UM International Staff Week 2026

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In the context of its 50th anniversary, UM is organising an international staff week. From 9 to 11 June 2026, UM’s global partners are invited to come to Maastricht and exchange ideas during an attractive programme. 

The purposes of this staff week are to:

  • enable key internationalisation staff to exchange knowledge on a wide range of developments and strategic issues in internationalisation policy;
  • inspire and equip participants with strategies and tools to implement and/or optimise their internationalisation policies;
  • stimulate networking among key internationalisation staff, with the objective to foster relations between the participating universities.


Quickly to: 
 Programme
 Practical information
 Meet the speakers

Programme

Day 1: Tuesday 9 June
Lessons from UM’s young history

Deep-dive into problem-based learning & educational innovation

Day 2: Wednesday 10 June

Location:  School of Business & Economics
Address: Tongersestraat 53 6211 LM Maastricht

TimeActivitySpeaker/facilitator
09:00 - 09:15Walk-in with coffee 
09:15 - 10:30Introduction to Problem-based learningDr. Emmaline Brouwer
10:30 - 11:00Presentation: An introduction to EDLABDr. Ellen Bastiaens
11:00 - 12:00Presentation: Reforming academic curricula – the case of the new bachelor’s programme in PsychologyDr. Herco Fonteijn
12:00-12:45Lunch followed by transfer to the Gouvernement 
13:00 - 14:00Presentation on the Maastricht Treaty and its legacy at the Gouvernement

Followed by transfer back to UM
Prof. Sophie Vanhoonacker
14:15 - 15:45World café: Designing effective partnershipsMr. Jan Hupkens, Dr. Rosa Becker, Ms. Maud Dassen, Ms. Magdalena Kohl
15:45 - 16:45Innovating European education: Lessons from Europe’s top-scoring European University alliance YUFEMs. Maria-Valerie Schegk
andQuality assurance in European higher education, the case of CeQuIntDr. Rosa Becker
17:00 - 18:00Coffee break with joint reflections, followed by an informal Erasmus+ gathering hosted by the UM Erasmus+ Office at the Student Services Centre 
18:15 - 20:30Dinner at restaurant “Le Petit Bonheur” 
EDLAB

The university and the community

Day 3: Thursday 11 June

Location:  Studio Europa Maastricht & Faculty of Science & Engineering
Address: Onze Lieve Vrouweplein 22a & Paul-Henri Spaaklaan 1, 6229 GS Maastricht

TimeActivitySpeaker/facilitator
09:30 - 10:00Walk-in with coffee 
10:00 - 10:15Welcome to Studio Europa MaastrichtMr. Valentino Vondenhoff
10:15 - 12:00Workshop Connecting research, public debate, and policy followed by transferMr. Valentino Vondenhoff
12:00 - 13:15Coffee break and visit to the ET Pathfinder research infrastructure 
13:30 - 14:30Presentation on the Faculty of Science & Engineering

Followed by networking lunch
Dean prof. Thomas Cleij
14:30 - 15:30Closure of the International Staff Week, followed by a certificate ceremony & joint reflectionDr. Gonny Willems
After 14.30 Departures or faculty visits 
Vrijthof Maastricht

Practical information

Student looking at laptop

How to apply

You can register for the UM International Staff Week by completing this form. The application deadline is 1 March 2026.

After the deadline, you will receive an e-mail with further information and a payment request. The payment must be made within one week to secure your attendance.
 

Investment

Participation in the UM International Staff Week costs € 350,- per participant. 

Members of UM partner networks YERUN, WUN and YUFE receive a discount of 25%. 


Please note: travel and accommodation expenses are not included. Participants are responsible for arranging and financing their own travel to Maastricht and their accommodation.

It is possible to use your Erasmus+ budget for accommodation and travel expenses.

EDLAB

Conference venues

The programme will take place in various UM locations. The venues will be in one of our university premises in the city centre: 

 UM Executive Building
Minderbroedersberg 4-6

 EDLAB
St. Hubertuslaan 12, Tapijnkazerne 23, Building X

 Studio Europa Maastricht
Onze Lieve Vrouweplein 22a

 

Any hotel in and around the city centre will be at walking distance from this venue. Those who will find accommodation in the outer parts of the city can reach us by city bus.

Hel Poort Studenten

How to get to Maastricht

  1. By plane: you can fly to Amsterdam (Schiphol) or Eindhoven. Both cities have a direct train connection with Maastricht.
     
  2. But you could also fly to the airports of our neighboring countries. Most are closer to Maastricht than Amsterdam. If you would choose to fly to Düsseldorf or Cologne in Germany, then you can reach Maastricht by train via Aachen. If you would fly in through Brussels Zaventem or Charleroi (‘Brussels South’), then you can reach Maastricht by train via Liège.
     
  3. By train (see above). Our national railway company (NS) offers an english version of their route planner https://www.ns.nl/en/journeyplanner#/  .
     
  4. By bus. Maastricht is reachable with the Flixbus network.
     
  5. By car. Please take into account that you will have to pay for parking your car. Maastricht is a relatively small historical city with limited space. Free parking in or close to the city centre is almost impossible.

If you have any questions about travelling do not hesitate to contact us at isw@maastrichtuniversity.nl.

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Where to stay in Maastricht

Maastricht has for years been welcoming many visitors, so you will have a wide choice of hotels and hostels. Since budgets and preferences of people differ, and since many participants are used to make bookings themselves, we have not made any agreements with hotels for our event. 

But of course we can always advise you or answer your questions. Also in this case do not hesitate to contact us at isw@maastrichtuniversity.nl.
 

About Maastricht

Maastricht is a beautiful city with a history that dates back to the roman times. Its historical center offers beautiful little streets, monuments and ample restaurants that are waiting to be discovered. Maastricht is located in the most southern part of the Netherlands countryside and is surrounded by Belgium (Flanders and Wallonia) and Germany. See the following pages if you want to learn more about our city:

Meet the speakers

Rianne Letschert

Prof. Rianne Letschert

Dr. Bart Zwegers

Ellen Bastiaens 

Dr. Ellen Bastiaens

Annechien Deelman

Ms. Annechien Deelman

YERUN coordinator Jan Hupkens

Mr. Jan Hupkens

Herco Fonteijn

Dr. Herco Fonteijn

Thomas Cleij

Prof. Thomas Cleij

Gonny Willems

Dr. Gonny Willems

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Ms. Maud Dassen

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Facilitator: Mr. Nilam Khalil

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Dr. Bror Giesenbauer

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Dr. Rosa Becker

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Ms. Magdalena Kohl

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Ms. Ebru İşgüzarer-Önder

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Mr. Valentino Vondenhoff

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Dr. Eva Rijkers

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