Senior University Teaching Qualification (SUTQ)

The Senior University Teaching Qualification (SUTQ) is a possible next step in your development as an experienced teacher (a couple of years) after you have obtained the University Teaching Qualification (UTQ). The SUTQ is all about your development towards a role as a senior lecturer.

One of the ways in which you can take steps in your development as a lecturer is by further developing the education within your programme or faculty. In doing so, you will transcend course level education and focus more on the development of education within the programme or the faculty.

Mutual recognition

The Dutch universities have decided to mutually recognise the Senior University Teaching Qualification (SUTQ). In doing so, they are taking an important step towards further strengthening the quality and cooperation within university education. This development builds on the successful national recognition of the Senior University Teaching Qualification (SUTQ), which has contributed to further teacher professionalisation in higher education since 2008.

The SUTQ focuses on experienced teachers who play a leading role in educational improvement and innovation at curriculum and programme level. With the mutual recognition, senior lecturers who obtain the qualification at one university do not have to regain it at another institution. This strengthens the mobility of education professionals and the exchange of expertise between universities.

The UKO at Radboud University is comparable to what is known as the SKO at other universities. It is therefore part of the mutual recognition agreements that the UKO is recognised as an SKO at other universities.

How do you obtain the SUTQ?

At the moment, there is no inter-faculty central programme for the SUTQ. It is currently not clear when a new SUTQ-track will start. As soon as more is known about this, it will be mentioned on this webpage.

Are you an experienced teacher and are you interested in obtaining the SUTQ? Please contact utqcoordination [at] ru.nl (utqcoordination[at]ru[dot]nl).

Faculty programmes

Pending the Radboud-wide policy, the Faculty of Arts has adopted a temporary faculty SUTQ policy.

Faculty of Arts

SUTQ stands for Senior University Teaching Qualification, and is aimed at enthusiastic lecturers who

have obtained the University Teaching Qualification (UTQ);
teach or have taught at both Bachelor’s and Master’s levels;
understand connections between courses (learning paths) (or want to gain a better understanding of these);
have a vision on the unique profile of a study programme and the structure of its curriculum;
want to work on the further development of the interdisciplinarity of our education;
want to actively contribute to educational innovation at curriculum and/or programme levels.

During the SUTQ programme, you will work on a project of your own choosing, approved by the director of education. This project should not exist in isolation, and must be in line with the needs of the programme(s) involved, the faculty and your job responsibilities. Examples include, but are not limited to, a project on interdisciplinary education, implementation of the faculty assessment policy in the programme, AI and writing proficiency education or student well-being. The programme will take one year.If you participate in the programme, the department will grant you a compensation of 80 hours. The remaining (approx. 50) hours are your own investment.

Please note: The SUTQ is not a job requirement. The programme is intended for enthusiastic lecturers who want to further develop within the field of education.

Timeline, registration and selection

You must register with the UTQ/SUTQ contact person via bko-uko-fdl [at] ru.nl (bko-uko-fdl[at]ru[dot]nl) by the end of August 2025 at the latest. Your application should include a motivation letter of no more than two A4 pages explaining why you would like to participate in this programme and what idea(s) you already have for the SUTQ project you would like to focus on. This does not need to be fully developed, but it should give a good impression of the direction you would like to take with the project. If desired, you can discuss your plans in advance with the programme director of your department.
On 9 September 2025, the proposals received will be discussed with the director of education and the programme directors in the education policy meeting, and a decision will be made on which projects can be developed further. The most important criteria are the urgency of the proposed projects and the relevance of the results for the faculty.
By 30 September 2025 at the latest, the selected lecturers will submit a detailed project plan to the UTQ/SUTQ contact person. This will be submitted for approval to the programme directors, the director of education and the vice-dean of education in the education policy meeting on 7 October. Based on this proposal, you will be given the green light to start the SUTQ programme.
From October 2025 to June 2026, you will meet with the other Faculty of Arts lecturers in the SUTQ programme approximately four times to learn with and from each other.
You will submit your SUTQ portfolio by August 2026 at the latest.
The final presentations and awarding of the SUTQs will take place in September/October 2026.

SUTQ profile

The profile below forms the basis for awarding an SUTQ:

The lecturer has demonstrated the ability to initiate and lead an impactful innovation or improvement in education at the curriculum level.
In doing so, the lecturer inspires others with the chosen approach, involves those affected and stakeholders in the change process, and guides colleagues in implementing and/or executing the educational innovation.
Note: the project or innovation does not (yet) have to be complete or successful in all areas.
The lecturer has sufficient educational knowledge and vision to implement the educational improvement or innovation in a well-founded manner.
The lecturer demonstrates a professional learning attitude.

