The lack of democracy at UU

Hans Brug, who has recently been appointed President of Utrecht University, believes it is important for the university community to feel involved in the day-to-day running of the university. “It is key to have a university community that engages in genuine dialogue with one another on all important issues,” he notes in an introductory interview with DUB. At the same time, however, Brug does not view the pursuit of democratisation as part of his remit. He considers the existing consultation structures between staff and the Executive Board sufficient.

That's a pity. After all, Utrecht University is clearly struggling with a democratic deficit.

Just how significant that deficit is was recently demonstrated once again in the context of "self-regulation’ regarding English-taught programmes. In April 2025, the administrators of all Dutch universities reached an agreement among themselves to restrict English-taught programmes. They hoped that this "self-regulation" would prevent further political interference in their educational provision. In these talks, Brug’s predecessor, Anton Pijpers, promised to fully switch the Economics programme at Utrecht University, currently taught in English, to Dutch.

However, the university president forgot to consult or even inform anyone, including the dean of the concerned faculty and the Economics department staff. Nor was the University Council involved in these plans at any stage, despite the association of Dutch universities, UNL, having agreed to do this. Lecturers working for the programme in question were only informed months later, in December 2025. Understandably, they were "in shock" and feared redundancies. The protest group WOinActie, which represents the interests of higher education and its workers, called it an "arbitrary exercise of power".

Ultimately, salvation came from outside: a new government took office, and the English-taught programmes on the verge of being abolished were suddenly allowed to keep going. As you can imagine, this did not instantly repair the breach of trust. Many staff members wondered what else the Executive Board has in store for us.

UU is not the only Dutch university grappling with this problem. As part of the self-regulation process, the university presidents also agreed to "Dutchify" all Psychology programmes in the Randstad conurbation, which also caused considerable dissatisfaction among the programmes concerned. They felt they had not been heard in the process. Once again, the staff representative councils were not consulted. Most of all, this so-called self-governance illustrated how top-down Dutch universities are organised – and why that is problematic.

It is therefore hardly surprising that staff confidence in Dutch universities – as gauged in staff surveys – appears very low. At Leiden University, for example, only 12 per cent of staff have confidence in the organisation, according to the 2025 work experience survey (This question was not asked in UU’s biennial staff survey). 

We must therefore make a concerted effort to further democratise our university. As the initiative to do so is unlikely to come from our administrators, I hereby call on the University Council to take steps in this direction. I would like to put forward three concrete proposals:

-Firstly, the University Council should claim the right of consent regarding the appointment of Executive Board members.

-Secondly, the University Council could exercise its supervisory role even more assertively, such as by making more active use of its right of consent regarding the budget.

-Finally, the University Council should campaign for a collective subscription to ScienceGuide. After all, an independent press is crucial for any self-respecting democracy.

On Staff's Viewpoint, UU's employees share their views with the UU community. The Professor of Modern Political History, Annelien De Dijn, is one of the columnists invited for this space. Her columns are originally published in Dutch and translated into English by DUB. You can also read students' perspectives on Students' Viewpoint.