Maastricht Young Academy
Are you an early career academic at Maastricht University (UM)? Then we are here for you. At Maastricht Young Academy (MYA), we help get your voice heard on the important issues affecting your work and listen to your concerns, opinions and ideas.
How we operate
MYA members work on various projects throughout the year. We select these projects together, based on our interests and the priorities in our community. In addition, we occasionally host ad hoc events or activities. We also contribute to many task forces and working groups to shape policy inside UM and nationally. Some examples of how we work:
- Everyone faces challenges. Therefore, we host the Growing Up in Science series to talk about our failures and successes.
- We stimulate debate on pressing topics within our community by organising events such as topical film screenings at Lumière Cinema.
- We sponsor intercultural training, because we value diversity yet know it can be challenging.
- We ensure the implications for early-career academics are considered in policies including Recognition & Rewards (R&R) and the assignment of Starters and Incentives Grants.
- We collaborate with the Young Academies of the other Dutch universities to share experiences and learn from good practices.
See the overview of all ongoing projects.
Read our regulations here.
Close collaboration with the Executive Board
We have access to and can comment on important projects and decisions because of our close collaboration with the UM Executive Board. We are regularly consulted on our views on important matters, especially how they affect early-career academics. We have advised on national projects like and R&R, the Smarter Academic Year, and many other issues on the agenda of our Academic Affairs office and Executive Board.
Share new ideas and projects
The MYA is always looking for new projects and ideas! Send Jenny Schell-Leugers (the current MYA Chair) an email (mya@maastrichtuniversity.nl) with your proposal, idea or question and she will contact you as soon as possible.
Recent activities
Dialogue Series “Between the Lines” - a space for early and mid-career academics at UM
❗NEW❗
Join Maastricht Young Academy’s Dialogue Series “Between the Lines” - a space for early and mid-career academics at UM.
Our first session, “The Invisible Load”, invites you to reflect on work pressure in academia and how we can better understand, share, and navigate it together.
Let’s connect across faculties, exchange experiences, and support one another!
Click here to register.
Your annual appraisal
We would like to remind our colleagues that it is your right to have an annual appraisal. Read more here and reach out if you have experienced impediments to getting one.
Meet MYA
All MYA members meet monthly in an informal setting to discuss progress on our projects, debate policy advice we wish to propose, or give updates on what's going on in our university. Agenda items vary, although several topics recur regularly, such as R&R, academic citizenship, and community outreach.