Assessment criteria

The assessment will take place in the shape of a portfolio assessment. This means that all components of the portfolio will be given equal weight in the assessment. The various components will thus not be judged separately, but as an integrated whole. The portfolio will consist of the following components:

On paper:
- An educational CV;
- The research proposal with which the SUTQ participant started the programme;
- The final product (this may also be in a different form) and/or the results of the project;
- Substantiated suggestions for the implementation of their final product and/or results. Arguments may be based on literature and data collection throughout the project.
In the presentation:
- A brief summary of the results and/or the final product of the project and the suggestions for implementation and/or future projects.
- A reflection on personal development as education professional as a result of the SUTQ programme, including a reflection on the group dynamics in your team and your own role within that team.
Outside of the portfolio (this will not be assessed):
- Active participation during the meetings (prerequisite for assessment)
- An overview of the hours spent (to be used in evaluating the pilot)

Nijmegen School of Management

Agreements on obtaining a University Senior Teaching Qualification (USTQ) are made when a member of the academic staff is appointed. Teachers who are already employed, make individual agreements about this with their supervisor. It is only possible to enrol in the USTQ if you have obtained a UTQ and have at least 3 years of teaching experience since then.

USTQ requirements and criteria

Lecturers are assessed on the basis of their teaching experience and activities and a reflection thereof. To this end, they draw up a portfolio with evidence that serves as a motivation for careful reflection on their own teaching practice and their teaching. Teachers are expected to be able to justify the choices they make in their teaching on the basis of, among other things, educational insights about higher education. As a rule, the portfolio contains examples of educational implementation, development, coordination and organisation as well as third-party assessments and observations. The exact requirements for portfolio and reflection are available in the document Assessment criteria USTQ NSM (pdf, 81 kB). The final assessment takes place by the faculty assessment committee on the basis of an interview about the reflection and the accompanying portfolio.

Step-by-step plan USTQ

Determine for yourself whether you want to obtain a USTQ. Discuss this desire with your supervisor as well.
Contact Sven Vrins (sven.vrins [at] ru.nl (sven[dot]vrins[at]ru[dot]nl)) and discuss with him which development track suits you best and what exactly you need to qualify for USTQ.
Discuss the activities (still) to be undertaken by you with your supervisor to see how this can be fitted into your current educational activities and when this can be done. Always discuss your activities in the framework of the USTQ during the annual appraisal interview with your supervisor.
Put together your portfolio and write a reflection in accordance with the requirements set in the document Assessment criteria USTQ NSM (pdf, 81 kB).
At the end of the route, submit your reflection and portfolio to the secretariat of the Faculty Assessment Committee for Teaching Qualifications (floor.bessems [at] ru.nl (floor[dot]bessems[at]ru[dot]nl)).

From portfolio to assessment and USTQ

After submission of your portfolio, the secretariat of the Faculty Assessment Committee for Teaching Qualifications checks whether the portfolio is complete, after which it is forwarded to the committee for assessment. The committee has a half-hour interview with the lecturer about the portfolio. The committee is chaired by the educational director and also consists of one staff member from the faculty and and an education expert. The secretary of the committee is also present during the interview. The educational director is mandated to award the qualification on behalf of the dean.

If the Committee’s assessment is positive, teachers are sent the certificate and a note is made in the staff file. If the result is negative, an indication will be given as to what additional activities are necessary and if necessary within what time frame.

To conclude

Building up a portfolio takes time. It is therefore advisable to start in time with expressing your wish to obtain a USTQ, to gain relevant experience and pedagogical knowledge, and to set these out in a verifiable portfolio. To organise a suitable package of tasks for the USTQ, consultation with your supervisor will also be necessary.

Inspiration and support available for deepening and further developing your teaching and lecturing is included on the RU-wide lecturer support website: Lecturers | Radboud University (ru.nl) . For further advice on the preparation of reflection and portfolio, please contact Sven Vrins (sven.vrins [at] ru.nl (sven[dot]vrins[at]ru[dot]nl)).

Contact

Do you have questions about the SUTQ? Please send an email to sutqcoordination [at] ru.nl (utqcoordination[at]ru[dot]nl).