirement. Professors by special appointment whose teaching and research remit ends before this age may not use the title of professor.