Confidential advisors students

For staff: see Confidential advisor staff

Are you facing a conflict in your studies, internship or clinical training? Or do you feel unsafe, because you are facing undesirable behaviour, such as (sexual) harassment, bullying, or discrimination? The confidential advisors of Radboud University are here for you.

You can contact a confidential advisor free of charge for a confidential conversation. The confidential advisor will listen to your story and discuss with you possible options to resolve your situation. You always stay in control of the process.

How can you contact a confidential advisor?

Don’t hesitate to contact us. The confidential advisors are here to support you. The confidential advisor listens to you, thinks along with you, and helps you determine what your next steps could be. You can contact us in one of the following ways:

Email: send an email to vertrouwenspersonen [at] ru.nl (vertrouwenspersonen[at]ru[dot]nl) in which you indicate that you want to request an appointment; you do not need to provide further details. Within two working days you will be contacted for a brief phone intake interview. Afterwards, one of the confidential advisors will plan an appointment with you.
Phone: On Monday, Tuesday and Thursday between 8:30am - 3pm, you can call 06 43 58 38 73. Our management assistant will then conduct a brief intake interview with you. Afterwards, one of the confidential advisors will make an appointment with you.

When should you consult the confidential advisor?

There are different confidential advisors who deal with different issues. We distinguish between confidential advisors for undesirable behaviour (for employees, PhD students and students), confidential advisors for academic integrity, and confidential advisors for administrative integrity.

Confidential advisor for undesirable behaviour

You can contact a confidential advisor for undesirable behaviour if you have been exposed to online or offline undesirable behaviour. You can also contact them if you are not sure what you have been through. What you experience as hurtful, is always worthwhile to discuss. A confidential advisor can support you in situations of bullying, gossip, aggression, sexually transgressive behaviour or power abuse.

Confidential advisor for academic integrity

You can contact a confidential advisor for academic integrity when you suspect that there might be a violation of research integrity. Examples include: the manipulation or misinterpretation of research results, the falsification of data, bias or dependence in contract research, plagiarism or violation of copyright, or other forms of scientific misconduct.

Not only students of Radboud University can contact our confidential advisers for academic integrity. Anyone can come to them, as long as the question is about a Radboud University employee.

Confidential advisor for whistle-blowers

You can contact the confidential advisor for whistle-blowers if you want to report an activity that may harm the university. This may involve a criminal offence, an infringement of the regulations or misleading an accountant. Or it may concern a threat to public health, public safety or the environment. The university could also be exposed to a serious risk due to the exchange of information, or the omission or withholding of information. The whistle-blower’s regulation helps employees to report suspicions of harmful activities, without getting into trouble.

Infographic confidential advisors

infographic confidential advisers

pdf 69.88 KB

What does a confidential advisor do for you?

A confidential advisor offers a safe space for you to share your experience. The confidential advisor will take a constructive approach and will help you to find a solution that will put an end to the undesirable behaviour. Together, you can explore which steps could be suitable for you, such as:

Initiating a conversation with the person who is making you feel uncomfortable, with or without the confidential advisor present.
Finding a mediator.
Filing a complaint with the independent Complaints Committee, with support of the confidential advisor during the process.

Your story stays confidential and you always stay in control of what happens in the process.

Advisory and signalling role

In addition to a guiding role, the confidential advisor also has an advisory and signalling function. We regularly discuss trends and developments with management and HR, always focusing on the broader context without addressing individual cases. Furthermore, we give advice on policies related to social safety and undesirable behaviour. Do you have a question or want to discuss something? Feel free to reach out to us.

Who are the confidential advisors?

The confidential advisors of Radboud University are independent of faculties or study programmes. They are certified members of the National Association of Confidential Advisors (Landelijke Vereniging van Vertrouwenspersonen).

Contact

If you have a question, signal or report, please send an email to our help desk via vertrouwenspersonen [at] ru.nl (vertrouwenspersonen[at]ru[dot]nl). Our team of confidential advisors will be happy to talk to you and put you in touch with the right confidential advisor, which will be any one of the confidential advisors listed below. Your question, signal or report will be handled with the utmost confidentiality.

You will receive a confirmation and an appointment request for a brief telephone intake the same day. Afterwards, you will be in contact with one of our confidential advisors within 2 working days at the latest.

vertrouwenspersonen [at] ru.nl