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Excellent results of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences in its external research assessment report
4 November 2011
In September 2011, a committee of seven international scholars, chaired by Prof. Dr. Joep Leerssen of the University of Amsterdam, visited the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences to assess the quality of its research and graduate training. The results have now been published.
The faculty’s research institutes and programmes were assessed individually. On a five-point scale, the overarching Research Institute for Arts and Social Sciences receives a score of 5 (excellent) in relevance and a 4 (very good) in the other three categories (quality, productivity, vitality and feasibility). The individual assessment of the faculty’s four research programmes and the independent research entity “Sociaal Historisch Centrum voor Limburg” results in an average score of 4.35 for the faculty’s research. As the report states, FASoS “is now in every respect a fully-fledged participant in the Dutch research community, in some cases firmly established in the national or even international forefront”.
The committee acknowledges that the faculty has experienced substantial growth over the past years and has managed to attract national and international expertise and talent. In the committee’s judgment, the interdisciplinary nature of FASoS puts it “in a unique position” in which the dimensions of empirical analysis, philosophical/theoretical reflection and historical analysis can cross-fertilize one another. The committee also lauds the establishment of a new research programme in Globalization and Development and lends support to the faculty’s commitment to consolidate and strengthen its current palette of research interests in a time of dwindling resources.
The research programme Science, Technology and Society stands out with the best overall score: an excellent “5” in all assessment categories. The committee praises the outstanding track record and internationally leading position of this programme and judges that “a research programme of this excellence sheds lustre on the faculty and the University”. The research programme Politics and Culture in Europe receives a “4” (very good) in all assessed categories. The committee notes the “solid and productive research agenda” as well as the steady output and clear focus of the programme. While noting that the “political and social relevance of the programme is beyond doubt”, the committee encourages the programme to further develop and broaden its focal point “Administrative Governance”. The committee also praises the programme for its recent acquisition of a Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence.
The Arts, Media and Culture research programme receives a “4” for viability and feasibility and a “5” in the field of “relevance”. As recognized by the assessment committee, the AMC programme has successfully managed the reorganization of the group of staff in a period of transition, the integration of the Centre for Gender and Diversity and the achievement of a greater degree of coherence over the assessment period. Moreover, the programme receives praise for its maintenance of “high-quality visibility in (…) Dutch-language publications, with excellent relevance and outreach that informs cultural reflection in society at large.” An increasing visibility of the programme at the international level is noted by the committee, while the ambition of continuing to increase the output in international peer-reviewed publications is fully endorsed. The youngest research programme of the faculty, the Globalisation and Development Initiative (launched in 2008), scores an excellent result as well, despite its young age: two times a “5” (for quality and viability/ feasibility) and two “4’s” (in the categories productivity and relevance). The committee judges this programme to be “an excellent response to the University’s policy of situating European affairs in a more global context” and lauds both the energetic leadership and the academic ambitions of the programme.
The Sociaal Historisch Centrum voor Limburg (SHCL, an independent research institute connected to FASoS) also did extremely well in the assessment. With two “5’s” under its belt (for productivity and quality) and two “4’s” (in the categories productivity and viability and feasibility), the SHCL is commended for its “energetic fresh research focus” and as “an excellent example of fruitfully combining local roots with an international outlook and relevance”. The SHCL’s aim to do comparative historical research that is both regionally and internationally relevant and positioned in an international network of research is clearly highly valued by the committee.
Despite the overall very good to excellent assessment of the faculty’s research, the committee also notes a number of challenges: Dwindling resources for research funding may make it more difficult for FASoS to meet its ambitious targets and to maintain the “fine performance” of past years. The committee puts specific emphasis on the need for timely and adequate replacements of retiring professors. At the same time, FASoS is encouraged to thoroughly explore the ‘branding’ potential linked with the city and region of Maastricht and to continue to clearly define its profile in the light of current societal and political developments.
The full report can be downloaded here.
Questions may be directed to Dr. Thomas Conzelmann, associate dean of research at the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences: t.conzelmann@maastrichtuniversity.nl
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