Don't know who to vote for between 1-3 June? The Vote Compass has got you

Should Utrecht University (UU) collaborate with the Ministry of Defence? Should students have a say in the appointment of a new dean or rector? Should UU be climate-neutral by 2030? Should UU make more spaces available for prayer or reflection?

The vote compass for Utrecht University (UU) students helps them discover which student party best aligns with their views on these and other questions. It is based on eleven statements regarding student life, sustainability, diversity and inclusion, education, internationalisation and militarisation.

When taking the test, voters are presented with statements and asked to indicate whether they agree or strongly agree, disagree or strongly disagree, or are neutral. The Vote Compass is available on the UU website. 

After completing the questionnaire, voters see a percentage indicating how closely their answers align with each student party's positions. This year, voters can choose among the following parties: Academisch Belang Utrecht, Lijst Vuur, PvdUS, Rups and Student Coalition Utrecht (SCU). The far-right party VSP is not included in the voting compass because it did not react to the invitation to participate on time. This year, there are more student parties running for seats in the University Council than in 2025. 

Plenty to choose from
More and more members of the UU community have been complaining that students and staff have too little say at universities. Between today, 1 June, and Wednesday, 3 June, students can do something about this by voting for the university’s most important representative bodies: the University Council, which represents students and staff towards the Executive Board, and the faculty councils, which engage with the faculty boards.

The Vote Compass is designed to help students make a more informed choice for the University Council elections. Student council member Nikki de Bruijn came up with the idea and developed it with other members of the student section. “We aim to ensure that students vote for a party that suits them and hope to reach students who would otherwise not have the inclination or time to read all the manifestos.”

According to the student representative, information is not always easy for students to find. “It’s scattered across the parties' websites, with some relying mainly on their Instagram channels rather than their websites. In addition, it’s particularly difficult for smaller parties to gain visibility. The Vote Compass aims to rectify that.”

Getting students to the ballot box is a challenge every year. Last year, student turnout increased at UU, but it was still dramatically low at 23.6 per cent. The Vote Compass aims to make the University Council elections more accessible by breathing new life into them. Nikki: “We hope that, once students have completed the compass, they’ll be more likely to vote. We want to boost turnout in the elections and raise the profile of student representation. That’s vital for democracy at the university.”

Collaborating with the Ministry of Defence
The party leaders contributed ideas for the statements, after which a consultation selected 11 of them. “We want the compass to clarify how the student parties differ from one another. Three of the parties – Vuur, Rups and Student Coalition Utrecht – often agree with one another. Since party members proposed the statements themselves, they could highlight which issues truly matter to their party.”

According to Nikki, this year's Vote Compass absolutely had to include a statement on Utrecht University’s collaboration with the Ministry of Defence. “This is a hot topic at our university, and the University Council will be addressing it next year. This way, students can also base their vote on issues the University Council discusses and decides upon.”

Although it is called a "Vote Compass", students do not see a compass at the end of the questionnaire. According to Nikki, it is difficult to place the various student parties on a left-right or progressive-conservative spectrum. Nikki: “For example, Lijst Vuur originally drew its support base from study associations, while PvdUS drew its support from student societies. The ideologies of the student parties are primarily based on that, which makes it difficult to categorise them as progressive or conservative.”

If it were up to the student section of the University Council, the Vote Compass could be used in every election. “We have designed the compass so that it can be used again next year and student parties can easily submit other propositions and positions. Hopefully, the university will continue to use it in the future as well.”