Latest blog articles

The Dutch binary system with a distinction between research-oriented education at research universities and professional higher education at universities of applied sciences is a good thing, says Martin Paul.

The end is near – at least the end of the Dutch language – if we are to believe some of the discussions taking place in the Netherlands. 

Berlin is a fun place. Several of my friends and colleagues have visited it during the last weeks and months. And they were not alone. In 2015, a record number of more than 12 million tourists visited Berlin, most of them staying for a few days. Why has the city become so attractive? First of all...

Maastricht, Netherlands is hosting 600 refugees, in a camp that used to be Netherlands first prison built on the basis of the Prisoners Act, focusing on rehabilitation. A grey building, located behind a tall brick wall with steel window frames. Inside the building the atmosphere is tense, the air...

In a time where religious motives seem to form a base for terror, I was deeply touched by the virgil of peace organised by Maastricht University’s student chaplaincy. Several days after the attacks in Paris, Christians, Jews and Muslims gathered here to pray for peace. It formed a stark contrast...

We occasionally receive letters here at Maastricht University telling us we are ruining the Dutch language by only offering education in English. They do not actually have the facts straight: we are a bilingual university with an ‘English unless policy’, which means the language of instruction is...

A while ago, I discussed the requirements that subsidy providers have set regarding intellectual property... This blog is only available in Dutch.

In the past few days, we’ve commemorated the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II. Seventy years! We used to call that a lifetime. While most of us were born after the war, that same war has affected our lives in one way or another, even though we may not realise it.

Knowing what atrocities...

House of Representatives’ member Pieter Duisenberg from the People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) has proposed to stimulate academic promotions from industrial research. The Confederation of Netherlands Industry and Employers (VNO-NCW) and the association of Dutch SMEs (MKB-Nederland)...